A review by nursenell
Mistress of the Ritz by Melanie Benjamin

4.0

My initial impression of this book was such I was going to quit reading it. I found it very hard to get into but sticking with it, the story did redeem itself. It is based on the true story of Claude and Blanche Auzello. Claude is the director of the Ritz Hotel in Paris at the time it is taken over by the Nazi's and used as their headquarters. Blanche and Claude make their home in the Ritz. He must, of necessity, cater to the Nazi's. This is the story of how they each become involved with the Resistance, without the knowledge of the other. She thinks she knows where Claude goes when phone calls come in the middle of the night, and he thinks she is a drunk. The truth is much more noble for each, and they don't find out until it is almost too late.