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Aug 06, 2019darladoodles rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A toast to Kristin Harmel for the sparkling facts we have learned about making champagne. It is an industry that many know only from afar -- perhaps just an occasional wedding toast. Clearly there was a large amount of research done to produce this novel. There are POV: Liv in the present; Elas and Celine in the past (beginning in 1939). The combination of the champagne business and the resistance was an aspect of the war that was unknown to me previously. It was fascinating to see the two couples (Michel & Elas; Theo & Celine) working together and the ways they responded to the pressures of the business, the stresses of living in a time of war and especially their reactions to the resistance. Some of the characters really frustrated me. I'm not sure I always understood why they made the decisions that they did. That may be just the nature of living in wartimes and not indicative of a lack in character development. In the end, Harmel pulls it off with some tears and cheers. Well done. Will definitely appeal to fans of "The Nightingale" and "The Lost Girls of Paris." Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.