Chasing Mona Lisa

I seem to be spending a lot of my reading time in France lately.  Chasing Mona Lisa (#499) by Tricia Goyer and Mike Yorkey continues that trend. 

As Germany looses its grip on France in the final days of the Occupation, Goring is intent on securing one final priceless piece of French art that has so far eluded his grasp - the Mona Lisa.  The French had secreted it away before France was invaded, but Goring's agent Major Heller has a fix on its location.  In the chaos surrounding Paris' liberation, a daring pair of Swiss agents working for America's OSS arrive to aid the French in their efforts.  Gabi Mueller and Eric Hofstadler are caught up in the deadly pursuit of one of the world's most iconic paintings and the bitter political rivalry between de Gaulle's Free French Resistance, and its rival Communist factions.   Gabi and Eric are immediately authorized by Dulles, head of the OSS, to help Collette Perriard, curator in charge of the Mona Lisa, and her Communist lover Bernard Rousseau to rescue the painting before it can disappear into a Swiss bank vault forever.

Although I felt at first as though I were still reading Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See, the action in this book was brisk and moved right along.  It also highlighted a bit of French history of which I had never been aware - the struggle between de Gaulle's forces and the French Communists to fill the power void when the Germans pulled out.  Of course we know who came out the winner in that contest, but this novel does shed light on the role the Communists played in liberating their country from the Nazis.  This is a fast read.  The action moves right along, and you want to keep reading to find out what happens to the characters next, with several twists and turns along the way.  A great vacation read!