Lana's War - Anita Abriel
I haven’t read as much WW2 historical fiction as I would normally do this year, so I was excited to get into this one during the holidays. It’s a quick read, very fast-paced, and for the most part holds up. If you like historical fiction that has a heavy side of romance, then you will probably enjoy Lana’s War.
Lana Antanova’s mother fled Russia during the Revolution and brought her daughter up in Paris. Lana marries her love Frederic at the beginning of WW2, but after witnessing his murder at the hands of the Gestapo, and then losing her unborn child, she decides to join the French Resistance. Posing as a Russian countess looking for some fun on the French Riviera, she works as a spy with the intent on saving as many Jewish families from being deported as she can.
I enjoyed the whole French Riviera jetset theme, where life continues to go on despite the atrocities that are happening right in front of them, where everyone plays a role (or two), and you never know who you can trust or not. But I wanted more depth, and felt like everything was just too rushed for my liking. Lana and Guy both felt one-sided, and I couldn’t find myself connecting to either of them. The only character I liked was Pierre, the cab driver/Resistance hero. I personally felt like there was so much focus on the romance side (which wasn’t completely plausible to me), that the actual bones of the plot (WW2, Resistance, spies etc etc) fell to the wayside and wasn’t developed as much as it should have been. There are a few areas that aren’t 100% correct based on the timeline, but I grew up in France and studied WW2 inside and out so I know I’m a bit too nitpicky!
If you are looking for a quick romance to read with a bit of a WW2 setting, this will suit your tastes. Lana’s War wasn’t really my cup of tea (although it was well written, in a dreamy tone that suited the story well).
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.