Stormi's Review: The Girl Called Princess Charlotte by Gerard Shirar
Author Provided Copy Publisher: Outskirts Press Released: November 17th 2015 Genre: Historical Fiction Length: 352 pages Format: Ebook, Paperback, Hardcover Add to Goodreads Buy Links
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Amazon Synopsis
A Priceless Treasure with a Mysterious Past... Boston attorney Theodore Murphy, Teddy to his friends, has been handed a seemingly straightforward case: to recover a valuable painting by Franz Winterhalter, Young Girl Called Princess Charlotte, which was stolen by the Nazis from Jewish art dealer Dr. Markus Steiner. When the charitable organization founded in his will by Steiner learns that Anna Vogler has put the painting up for auction they demand its return. But Teddy Murphy finds that Vogler's attorneys aren't prepared to give up without a fight...and as the widow of a World War II veteran, she makes a sympathetic witness. Teddy learns that she has no proof of purchase, her husband sent the painting home from Europe near the end of the war, and a mystery surrounds where and how he got it.
Armed with this information and Markus Steiner's diary, Teddy sets out to prove that the Steiner Foundation should rightfully own the painting. Joined by his girlfriend Judith Frazer, Teddy learns about Markus from the trenches of World War I to his daring escape from Nazi Germany, as together they watch a remarkable life story unfold in the pages of Markus' diary, while they pursue every available avenue to find out the truth about the painting.
This vivid, beautifully researched historical thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat, while introducing you to the suffering of World War I soldiers, the shocking night life of Berlin, the intrigues of the international art world, the horror of the rising Third Reich...and the compassionate dedication of those who still work to bring justice to the Jews of Europe. Four Boundless Stars
This book starts when the ownership of a certain painting comes into question. While the lawyers are working on the case behind it, a story begins to develop from the diaries of a young man named Markus. The mystery behind the painting is fascinating and it makes for a great and intriguing read.
Honestly, when I first began I wasn't sure how I felt about this book. It was a bit slow to start, but it soon had me deeply sucked into the story. This book has a lot of history and so it made it a great read to me. I absolutely fell in love with the character of Markus. His writing in the diaries is so real. He was in the war. He saw the Nazi parties, he saw the discrimination against the Jews.
It all had a very real feel to it. It was hard not to like him and feel for him through all his journeys. He was very colorful in his diary and you see the world and the aftermath from all sides. He painted a very clear picture of his life and what was really going on in the world during this time.
If you love history like I do, this book will be right up your alley.