The Riviera House

By: Natasha Lester

Narrated by: Barrie Kreinik

Length: 14 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

A lush and engrossing novel of one woman’s quest to keep Nazis from stealing priceless art during WWII, perfect for fans of The Rose Code.

Paris, 1939: The Nazis think Éliane can't understand German. They’re wrong. They think she’s merely cataloging art in a Louvre museum and unaware they’re stealing national treasures for their private collections. They have no idea she’s carefully decoding their notes and smuggling information to the Resistance. But Éliane is playing a dangerous game. Does she dare trust the man she once loved with her secrets, or will he only betray her once again? She has no way to know for certain...until a trip to a stunning home on the French Riviera brings a whole new level of peril.

Present day: Wanting to forget the tragedy that has left her life in shambles, Remy Lang heads to a home she’s mysteriously inherited on the Riviera. While working on her vintage fashion business, she discovers a catalog of the artworks stolen during World War II and is shocked to see a painting that hung on her childhood bedroom wall. Who is her family, really? And does the Riviera house hold more secrets than Remy is ready to face?

©2021 Natasha Lester (P)2021 Forever

Critic reviews

"Beautifully written and intimately researched, The Riviera House weaves an intriguing and wonderfully imagined path between WW2 Paris and modern-day French Riviera. Lester handles the darker aspects of war sensitively, while effortlessly drawing the reader into a powerful tale of art, passion and secrets. Like the masterpieces she writes about, Lester adds rich layers and real depth to her characters, and fans of historical fiction and dual timeline novels will be mesmerised as connections are slowly revealed, building toward a heart wrenching finale. Magnifique!" (Hazel Gaynor, NYT best-selling author of When We Were Young & Brave)

“The Riviera House is a poignant meditation on loss and the courage it takes to start over. A stark reminder of how the past influences the present, the novel kept me up at night, turning the pages faster and faster, in order to be with its heroine Remy as she solved the mystery of an enigmatic painting and learned what happened to the Résistants who risked their lives to help others.” (Janet Skeslien Charles, New York Times best-selling author of The Paris Library)

"In Hitler's war on civilization, a group of women and men risk everything to protect the art in their care, but it's not until decades later that the profound extent of their sacrifice is discovered. The Riviera House is a love letter to art in all its forms. With beautiful prose and immeasurable heart, Natasha Lester shows we must dare to love, in spite of fear, no matter the cost.” (Erika Robuck, national best-selling author of The Invisible Woman)

Intriguing story

Really helped me understand some of the difficulties of those in occupied Europe during WWII. The narrator moved SEAMLESSLY from her native accent to German, French, American, and Australian accents. Well done.

Amazing

I rarely take the time to write a review but this book requires that I make the time! It was amazing. The author pulled emotions from me that I cannot begin to describe. It may have been the subject matter or the narrator’s tone but the author is who I want to give the credit. I was completely captivated by this story.

Excellent Book

I am a big fan of this type of book. This book has art, history, heartache, romance/love and evil done by the Nazis. I very much recommend it. The narrator's voice/accent is very appropriate for the story and very easy on the ears.

True love

Great read,compelling story. DETAILED BACKSTORIES. VERY BELIEVABLE.TIME REVEALS LOVE THROUGHOUT HISTORY AND ANCESTORY. DEEPLY MOVING

The Riviera House

I listened to the audio recording of this book and I needed a box of tissue handy. I loved the story. It takes place in 2 different time periods, WWII and 2015, mostly in France. It involves art, spies, traitors, fashion, lovers and children. I highly recommend this one! 👌

Very good story enjoyed it all

A very good story I felt the aging and joys myself. narrative was excellent Joanne M.

Lots to like -- and, some not

With the driving theme that of saving irreplaceable, master artworks as the Nazis swarmed across Europe and gutted Paris during World War ll, The Riviera House was a multi-layered undertaking for the author, requiring, I'm certain, considerable research, self-discipline and dedication. Keeping all of the story threads cohesive, entwining understandably and evolving logically, must have been a huge effort. It was achieved. "Hats off" to Natasha Lester for creating an intricate, entertaining, interesting story based enough on facts and history to ring truly. Riviera House prompted me to delve into a bit more of history around the story as I listened and, to feel that, because of this book, I've increased my knowledge of this dramatic, distinct and horrific time.
The narrator, Barrie Kreinik took some getting used to; I did get to where she didn't grate on my nerves the farther into the book that I ventured. Overall, she was probably a good choice for the narration, but, for the first few chapters, her haughty, stuffy British accent nearly put an end to my listening.
Natasha Lester created a bevy of interesting, colorful, believable characters; so much so, that one character eventually really got to me and I found myself "talking" to her and telling her to "get a grip...". I guess I related quite a bit to the contemporary character, "Remy", if experiencing tragic losses in one's life is a bonding factor. But, Remy irritated, even disgusted me as she was portrayed as a character of nearly bottomless self-centeredness, indulging in inflicting pain at will as she attempted to flee from dealing with her personal tragedy of shocking death.
Even with the above consideration, I found The Riviera House to be entertaining, interesting and I recommend it. I can imagine myself re-listening to this book at some point down the line.

Enjoyed this

This was a great book. The author is a great writer. The narrator was wonderful. I do recommend this if you like great World War II books.

Excellent Story

It was a mind blowing nail biting story. Followed by ups and downs and twisting and turning. Keep me guessing and on the edge of my seat.

Great book!

This was such a wonderful book I couldn't stop Listening to it.

I would highly recommend it.