Cry of the Heart: Heartbreak and Hope in Occupied France

A World War II Novel

By: Martin Lake

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

She gave away her child to save his life. Another woman took him in, at risk to herself.

Viviane Renaud is a young mother living on the French Riviera in the Second World War. Times are hard but she is not the sort to be dismayed by circumstances. One day her life changes forever. A young Jewish woman, fleeing from the authorities, begs her to take care of her four year old boy, David. Almost without thinking, Viviane agrees.

Viviane’s life is never the same again. She fabricates a story to explain how David came to be with her and must tip-toe around the suspicions of her neighbours, her friends and most of all her mother and sister. She and her husband, Alain, find allies in unlikely places, particularly an American woman, Dorothy Pine.

But then, the world crashes around them. Threatened by Allied military success, Hitler sends the German army to occupy the south of France. With them come the SS and the Gestapo. The peril for Jews and for those, like Viviane, who hide them, appears overwhelming. The challenge for them now is to survive.

Terrible way to end the story

OK storyline. There are much better books available about French occupation during World War II. The book just abruptly ends. Do not recommend.

This freaking ending omg

Loved the ending, a quiet book until it kicks into
gear. I plan on rereading to understand better, but I really enjoyed this book as a whole

Great story

I dislike the AI narration, it sounds fake. Real people telling the story would have been so much better

Virtual voice

I did not like the virtual voice reading at all. I will try to avoid those in the future.

The sacrifice of the main character Vivian’s

I definitely didn’t care for several characters in the story and how the we’re supposed to friends of the family. Viviane’s sister was mean and cruel. A good story but they should have tied a few characters before ending the book