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georgie_mb's review against another edition
4.0
This book didn’t completely blow me away, but it also didn’t leave me bored either!
I loved the storyline from the perspective of both characters that shifted from one to another in each chapter. They certainly are flawed (which I love) and a real contrast from each other. I did find the character of Hannah a little flat, but that is part of her nature. I think I just wanted a little more sometimes, even when she talks about her failed romance with the Russian poet.
I really loved how at different points, the smaller characters and events find their way subtly into the main characters chapters, it’s very cleverly done!
The main thing that kept me reading was the portrayal of Paris!! I’m a sucker for travel, and being restricted from being able to do that right now is hard. So this book with all its descriptions of this wonderful city had me yearning to jump on the Eurostar ASAP!
I loved the storyline from the perspective of both characters that shifted from one to another in each chapter. They certainly are flawed (which I love) and a real contrast from each other. I did find the character of Hannah a little flat, but that is part of her nature. I think I just wanted a little more sometimes, even when she talks about her failed romance with the Russian poet.
I really loved how at different points, the smaller characters and events find their way subtly into the main characters chapters, it’s very cleverly done!
The main thing that kept me reading was the portrayal of Paris!! I’m a sucker for travel, and being restricted from being able to do that right now is hard. So this book with all its descriptions of this wonderful city had me yearning to jump on the Eurostar ASAP!
thebooktrail88's review against another edition
4.0
Visit the locations in the novel
The story is separated into chapters each of them named after a metro station or area of the city. (It’s actually a really fun and quirky way of finding your way around as well) Paris is the city for reading its history through the names of its stations and streets. Some of them reveal historical battles, figures and a moment in time. Every one is a chapter in Tariq and Hannah’s stories.
I found the characters of Tariq and Hannah to be very interesting in how they give such unique viewpoints of a time and place, a setting and the people of the city over time.Both are outsiders but each wander the streets looking for something, answers, a history, a clue …..Two lost souls in a city lost to them.
Hannah’s story looking into the women during the war and how they reacted to the German occupation was interesting. Often a part of history forgotten. There were some tough ‘scenes’ to read and it made me think of all those stories women never got to tell, that we still don’t know about.
This was like a history lesson told via the metro stations with a good strong message. Two people wanting to find answers talk and help each other to form a bigger picture so they both find their own story. The city, and the past are full of surprises but it’s only by looking into the past and learning from it that we can really continue and move forward. How we deal with war, how we fall into the trap of following the crowd, drowning out individual voices, how war shapes a person…there’s lots in here to explore.
It does read a bit heavy handed at times and doesn’t flow in parts. The story also sometimes
rosannajhunt's review against another edition
4.0
17.30
For a Faulks fan/Francophile, this novel was like catching up with an old friend. I’m not sure that the travels through time and history always totally worked, but it was an enjoyable and thought-provoking journey in any case.
For a Faulks fan/Francophile, this novel was like catching up with an old friend. I’m not sure that the travels through time and history always totally worked, but it was an enjoyable and thought-provoking journey in any case.
sunflower_reads's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
hsbsbeysb's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I picked this up for the setting. I was not disappointed. The choice of language was beautiful. It didn’t go too far into the cliché direction I was fearing- a nice change- but it felt like it didn’t have a direction to begin with. The historical and literary anecdotes were intriguing, and maybe focused on a bit too much, with regards to their place in the story. But I did overall enjoy it, even if the plot wasn’t the most exciting, as the language the book consists of, more than makes up for it.
joli_folie's review against another edition
2.0
I chose this book because of where it was set, the author, and the story that I thought it was going to be. Since we lived in Paris, I loved imagining in my mind the streets that were named and that made it better for me. For non-familiars to Paris, it might not have been.
I thought the story was going to focus on the researchers findings of stories of women during WW2 in Paris. It deviated way too far off the track for me to say I enjoyed it.
A real pity, as I loved Faulks' Charlotte Gray and it was set around the same period.
I thought the story was going to focus on the researchers findings of stories of women during WW2 in Paris. It deviated way too far off the track for me to say I enjoyed it.
A real pity, as I loved Faulks' Charlotte Gray and it was set around the same period.
mamasquirrel's review against another edition
3.0
The same beautiful language that I come to expect from Faulks, and I enjoyed the characters, but the topic was too subtly addressed for me right now. I came away confused and wanting more conclusion. I feel like these topics (the African/French inter-immigration and the Vichy France situation) could each have been drawn out more distinctly and more could have been told about each of the main characters' journeys.
shelfquest's review against another edition
3.0
I feel like Paris Echo doesn't know what kind of a book it wants to be, so it is a few of them bound together: literary fiction and historical fiction with a sprinkle of self-discovery and ghosts. Our main characters are Hannah, a 30-something researching her contribution to a history book, and Tariq, a nineteen-year-old who decided to take a break from his native Morocco. Both of them have issues they're working on though they don't know it until they've already worked things out. I didn't find either character to be particularly believable or interesting but the writing style is different from what I usually read - that is what kept reading Paris Echo interesting for me. Ultimately it was an enjoyable read but this probably won't be a book I'll remember for very long.
I was given a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I was given a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.