The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau

By: Kristin Harmel

Narrated by: Madeleine Maby, Kristin Harmel

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Kristin Harmel, the New York Times bestselling author who “is the best there is at sweeping historical drama” (Kelly Harms, author of The Seven Day Switch), returns with an electrifying new novel about two jewel thieves, a priceless bracelet that disappears in 1940s Paris, and a quest for answers in a decades-old murder.

Colette Marceau has been stealing jewels for nearly as long as she can remember, following the centuries-old code of honor instilled in her by her mother, Annabel: take only from the cruel and unkind, and give to those in need. Never was their family tradition more important than seven decades earlier, during the Second World War, when Annabel and Colette worked side by side in Paris to fund the French Resistance.

But one night in 1942, it all went wrong. Annabel was arrested by the Germans, and Colette’s four-year-old sister, Liliane, disappeared in the chaos of the raid, along with an exquisite diamond bracelet sewn into the hem of her nightgown for safekeeping. Soon after, Annabel was executed, and Liliane’s body was found floating in the Seine—but the bracelet was nowhere to be found.

Seventy years later, Colette—who has “redistributed” $30 million in jewels over the decades to fund many worthy organizations—has done her best to put her tragic past behind her, but her life begins to unravel when the long-missing bracelet suddenly turns up in a museum exhibit in Boston. If Colette can discover where it has been all this time—and who owns it now—she may finally learn the truth about what happened to her sister. But she isn’t the only one for whom the bracelet holds answers, and when someone from her childhood lays claim to the diamonds, she’s forced to confront the ghosts of her past as never before. Against all odds, there may still be a chance to bring a murderer to justice—but first, Colette will have to summon the courage to open her own battered heart.

This was super!

This was a wonderful book and so well written! She keeps you guessing up until the end! You feel as though you are right there!

Twists and turns of Collete’s lifetime told beautifully

I loved how the story went back-and-forth between the present and the past. It was easy to imagine Collette’s life as a young girl and through the years to present time.

Good and unique story

This was a unique storyline for WWII. I appreciate the clean story without a lot of sex or hard to hear battles. It had emotional moments.
What I didn’t like was the last 1/3-1/4 of the book. It felt like it drug on and on.

One of my favorite books of all time!

Such an interesting perspective of Paris during WW2, and I loved the way the current time was woven through the story.

Beautiful historical fiction story

My first Kristin Harmel book and not disappointed! Can’t wait for my next listen. The narrator was very authentic.