The Nightingale

"In love we find out who we want to be, in war we find out who we are."

Kristen Hannah

The Nightingale

Every once in a while there's a novel that just makes you so attached to the characters, that draws you into the story so completely, and that makes you have these feelings. The Book Thief was one, All the Light You Cannot See was another. With such wonderful prose and compelling stories that paint a world so complete that you can't help but miss the characters after you have finished the book. The Nightingale is such a book.

The story follows two sisters in France at the beginning of World War II. Isabelle and Vianne are scarred from their mothers death and their fathers abandonment, and as the war comes to France they find themselves reacting to the atrocities committed in vastly different ways. Vianne works hard to protect her family, while Isabelle joins the resistance. Throughout the war their wills are tested, and the sisters do what they can to survive.

This book was beautiful. I loved it. I loved the characters, especially Isabella. I loved the way Kristen Hannah wrote. I loved how feminist the book was, with two strong female characters who were both extremely strong in different ways, with different passions and values. I loved that the men in the book never told them not to be strong, or that they couldn't do something. This is one of those books that I couldn't put down once I started and left me crying at the end. It was sad. But so incredibly worth it. This is a novel that I highly recommend!!!