Elastic Time
The Emerald Twins by Helen Fripp is a powerful dual timeline novel that I absolutely adored. It consumed my every waking moment.
The novel is set in 1944 and present day. The earlier period also jumps forwards in time at pivotal moments in the character’s life.
We witness the unbreakable love that transcends time and space, as we see the invisible bond that links twins – twins that were cruelly wrenched apart in Paris in 1944 by a greedy S.S. officer.
Throughout their lives, both twins searched for the other. “I’m only half when she’s not here.” They kept each other alive in their thoughts, often speaking out loud. “I don’t know where you are, but I’ve kept you alive all this time in my thoughts.”
There are some truly heart-wrenching scenes. The mother inside me wept for lives torn apart. And there were near-misses, but not close enough.
Black hearts were born, and continued in a similar vein to their father.
The reader witnesses the building of the Berlin wall in 1961. We see the far-reaching and underhand tactics of the Stasi.
In present day a granddaughter receives a surprise inheritance that sends her delving into the past for answers.
All the characters were well drawn, realistic and the majority were likable. The love of the characters reached from the pages to encompass the reader.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Emerald Twins. It is a book showing that true love never dies.
I received a free copy from the publishers. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.
JULIA WILSON
Book Description:
AN IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE
France, 1944. In an opulent hotel room above the streets of Paris, a mother sobs and clutches her twin daughters tight. A German officer says, ‘Give me the emerald, and I will only take one of your children. The choice is yours.’
AN UNBREAKABLE PROMISE
Five-year-old Nina weeps for her sister. But a warm, familiar hand strokes her golden hair. ‘The jewel, the Emerald Lake, it brings people together. You will find her.’
THREE GENERATIONS OF SECRETS
South of France, present day. Fleur arrives at a beautiful villa by the sparkling Mediterranean, devastated at the loss of her grandmother Nina. She has no other family. Why did Nina never tell her she owned this place? Then, tucked away in the villa, she finds a faded missing poster showing a little girl, blonde hair tied with red ribbons, holding a message: Do you know my twin sister?
The accompanying newspaper clippings about jewellery auctions throughout the years tell Fleur that answers lie in the replica emerald ring that Nina wore every day, now adorning her own finger.
Local gem expert Nicolas is the only one who can help find the truth. But as they uncover a heartbreaking story of a family torn apart by war, the pair face danger from an unexpected place. And Fleur must ask if her grandmother kept her secrets for a reason…
An absolutely devastating, epic and unforgettable read that will sweep you through the generations and whisk you away to the cobbled streets of Paris and the turquoise waters of the South of France. Anyone who loves Rhys Bowen, Fiona Valpy or Lucinda Riley will be utterly captivated.
Author Bio:
Helen Fripp is fascinated by history and by women who have made their mark against all the odds. To her, the past really is another country, where the architecture, art and customs of the time are sumptuously and lyrically evoked and where her female characters rail against the social constraints to which they are subject. Epic in scope, but human in scale, the motivations, flaws, loves and everyday lives of her characters are what Helen loves to imagine and create, against sweeping historical backdrops.
Helen lives in Bath, but will find any excuse to take off and research a captivating location or person for her next story. She has worked in Paris and spent a year with her family in a fishing village in South West France.
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Publicist
Bookouture
Storyfire Ltd
Carmelite House
50 Victoria Embankment
London EC4Y 0DZ
Storyfire Limited, a member of Hachette UK Group, registered in England and Wales under company no. 7893911
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