Play Book Tag discussion

I bought this book a while ago, but was a bit intimidated by the length. Andras Levi is a Hungarian Jew, who moves to Paris to study architecture. The story follows his time in Paris where he falls in love with an older woman, Klara, also a Hungarian Jew, who has a secret past. Andras and Klara must move back to Budapest when Andras' student visa is denied. Life in Hungary is difficult as Andras is called into labor service and various members of Andras and Klara's family are forced into difficult situations with the war looming.

It's difficult to describe my reactions to this book. It is a well written love story, but the love is not just about Andras and Klara as a couple, but about Andras' love for his family. The descriptions of life both in Paris before the war and the horrors of life in Hungary during the war were very evocative. I have not read much about Hungary during the war, and since my great grandparents were Hungarian, I found that aspect very interesting. I couldn't quite give it 5 stars because I found that the pacing was a bit uneven. I would recommend the book because I think that it's important to keep these stories alive, but I think I would have liked a bit more of the "after the war" story.

I loved this book ... not least because it shone a light on a part of WW2 history I had read little about (the impact on Hungary)