Fleeing France

A WWII Novel of Sacrifice and Rescue in the French Ambulance Service

By: Alan Hlad

Narrated by: Moniqua Plante

France, 1939: A talented singer, Ruth Lacroix has left Maine to live with her aunt and uncle, dreaming of performing at the Casino de Paris. But with the outbreak of war, and the heartbreaking news that her cousin has been killed by German forces, that goal is supplanted by another—to support France in any way she can.

Though Ruth has never driven a vehicle larger than the tractor on her parents' farm, she joins a friend in enlisting as a driver for the French ambulance corps. On their way to transfer injured soldiers to Dunkirk for evacuation, they encounter Jimmie, a British Royal Air Force pilot with No. 73 Squadron RAF, who has bailed out of his burning plane. As Dunkirk falls, blocking off the route to the northern coast, word spreads of a daring Allied plan to rescue the remaining troops and civilians from ports in western France: code name Operation Aerial.

Over two hazardous weeks, Ruth and Jimmie will journey hundreds of miles together, helping other refugees as they rush to reach the sea before they are overtaken by the Germany army. But all their courage and resilience offer no certainty in wartime, when a single stroke of luck, or a split-second decision, can mean the difference between life and death . . .

©2024 Alan Hlad (P)2024 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Wonderful, detailed story of World War 2 in France

This book was almost a saga as it followed two, then five people through France during WWII. The details of the characters and the events put the reader right in the story with them. The only negative I have to say is that the narrator sounded like she was whispering the whole time, and I wanted her to stop, especially when she was using a male voice or talking about Churchill. I wanted to say, "Just speak up and stop whispering!" Other than that, I enjoyed the book.

Very good WWII resistance tale, but girly in places

I read a lot about WWII and this novel is full of authentic material. And the storyline itself, about the escape from France, is exciting and has some clever twists. But it was clearly written for young adult women, for it has a few long, sappy (in my opinion, as an older man) romantic segments, without sex. Ignoring those, it is a captivating adventure and I enjoyed it.

Wanting for More

It took me quite a while to get used to the narrator of this book, and she definitely is not my favorite. I think she did a real disservice to the story, and I would hope that Alan would not use her again. That being said, the story itself was good, and I enjoyed the book very much. However, when I got to the end of the book, I didn't realize that it was the end, and it left me hanging and feeling genuinely heartbroken that the last lines were actually the last. What a terribly sad way to leave the readers hanging. Perhaps there's going to be a sequel?I hope so, otherwise, ugh.