Detective-drama Wrapped in Love- Last Twilight in Paris

Dec 19, 2024 by Two Sues On the Aisle

By Two Sues on the Aisle, Susie Rosenbluth and Sue Weston

The discovery of a necklace in 1953 London reveals the dark history of Lévitan. It was a department store in Paris that was a Nazi prison, where Jews were housed to sell pilfered goods to German officers. The historic fiction Last Twilight in Paris by Pam Jenoff, joins the lives of the two women from vastly different worlds through their connection to the necklace.

Helaine, the original owner of the necklace was imprisoned when the Germans invaded Paris, and Louise a Red Cross volunteer in Nazi-occupied Europe discovers it while sorting donations at a second-had store in England. Pam Jenoff creates an unforgettable story that shows the horrors of the Holocaust from different perspectives. Helaine Weil who came from a wealthy Jewish family survived Paris under German occupation. Louise’s experience as an outsider involved visiting prisoner-of-war camps, where her friend was ‘mysteriously’ killed. Louise’s obsession with a necklace, identical to one she saw at a Prisoner of War (POW) camp ties the story together through an array of twists and complications.

Last Twilight in Paris is a thrilling detective-drama wrapped around a love story.

Connected by the Necklace

Mizpah is a Hebrew word that has come to connote an emotional bond between two people. The necklace contains two matching pieces exchanged between people who might be separated. It signifies the hope of reconnecting and finding closure, a central theme of the story.

The necklace belonged to Helaine, the only child of an overprotective, wealthy Jewish family. When Helaine falls in love with a poor but talented musician, her father banishes her. She leaves, taking her Mizpah necklace and leaving her opulent life behind. Later, when her husband joins the orchestra to play at the front, she gives him half the necklace. Hers will be hidden later behind a brick at the Lévitan where she was imprisoned.

Louisa stumbles across the necklace in London immediately recognizing it as a twin to a necklace she had seen in Germany where she was delivering packages to prisoners as a Red Cross volunteer. Her close friend, Fanny, had asked Louise to take the necklace out of the camp. But, Louise refused afraid of being discovered by the Germans, later that evening Fanny was found dead. Louise never knew why. She begins tracking down clues, hoping that by discovering the necklace’s origin she will learn what happened to Fanny.

It does, but not the way she had anticipated.

Based on a True Story

Franny was based on the legend of Edith Piaf, a French actress who had traveled through occupied Europe performing at POW camps. She helped the Resistance smuggle prisoners out by staging photo shoots after each performance. The pictures were used for passport photos she smuggled into the camp during a return visit.

Franny and the necklace connect the past, present, and future.

Remembering The Truth

When Louise was a Red Cross volunteer, she witnessed the conditions in the camps and was aghast when the war ended and governments claimed ignorance about what was happening to the Jews of Europe. She knew that many others had witnessed the atrocities and chosen to do and say nothing.

The Last Twilight in Paris exposes the corruption and duplicity of the Red Cross, an organization created to prevent human suffering. A story still relevant today.

The story shows what Jewish life was like in Paris under German occupation. It reminds readers of the atrocities committed under the German regime and the lack of response to the Jewish plight. Even though Levitan was in the center of Paris, people were unaware that prisoners were housed there.

Louise’s discoveries about the necklace provide closure, justice, and hope for the future. Last Twilight in Paris reminds us of our ability to connect as humans by sharing our stories. ‘People’s stories matter, and how they end, matters.’

Two Sues on the Aisle bases its ratings on how many challahs (1-5) it pays to buy (rather than make) to see the play, show, film, book, or exhibit being reviewed.

Last Twilight in Paris by Pam Jenoff received 5 Challahs