Working for the SNCF in Nazi controlled Paris, Jean-Luc Beauchamps is sent to maintain the tracks at Drancy, from where thousands of people are transported to Auschwitz and the horrors therein. After a sabotage attempt leaves him in hospital, Jean-Luc meets and falls in love with Charlotte and when a desperate young mother, about to be herded onto the train, hands Jean-Luc her new born baby, he turns to Charlotte for help. They set out upon a dangerous journey to escape the Nazis, which will eventually see them settled in America with ‘their’ son. But when the police come knocking, their past comes back to haunt them.

I loved While Paris Slept for so many reasons - the historical details of the deprivation and barbaric conditions not just in the camps but also for citizens in Paris; the way the narrative varies between the different characters so you can see how they are all affected; and the impact and the strains that finding Sam puts on all the relationships. I was gripped from the first page and really didn’t want to put it down. An emotional rollercoaster at times, especially the ending, but a brilliant read. I would recommend to everyone.

I thought While Paris Slept was a captivating and emotional historical novel featuring a touching story about family and sacrifice. The novel is well-written and depicts war-occupied France and the devastating effects of that time. While the book portrays this history very well, in my opinion, I was happy to see that the storyline was also strong.
I’m going to try and write this review with as few spoilers as possible because the revelations of how the character’s lives intertwine are a big part of the story. There were so many levels to the plot, so it was much more than a war novel and the emotional aspects continue well after the war is over - this story is definitely a tear-jerker!
The situation all of the characters are in is heart-breaking and as it’s told from different points of view I felt empathy for all of them. Nine-year-old Samuel is at the heart of the story and by reading the experiences of the two couples in the book, it’s clear how far they both went to protect him. Charlotte and Jean-Luc’s feelings of helplessness in occupied France and Sarah and David’s tragic experience at Auschwitz showed the wide scale of the tragedy of war.
I would have liked to see Charlotte and Jean-Luc reunite with their families after all they’d been through, but I do understand why the focus was on Samuel at the end. And I must say, I thought the ending was perfect. It tied up the story and all the relationships well and highlighted the character development.
I enjoyed Druart’s writing and found myself getting lost in her story from the first page. It is incredibly emotional throughout, so not exactly a light-hearted read, but one I would recommend. I think it would make a great book club pick, even for those not usually drawn to historical fiction, as it’s thought-provoking and features so many discussion points.

A complex story but not quite pulled off.The first part of the story was more believable but the second part where a young child was dragged away and his adopted father imprisoned was less so.. I understood the parents desire for their child but not their belief that everything would be alright.

In 1944 young Jewish mother is forced onto a train bound to Auschwitz when in a moment of desperation she hands over her most valuable possession to a stranger, a decision she’ll live with for the rest of her life.

In 1953 Jean Luc is living in America with his wife Charlotte and young son, having managed to flee war-time France. They think they’ve left the past behind them, but a knock at the door one morning changes everything.

The debut novel from Ruth Druart is a remarkable story of two families whose lives become intertwined in Occupied Paris during the Second World War. With a dual narrative, While Paris Slept seamlessly switches back and forth between time periods without causing confusion amongst readers.

Druart combines history and fiction to great effect, combining the awful reality of war with a story about love and sacrifice. The scenes set in Auschwitz are of course a difficult read given the horrors that occurred at the concentration camp, but Druart ensures that things don’t get too dark and deals with tough topics sensitively and respectfully.

The pacing throughout is spot on, with an action-packed first half and then a slower second half as the story begins to unravel. Despite a somewhat abrupt and predictable ending, not to mention an extreme legal decision, While Paris Slept is an emotional and engaging read which really tugs at the heart strings. The twist, when it comes, is particularly clever, although and certainly makes you think about what you would do if you were in the same situation.

Ruth Druart has created characters who have endured a lot and are all haunted by their past decisions. They are all endearing and likeable, and you find yourselves rooting for them all. With Sarah and David only speaking French Druart copes with language barriers well, and whenever French is used she ensures an English translation is woven into the text to hold the reader’s attention.

While Paris Slept is a moving and powerful story well worth a place on anyone’s book shelf. Just make sure you have some tissues to hand when you read it. This is a strong and compelling debut from Ruth Druart, and I can’t wait to see what she has in store for us in the future.

A fascinating take on WW2, and the Nazi occupation, and how families move on from the trauma they experienced.
As I was listening to the (excellent) audiobook, it took me a little time to follow the different narrations and understand who was who in relation to each other.
The characters were excellent and I was constantly moved by the predicament each of them were in. The narrators were absolutely wonderful, the French and American accents were superb and helped me distinguish who was talking extremely easily.
Fantastic reading experience, and a wonderful book. Highly recommend.

This is a lovely story flicking between 2 time periods.
Jean-Luc is out in an awkward position in occupied France and makes difficult decisions. The characters were well developed and the main characters were likeable and relatable. I would recommend anyone with an interest in WW2/occupied Europe to read this book.

Compelling, tragic, impossible to put down. I wish I had the words to describe this book. On the surface it is about survival during the Second World War, surviving Auschwitz, surviving occupation, surviving because of love.
When a young Jewish mother pushes a baby into the arms of a railway worker seconds before her train leaves for Auschwitz, a. Story of survival and overwhelming love for that child begins.
Eventually a moral dilemma has to be resolved and the future happiness of that child taken into account.
As a reader I want to share this book with others.
This is one book I will be recommending for a long time...

I got While Paris Slept by Ruth Druart from NetGalley for free, for a fair and honest review.


While Paris Slept, is based on the transportation of the Jews from France which took place at night.

A young railway employee who is employed by the Germans to fix the railway tracks at a railway station, from where the Jews are transported at night.

On one such night a young baby is passed to him so that the baby is not transported to the east.

In the process of rescuing the baby he shoots a German soldier, because of this he flees with the baby and his girlfriend to America.

Thinking that the Parents must have died, they bring up the baby as their own.

However nine years later the baby's parents are alive and they want their baby back.


While Paris Slept, is one of those stories that pulls at the heartstrings, as the moral dilemma in the story, is one which has no right or wrong answer. This is especially true as the writer Ruth Druart, explains that each person's actions were the most logical one for individuals to make at the time.

This story is written in the first person, with both parents and the young boy having chapters which were only seen from that characters point of view.

I know there are many readers out there who do not like this style of story, however in this case I feel that if the story was told in the third person, or only the perspective of one or two people, then I feel the story would have been biased to one parent or the other.

With the story being so well balanced in the way that it was told makes the story a lot more emotional and the dilemma of where the child should live is not an easy one to decide.


All this make While Paris Slept by Ruth Druart a great read.

What a powerful debut novel, I found the novel both compelling and moving. The story is one that I know will stay with me for a long time.

It's full of love, fear, hope and makes you really think about the times people went through.

I wasn't sure how this was going to end, How the conclusion would come together but the author managed it very well. I finished the book at 2am with a lump in my throat. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read and review this story.

Switching between Nazi-occupied Paris in 1944 and, post-war, both Paris and Santa Cruz, this is a powerful novel of love, strength, survival and what it means to be a family.

The story is told from a number of perspectives. Jean-Luc is a railway worker who is forced to work on the lines which carry prisoners from Drancy to Auschwitz; Charlotte is the daughter of a wealthy family who has given up her dreams of continuing her academic studies to work in a hospital during the war; Sarah is a Jew trying to survive the Nazi occupation of her native France. Fate throws them together and has lasting, devastating effects on their lives following the war.

This is one of those books that picks you up and carries you along so that, before you know it, it's the early hours of the morning and you've finished the thing! I was surprised at how quickly I became invested in the lives of the characters and the implications and impact of their respective actions during the war. I was genuinely torn about how I wanted the story to end and couldn't see how Druart was going to resolve it, yet resolve it she did, with an emotional punch which is virtually guaranteed to bring a lump to your throat and a tear to your eye. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction.

Sarah and David have a month old son Samuel and they are being sent to Auschwitz by train. Sarah thrusts her son into the arms of Jean-luc and begs him to save her son.
A gut wrenching adventure of escape, fear and Hope. Can the baby survive? Can the parents survive? What will happen in the future? So many questions.
This book brought me to tears, enjoy and remember those who did not make it.

A powerful novel demonstrating the power of familial love. Set initially in Paris during the occupation (1944) and later in San Fransisco (1953) Jean Luc is handed baby Samuel to care for by the distraught mother as she and her Hewish husband are about to be sent to Auschwitz. Jean luc escapes France with the baby and Charlotte who becomes his wife. There they rear Sam as their own child until one day the police call and arrest Jean Luc on charges of kidnapping . The true parents survived and want their son back. The story is harrowing in parts and you can feel for both sets of parents . Who has the rights to the child?
I found the novel both compelling and moving

While Paris Slept is a very emotional story of love and loss, sacrifice and survival, desperation and hope. The heartstrings were definitely pulled whilst reading but what a lovely story and so beautifully written.

An excellent debut novel from Ruth Druart and I look forward to reading more of her work. Historical fiction is my favourite genre to read and this book was every bit as good as some of the well-known WW2-themed titles published in recent years.

I would have liked some mention of Jean-Luc and Charlotte in the epilogue. The reader gets a sense of story closure with the other main characters - Sarah, David and Samuel, whilst Jean-Luc and Charlotte do not feature in the epilogue at all. But nevertheless, there is a beautiful ending to the story.

I really loved this book - the characters are wonderfully depicted, the pace is good and the story flows really well between the different timelines and narratives. Definitely a book I didn’t want to put down!

I am grateful to the publisher, Headline, via NetGalley for an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

While Paris Slept has an excellent premise and was a very good read. The story involves a young Jewish mother who in 1944, before being shipped off to Auschwitz from Nazi-occupied Paris, in desperation hands her newborn baby to a French railway worker.

It's now 1952 and the railworker, Jean-Luc, his wife Charlotte and young Sam are living in America but Jean-Luc is always looking over his shoulder. And one day there is the knock on the door that he has expected.

This is a moving tale of the rescue of a Jewish baby who had no idea who his real parents are and when he learns the truth it brings heartbreak to one couple. I thought it was beautifully written but the epilogue was rushed as if tying up all the threads was important, when perhaps it wasn't needed after all?

I am sure While Paris Slept will be successful. Readers who liked Sarah's Key will enjoy reading this book. Many thanks to NetGalley and Headline Review for the opportunity to read and review it.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest, independent review.

In Paris 1944, railway worker Jean-Luc is doing maintenance work near the transit camp Drancy when he meets Sarah, a French Jew being taken to Auschwitz. She thrusts her newborn baby Samuel to Jean-Luc, asking him to save her child. Along with his young lover Charlotte, Jean-Luc takes Samuel on a perilous crossing across the Pyrenees mountains to safety.

Flash forward nine years after, and Jean-Luc and Charlotte live happily in California with Samuel, now referred to as Sam, who is a typical American nine-year-old and unaware of his past. But his real parents are alive and want him back with them in Paris.

The chapters flick between 1944 and 1953, and the story is told from multiple viewpoints. I'm usually not keen on this, but felt it fitted the storyline, plus liked how some chapters were written in the first person, and some in the third person.

I took a while to get into the pace, but once I did it was unputdownable; I really felt for the characters and had to find out if everything would work out OK. I'm not usually into historical fiction, so I'm so pleased I read this one.

This is a beautifully written, moving debut, about love, loss, courage, and sacrifice. An emotional but fantastic read.

I don't know where to begin, this book and it's characters stole my heart and made me cry. A richly drawn novel which is one of my favourite reads this year.

Paris 1944, A woman hands a stranger the most precious thing in her world as she's herded onto a train bound for Auschwitz with all the horrors she and her husband are going to face. The only thing that keeps them going is the hope of seeing their child and each other again.

Jean-Luc, his wife, Charlotte and their son Sam are living the American Dream in Santa Cruz. It's 1952 and they've left Paris and the war years behind. But the past always catches up... Samuel's Jewish parents have been looking for him since the war ended and what follows is heartbreaking for both couples who both want the best for their son.

Sarah believes Sam should be happy and lets him go a second time despite their heartache. She and David go onto have more children but they never forget their first precious one. And thankfully everything comes the full circle and they experience surprise and ultimately joy. WOW what a book, I loved it!

Save my child

In an emotionally charged moment on a train bound for Auschwitz a young mother makes a heart wrenching decision. She slips her two month old son into the arms of a railway worker with the words save my son. The young railway worker, Jean-Luc has to shoot a Nazi guard in the leg and steal his uniform to get away with the child. He runs to his girlfriend Charlotte because he doesn't know what to do with the child. Now they are both on the run from the Nazi's with the child. The parent's David and Sarah are on their way to Auschwitz.

Eight years later Charlotte and Jean-Luc and their son Sam are living in California. Life is good and Sam is a happy healthy son. Then the police knock on their door. Sarah and David have been searching for their son and he has been found.

The story is about the earlier times with the baby Samuel, but mostly it is about after Samuel is returned to his Jewish parents Sarah and David. How do they reconnect with their sad homesick son that wants to be with Charlotte and Jean-Luc? What are they willing to do to make him happy?

This is a story of two couples loving one child with all their hearts. Both want the best for Sam but only one set of parents can be his parents. It is a heartbreaking story and will cause you tears for everyone. So many families were torn apart, children separated from parents. This is a story of the War, but it is a story of the aftermath of the war that is caused but one such separation.

I enjoyed reading this story, it was exciting and heartbreaking. I would recommend it.

Thanks to Ruth Druart, Headline, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a copy for an honest review.

While Paris Slept was a wrenching tale set in both Santa Cruz in 1953 and wartime Paris. It focuses on Jean-Luc and Charlotte, a French couple living in America with their son Sam. One day some official looking men take Jean-Luc away for questioning and the story begins.

We find that Jean-Luc worked at Bovigny train station, a platform for Drancy concentration camp. The American investigators look at him with disdain but as the tale progresses we learn things about Jean-Luc which call the reader to question the nature of complicity and ponder whether some acts of collaboration were justifiable.

We learn that a woman bound for Auschwitz gave her precious newborn son to a stranger in an attempt to save him from her fate.

Past and future collide in this book and the result is messy and brings into question the very nature of motherhood and what defines a family.

While Paris Slept is a unique take on this particular piece of history and one which will no doubt tear the reader in multiple directions. Beautifully written.

I found it very hard to write this review because I don't want to give anything away to a future reader, suffice to say it is well worth reading,

“While Paris Slept...” is a story set in large amounts during the Second World War in Paris. However, unlike a lot of other similar books, it focuses on the repercussions of what happened during the war and, more specifically, on what happened after one woman’s fateful decision.

This woman is Sarah. During the war, she entrusts her most precious possession to a stranger, Jean-Luc. What he and his girlfriend, Charlotte, then do has a huge effect that impacts the lives of many well after the end of the conflict.

Despite the nature of some of the story (rarely are Second World War books an easy read!), I did enjoy this book. It was refreshing to see the aftermath of the war and the effect that it (and the decisions made throughout it) had on the main characters. I also enjoyed that it told the story from their different perspectives and that it drip fed the plot. I do think that the big reveal that happens part way through the book was fairly obvious. And I also felt some of the language was overly descriptive. But the strength of the book is definitely the story that it tells and the message of how strong love can be.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

Please see LoveReading.co.uk for the full Review. While Paris Slept was chosen as a LoveReading Debut of the Month and LoveReading Star Book.