A #1 New York Times bestseller, Wall Street Journal Best Book of the Year, and soon to be a major motion picture, this unforgettable novel of love and strength in the face of war has enthralled a generation. With courage, grace, and powerful insight, bestselling author Kristin Hannah captures the epic panorama of World War II and illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: the women’s … history seldom seen: the women’s war. The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France—a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime.
Goodreads Best Historical Novel of the Year • People’s Choice Favorite Fiction Winner • #1 Indie Next Selection • A Buzzfeed and The Week Best Book of the Year
Praise for The Nightingale:
“Haunting, action-packed, and compelling.” —Christina Baker Kline, #1 New York Times bestselling author
”Absolutely riveting!…Read this book.” —Dr. Miriam Klein Kassenoff, Director of the University of Miami Holocaust Teacher Institute
“Beautifully written and richly evocative.” —Sara Gruen, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“A hauntingly rich WWII novel about courage, brutality, love, survival—and the essence of what makes us human.” —Family Circle
“A heart-pounding story.” —USA Today
“An enormous story. Richly satisfying. I loved it.” —Anne Rice
“A respectful and absorbing page-turner.” —Kirkus Reviews
”Tender, compelling…a satisfying slice of life in Nazi-occupied France.” —Jewish Book Council
“Expect to devour The Nightingale in as few sittings as possible; the high-stakes plot and lovable characters won’t allow any rest until all of their fates are known.” —Shelf Awareness
“I loved The Nightingale.” —Lisa See, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“Powerful…an unforgettable portrait of love and war.” —People
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This is one of those books that sticks with you for a long time. I still think of it fairly often, even though it’s been almost 2 years since I read it. I had read other books by Kristin Hannah and liked them, but this one blew all her other books out of the water. The story is compelling, and the writing is good. The time period is not an easy …
Okay, it took me waaay too long to get to this book. (My TBR pile is huge!) But I’m so glad I finally did. If you’re like me and don’t often venture into literary fiction, don’t be worried. I couldn’t put this book down. This is a book you MUST read. I absolutely loved it.
This was an incredible book. I didn’t know much about WWII and definitely not how things were for countries that Germany occupied. I was shocked to say the least. I love Kristin Hannah and recommend anything by her.
Great historical fiction about WWII and German occupied France. I couldn’t put it down! I love learning about WWll through historical fiction. This is definitely a must read!!
Through choked up tears I highly recommend this book. There is not a step missed in this historical novel about the pains and triumphs of World War Two during France’s occupation and resistance.
I was naive enough to think that I read so much about that time period that there was nothing left to surprise me. The conflict of adult sisters trying …
This book kept me on an emotional roller coaster. So well-written, well-researched, and compelling. I loved the characters. I couldn’t put it down. Bravo, Kristin Hannah!
A good book makes me live the story, or parts of it. This book met my definition — I felt the emotions, the cold, the hunger, the pain and so much more in this well written story of women surviving and resisting in France in WWII. Flashbacks between contemporary times and the War added to the development of the storyline and one of the main …
Wonderful characters. I love how Hannah showed two very different female roles in a wartime setting, and how they each showed strength and resilience in their own way.
Kristin Hanna’s book The Nightingale was wonderful. She captured wartime France during World War II in a mesmerizing way. The book is beautifully written, richly evocative, and full of so much emotion that you will not want to put it down. I highly recommend it! It’s one of those rare books you are sure to want to reread! Enjoy!
I’m already a fan of Kristen Hannah, and everyone kept telling me I needed to read The Nightingale. I don’t often read historical fiction, so perhaps that was why I’d put off picking it up, but considering our current lockdown situation, I knew I needed a read that was going to completely absorb me, and Kristen Hannah’s books always do that.
The …
This book was fantastic. I had heard about it for quite some time and finally picked up a copy to read. I learned so much about what life might have been like for those living in occupied France, and I ended the book in tears (not a frequent occurrence for me). Highly recommend.
I read Hannah’s The Great Alone recently, and I knew I needed more of her work immediately. Hannah’s writing is elegant, poignant, and memorable, and she weaves decades-spanning tales like no other author I’ve read.
The Nightingale recounts the stories of two sisters — Vianne and Isabelle — in World War II France. While exceptionally different, …
Literally walked slowly on the treadmill instead of working out so I didn’t have to put this book down while at the gym. So good–do yourself a favor and get it today.
This is one of my all time favorites. There is a lot of history in this book as it goes back to the World War and when the Nazis are reeking havoc all over Europe. It is very well written and it goes back and forth from present time to war time. I highly recommend!!
I read this for the second time recently and enjoyed it as much as the first time. The characters, and the difficult decisions they face, make this hard to put down.
I spent my plane ride yesterday crying quietly behind my kindle as I read the last 50% of this. When I started I was all “cool-cool here’s two sisters in Occupied France (gawd why must we all be SO obsessed with France) and one is a young mother and one is a rebel I know where this is going” and the thing is THAT’S WHERE IT GOES and even though I …
I’m always up for reading history, and so much WWII fiction is out there, so it could get overdone, but Kristin Hannah found a new angle. This book has two timelines and is about two sisters. It’s beautifully written and though it takes place mostly in France, it’s not the typical WWII book you might have read. I’ve long enjoyed Hannah’s work, …
Can’t say enough great things about it. This will be a classic piece of work that lives on for years to come and one I can’t imagine I will ever stop recommending.
My favourite Kristin Hannah novel! Historical fiction is my go-to genre and this story did not disappoint. I’ve been a fan for years but this novel elevated Hannah on my list of most-respected authors. Tragic, heartbreaking and hard to read in places, it is also a testament to courage, love and loyalty.
Near the end of The Nightingale, a novel by Kristin Hannah, the protagonist, an old woman, makes an observation in 1995. Looking back at her life and her role in the French Resistance during World War II, she observes that war is essentially a guy thing.
When it comes to remembering wartime contributions, it is men who get the parades and the …