A Small Hotel

Small Hotel, Book 1

By: Suanne Laqueur

Narrated by: Darren Eliker

An American Family. A World War. A First Love.

A Small Hotel.

It’s the summer of 1941. Europe is at war, but New York's Thousand Islands are at the height of the tourist season. Kennet Fiskare, son of a hotel proprietor, is having the summer of a lifetime, having fallen deeply in love with a Swedish-Brazilian guest named Astrid Virtanen. But the affair is cut short and the young lovers permanently parted, first by Astrid’s family obligations, then by America’s entry into the war.

The rigors of military life help dull his heartache, but when Kennet’s battalion reaches France, he is thrown into the crucible of front line combat. As his unit crosses Europe, from the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium to Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria, Kennet falls into a different kind of love: the intense camaraderie between soldiers. It's a bond fierce yet fragile, vital yet expendable, here today and gone tomorrow.

Sustained by his friendships, Kennet both witnesses and commits the unthinkable atrocities of warfare, altering his view of the world and himself. To the point where a second chance with Astrid in peacetime might be the most terrifying and consequential battle he’s ever fought.

With her signature blend of soul-stirring prose and emotional complexity, Laqueur takes listeners on a journey through events that shape an American family’s weakest moments and finest hours. A Small Hotel illuminates the experience of ordinary people thrown into extraordinary circumstances, and their once-in-a-generation camaraderie, courage and resiliency. It’s a novel for the world, a heartbreaking, uplifting story of family, love and human endurance.

©2024 Suanne Laqueur (P)2024 Suanne Laqueur

Critic reviews

SILVER MEDAL IN FOREWORD REVIEWS BOOK OF THE YEAR (Historical Fiction)

I was enchanted

The story is wonderful; heartbreaking and heartwarming all mixed together.
The happiness of the ending was just what I needed.
The reader is also outstanding!!!
I have more often than I would like to admit, purchased a bestseller only to abandon it because of a lousy performance.
Not so with this book.
The perfect pairing of a great story and a great reader!

Beautifully written, raw, real, unforgettable.

There aren't many authors that can write like Suanne Laquer. This is the fourth book of hers that I have listened to in the last few months, and it would be an understatement to say that I am continually stunned by the depth of her writing, the complexity of her characters, and the raw emotions that hum through me every time I listen to one of her stories. Darren Eliker is absolute perfection as a narrator.

Another masterpiece!

I continue to be shocked and amazed at the emotional depth to Suanne Laqueur’s writing. She has written another tour de force with A Small Hotel. I’m still struggling with putting down my feelings about this book, which encompasses an upstate NY family’s journey through World War II. I could write a treatise about all the things in this book, but I won’t, other than to tell you to listen to this book. Darren Eliker’s amazing voice performance is like having him hold your hand throughout the joys and horrors of young Kennet Fiskare’s journey seeing the world, but not as he imagined he would as a teen. With the beautiful duo of Suanne and Darren at the helm, you feel brave enough to face the horrors of war, and the joy and heartbreak of first love. As with Suanne’s other books, this is an IMPORTANT book that doesn’t shy away from societal intricacies, good and bad. I was completely swept away by this book, I could see the waves lapping the shore of the St. Laurence River just as vividly as I could feel the weight of Emil’s hand on Kennet’s shoulder. Just listen to it, A Small Hotel is intense in the most beautiful of ways.