I had the pleasure of reading this before it was released and got to meet the author and ask so many questions. Historical fiction is something so would say I usually hate but god this was so different. It was beautiful and it hurt at times. The openness o Claude and Marcel together versus their closedness to the world and not just in their queerness but in other aspects of their identities is just so captivating.

A beautiful and true love story of life long devotion, beginning when Suzette and Lucie meet as children, feeling an instant attraction to each other. Suzette the writer, the photographer, the observer, the memory keeper drawn to the mercurial and volatile Lucie, overflowing with artistic talent. These two meet during the wonderful hedonistic years between the two wars. In a bizarre twist they become step sisters through the marriage of their parents, further bonding them for life.

They take it upon themselves to challenge the norms of the time by changing their names to Claude Chahun and Marcel Moore, cutting their hair, dressing in trousers. They live and breathe the bohemian lifestyle of Paris at this time, their artistic expression finding its perfect place in the surrealism art movement of the day.

They had moved to the island of Jersey by the time the war started, and almost immediately continued to push the boundaries with their own form of resistance. The war years were hard on the people of the Channel Islands, Suzette and Lucie certainly suffering their share. But their bravery, their strength and their devotion to each other is inspiring, beautiful, and sees them through.

It's a novel, but is also a true story. At times it reads more like a biography than a novel, becoming a little ponderous and slow page turner. Then at other times the magic of the love takes over, and the writing takes on a lyrical quality worthy of the two artists the story is about. There is certainly a lot more action once the pair decamp to Jersey, outwitting the Germans, the full power and strength of their love shining through. I loved the love story, the life long commitment to each other, through thick and thin. A marriage in everything but name.

Two interesting lives, spent among surrealists, Channel Islanders and Nazis. An odd book, with characters not wholly likeable, but worth the read none the less.

this book took me ages to read but i loved it so much. i kept putting it down and then picking up again and it always felt like seeing an old friend again. a very fascinating read about two sapphics in the 1900s and their life together. weird, funny, sweet and interesting. i really good read.

I did not finish this book. I invoked the Nancy Pearl 50 page rule. If it has not engaged me by then, no obligation to finish it. He is a beautiful writer, but I found the characters difficult to identify from chapter to chapter and truthfully, I was not engaged enough to carry on.

Reminds me of Eva Luna, a beautiful story. Found the ending a bit lacking though - I thought it'd be more emotional but it fell flat for me.

Rupert Tomson is a very creative writer. I am surprised that he is not more well known. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Liked it even more when I learned it was based on real life.