Title: Paris     

Author: Edward Rutherfurd

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Anchor Canada

Format: Paperback

Pages: 832

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Synopsis (Goodreads):

From the grand master of the historical novel comes a dazzling epic portrait of Paris that leaps through centuries as it weaves the tales of families whose fates are forever entwined with the City of Lights.

    As he did so brilliantly in London: The Novel and New York: The Novel, Edward Rutherfurd brings to life the most magical city in the world: Paris.

   This breathtaking multigenerational saga takes readers on a journey through thousands of years of glorious Parisian history–from its founding under the Romans to the timeless love story of Abelard and Heloise against the backdrop of the building of Notre Dame; to the martyrdom of Joan of Arc during the Hundred Years War; to the dangerous manipulations of Cardinal Richelieu and the bloody religious conflicts between Catholics and Protestants; to the gilded glories of Versailles; to the horrors of the French Revolution and the conquests of Napoleon; to the beauty and optimism of the belle epoque when Impressionism swept the world; to the hotbed of cultural activity of the 1920s and ’30s that included Picasso, Salvador Dali, Ernest Hemingway, and the writers of the Lost Generation; to the Nazi occupation and the incredible efforts of the French Resistance.

   Even more richly detailed, thrilling, and romantic then anything Rutherfurd has written before, Paris: The Novel illuminates thousands of years in the City of Lights through intimate and vivid tales of characters both fictional and true, and with them, the sights, scents, and tastes of Paris come to sumptuous life.

Review:

I loved this book! I was so excited to dive back into another Rutherfurd book after reading London last January! So as it has been a year since I read that book, it was time to get immersed in his storytelling.

Paris tells the story of the city. Of the people, of the places, and the history. The book spans several centuries and brings the city to life by showing the love its inhabitants have for it throughout the years. It follows 6 families throughout the centuries, and depicts their lives at different points in history. I love a good work of historical fiction, so I enjoyed how this book depicted so many great historical events, such as the St Bartholomew day massacre in the 1500s, the building of the Eiffel Tower, and the French resistance in the Second World War. The book focuses on one generation in more depth than the other generations, which was a nice way to connect the reader to the story. However, I wish the author would have spent some more time on the time of Charlemagne and the French Revolution. I think these were such important times in the history of France that I would have liked to have seen more detail to those time periods. But I understand that the author chose to focus on other time periods, which is fair as it’s his book!

Overall, I loved it! Definitely recommend!

Happy reading!