Anny P. (wolfnme) reviewed on + 3389 more book reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Ranging from World War I-era Europe to contemporary New York, Norman's ( In Love and Friendship ) intense, highly dramatic novel focuses on two indomitable women who stoically face misfortunes. Raised in Hungary by Catholic adoptive parents who hide her Jewish origins, Krisztina Florian falls in love with German Jew David Kaufmann. Her anti-Semitic father forbids them to meet, and a determined suitor, Baron Laurent de Trouvere, schemes to have David sent to a concentration camp. Disconsolately marrying the baron, Krisztina settles in at his exquisite chateau in Alsace, where she discovers his pro-Nazi sentiments and fierce temper. Soon widowed, she raises her son, Olivier, remodels the chateau into a deluxe hotel, and remarries. But her son becomes a monster of selfishness, greed, and anti-Semitism. Only his loyal half-sister, Ella, wins Olivier's love, yet his affiliation with a dangerous neo-Nazi organization almost costs her life. Norman manages her characters well, skillfully conveying the pains of loss and betrayal. The novel concludes with a memorably chilling, suspense-filled confrontation.
Ranging from World War I-era Europe to contemporary New York, Norman's ( In Love and Friendship ) intense, highly dramatic novel focuses on two indomitable women who stoically face misfortunes. Raised in Hungary by Catholic adoptive parents who hide her Jewish origins, Krisztina Florian falls in love with German Jew David Kaufmann. Her anti-Semitic father forbids them to meet, and a determined suitor, Baron Laurent de Trouvere, schemes to have David sent to a concentration camp. Disconsolately marrying the baron, Krisztina settles in at his exquisite chateau in Alsace, where she discovers his pro-Nazi sentiments and fierce temper. Soon widowed, she raises her son, Olivier, remodels the chateau into a deluxe hotel, and remarries. But her son becomes a monster of selfishness, greed, and anti-Semitism. Only his loyal half-sister, Ella, wins Olivier's love, yet his affiliation with a dangerous neo-Nazi organization almost costs her life. Norman manages her characters well, skillfully conveying the pains of loss and betrayal. The novel concludes with a memorably chilling, suspense-filled confrontation.
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