This book absolutely floored me! 
 "How fragile life was, how fragile they were. Love. It was the beginning and the end of everything, the foundation and the ceiling and the air in between." 
 Caution to all of you romantics,, this is NOT a romance novel, or a love story. However, there is so much love wrapped into this book. The love a woman feels for her children, the love a sister feels for her sister, the love a father feels for his daughters, the love of lifelong friends, and yes, the love between a man and a woman. 
 While set in France during WWII, this was also not a book about war. This book was about the women. Particularly the story of two sisters and their very different lives during the occupation of France by the Germans. 
 "'Men tell stories,' I say. It is the truest, simplest answer to his question. 'Women get on with it. For us it was a shadow war. There were no parades for us when it was over, no medals or mentions in history books. We did what we had to during the war, and when it was over, we picked up the pieces and started our lives over.'" 
 And this is why the Nightingale had me. It's about these extremely formidable women, who were each up against their own very different challenges. The book begins in the very near past, from the perspective of an older woman who has cancer, and is ready to live out her last days,,, remembering. The reader does not know who the narrator is. Is she carefree Isabelle, or is she her older, more responsible sister Vianne. It created a mystery that lasted until almost the very end. Who was the narrator? 
 These two women were unforgettable. One woman, Vianne, with a husband as a prisoner of war, and with a child to care for, trying to survive the day to day of living during wartime. Standing in never ending queues for scraps of food. Having a German officer billet (basically take by force a room in her home) in her home, fearful for her life and that of her child everyday, while fighting something forbidden. 
 Isabelle, the much younger, carefree, foolish sister, who is continually kicked out of finishing school after finishing school. Isabelle, who is so daring that she dares to change things for her people, and pays many prices along the way. 
 Both women went through the inexplicable, with unspeakable treatment, as did many of the women and children left behind during wartime. Let us not forget that WWII brought us Hitler and the holocaust, and finally freedom by the Allied soldiers. 
 "Some stories don't have happy endings. Even love stories. Maybe especially love stories." 
 Not wanting to spoil anything more about this brilliant, heartbreaking book, I will not say whether or not there is a happy ending. That is to be determined by the reader. I can only say, read the book. You will laugh and cry, but it will all be worth it.