Temps des Cerises — Zillah Bethell

Set in Paris during the Franco-Prussian War's siege in the winter of 1870, this vivid and flamboyant novel tells the story of Eveline, a young woman longing for action but trapped in providing for her younger brother and her alcoholic, maudlin father. Engaged to the romantic Laurie, Eveline finds herself increasingly drawn to his fiery friend, Alphonse, who is involved in intrigues to break the siege. In a beautifully depicted subplot, the nun Bernadine struggles to look after a baby who was delivered dramatically and unexpectedly by her fellow nun in the Paris convent, Sister Agnes. Bernadine's own troubled past haunts her as she bids to save the baby from the horrors of Paris life and makes her own attempt to escape as Eveline mans the barricades.