Thomas Dunne Books
Featuring: Gabriel Lambert; Sophie Cass
320 pages ISBN: 1250084539 EAN: 9781250084538 Kindle: B0176W7T6W Hardcover / e-Book Add to Wish List
At 95, reclusive celebrated painter Gabriel Lambert,
lives
quietly with his beloved wife, Annie, and family at
their beach home in the Hamptons. Annoyed and ignoring
requests for an interview from Sophie Cass, a writer for
the
New York Times, he hopes she will go away and leave him
and
his memories safe. There is a vague family connection
with Ms. Cass which results in a telephone call from her
mother requesting an interview for Sophie with Lambert.
He
dodges but Sophie in persistent and continues to pester
him
for a story. Gabriel is not anxious to bring up anything
about his buried past. He has many dark secrets that he
will do anything to keep in order to protect his family.
Sophie keeps mentioning a picture of him taken with her
Aunt Vita. Has Sophie discovered something he prefers to
remain concealed after so many years? What could she do
with that story?
THE HOUSE OF DREAMS is a saga which unfolds in two time
periods: 1940 in Europe, and 2000
In long Island, NY. In the earlier time frame, we are
introduced to Varian Fry, a hero who rescued thousands of
artists and creative minds from the Nazis and certain
death
during World War II. Fry, an American journalist in
Marseilles is working for the American Relief Team of New
York,
with a team of colleagues who courageously help Fry with
his
dangerous mission of smuggling these refugees to America
and
safety.
The team rents a country house, called Villa Air-Bel
which soon
becomes the hang-out for those waiting to be sent to
safety. On Sunday afternoons many writers and artists
gather there, their paintings hung outside in the trees,
to
be auctioned off to pay for more refugees to escape. Many
famous artists and writers attend and the scenes are
beautifully
depicted by Ms. Brown. She is very adept at weaving
fiction along with factual events and offers a well
researched and absorbing read with a great plot twist. It
is interesting to note that the Emergency Rescue
Committee
of New York, headed by Fry became the International
Rescue
Committee which presently operates in over 30 countries,
continuing to help those refugees of oppression wherever
it
is needed. His legacy lives on.
THE HOUSE OF DREAMS is an exciting read with many
characters you find yourself rooting for. Some sweet
romances will also tug at your heart strings and a lot of
action will keep you turning those pages to a
bittersweet ending. All that and a beautiful cover that
adds to a very pleasant reading experience. Bravo!
In 2000, Gabriel Lambert is a celebrated painter who hides a dark secret. Sophie Cass, a journalist struggling to begin her career and with a family connection to Lambert, is determined to find the truth about his past and the little known story of the real Casablanca. In 1940, an international group of rescue workers, refugee intellectuals, and artists gather in the beautiful old Villa Air Bel just outside Marseilles. American journalist Varian Fry and his remarkable team at the American Relief Center are working to help them escape France, but "the greatest man-trap in history" is closing in on them. Despite their peril, true camaraderie and creativity flourishes - while love affairs spring up and secrets are hidden. At the House of Dreams, young refugee artist Gabriel Lambert changed the course of his life - and now, sixty years later at his home in the Hamptons, the truth is finally catching up with him.
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