The Paris Dressmaker by Kristy Cambron

Dressmaker Lila de Laurent flees into the forest wounded. She’s just come from a hotel where the murder of an important German official just took place. She’s been playing a dangerous game and the officials are onto her. And she’s about to run into the person she thought she killed—a person playing a dangerous game of his own.

But Lila wasn’t always a spy. In fact, she used to be an up-and-comer on the Paris fashion scene along with her friend Amelie.

Forced into assisting with the sorting of art by the Germans and rescuing what she can, Sandrine intercepts an unusual crate alongside her assistants. Inside the crate is a blush-colored couture gown. No one knows what it means—only that it means something.

But Sandrine didn’t always sort art undercover. She once said goodbye to a husband headed for war. A husband who she can’t believe is dead. A husband she believes has a connection to the dress.

How did they get where they were? And how will Lila, Sandrine, and the other spies in Paris cross paths in these years of war?

Oh. My. Goodness. I had heard Kristy Cambron speak at a conference about outlining this book, and was excited when it came to our church library (where I volunteer) with glowing reviews from the lady who purchases for our library. I processed it quickly and will neither confirm nor deny that I was the first person to check it out.

I was not disappointed.

This. Book. Is. Brilliant.

First off, there are four different plotlines going throughout The Paris Dressmaker. Each of them brilliant in their own way and juggled masterfully. (It blew my mind. Really. How on earth did she do it?) Even when I would groan because I couldn’t figure out what happened to the spies until a few chapters later, I would still hurry ahead to get another clue to unlock the protagonists’ pasts.

Truly, I had no idea what had happened or what would happen until I reached the last page. I’m hoping to buy my own copy so I can comb my way through it two or three more times and get the full picture.

It’s not a light read. Juggling four plotlines as well as Cambron’s gorgeous poetic prose keeps the brain active.

And, as if it needed any more points in its favor, the cover is beautiful, too!

I loved all the characters so much—I was rooting for the spirited women who led the pages as well as the side characters who lent their own spark to the story. Amelie and Lila’s relationship broke my heart for reasons that I can’t describe without spoilers.

The plot was incredible. I was engrossed in a world of espionage and never knowing what might be lurking around the next corner. (Including the death of a character that I very much loved . . . sniff.)

The Paris Dressmaker has quickly made one of my top reads for this year. I’m eager to try more of Kristy Cambron’s books as well as get my own copy of this novel. I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone.