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A Promise to Arlette book cover
A Promise to Arlette
2025
First Published
4.09
Average Rating
320
Number of Pages

With the scope of a saga and the heart of a thriller, this is an evocative historical novel following a married couple whose idyllic 1950s suburban life is threatened by the promises they made during World War II. Sidney and Ida Whipple are living the suburban 1950s American dream, complete with two children and a white picket fence, which didn’t seem possible when they first met at the height of WWII in France. Reveling in the present, they can almost convince themselves that their past is behind them. But when their neighbors show off a newly purchased Man Ray photograph, Ida comes face-to-face with the person she loved and lost in the Arlette. Only Ida knows the truth about the photograph, and why it can’t possibly be authentic. In an attempt to right past wrongs, she travels to California vowing to confront Man Ray. Sidney wakes to find his wife is missing, the photograph in question stolen, and all the secrets they’ve tried to bury come rushing back. With his daughters in tow, he travels after Ida, hoping to forge a new path together. Instead, their sojourn leads to a shocking discovery that could pull their family apart in this sweeping, unforgettable story about love and friendship, trust and betrayal, and how promises made, broken, and ultimately renewed, can determine our fate.

Avg Rating
4.09
Number of Ratings
35
5 STARS
43%
4 STARS
31%
3 STARS
20%
2 STARS
3%
1 STARS
3%
goodreads

Author

Serena Burdick
Serena Burdick
Author · 5 books
Serena Burdick is the author of the novels GIRL IN THE AFTERNOON, THE GIRLS WITH NO NAMES, FIND ME IN HAVANA, and her forthcoming novel THE STOLEN BOOK OF EVELYN AUBREY, out November 2022. She is the 2017 International Book Award Winner for Historical Fiction. She holds an Associates of Arts degree from The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in theater and a Bachelors of Arts from Brooklyn College in English literature. She lives in Massachusetts with her family.
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