On Pain of Death

I was first attracted to this novel because it was a mystery. But, this was not just any mystery. On Pain of Death takes place in German-occupied France during the Second World War, a period of history that has always interested me.

I was prepared to be swept away and I was not disappointed. From the first page, I felt that I was in Paris with Canadian student Juliette Benoit. Life was care-free and everything I ever imagined living in Paris would be. Then, life changes in a moment with the German Occupation of France. Juliette decides to stay in France instead of returning to Canada. Once the Jews are forced into camps, a young girl is left in Juliette's care. With few options, Juliette seeks the help of the French Resistance to help the child escape to safety.

Meanwhile, in the village of St-Leger, Gabrielle Aubin is mourning the death of her husband who was wrongfully executed for the murder of a German soldier. Gabrielle is drawn into the Resistance in an attempt to discover the identity of the killer.

Both women face many dangers and uncertainty. Enemies and friends now look the same. Eventually, these two women paths cross and more discoveries are made. More murders happen. Is it possible one of them trusts the wrong person?

I was on the edge of my seat, trying to guess who the killer was, wondering if the child would reach safety, and who would betray these women and deliver them to the SS. I felt that I was there: German Occupied France came alive for me as never before. With great skill, a German was portrayed as a real human instead of a monster. We are reminded that it was not only the soldiers who fought against the atrocities of the Second World War. Wars were not only fought on the battlefields, and it was ordinary people who often put their lives at risk to save the persecuted. During such a dark period in our history there was still hope, light and bravery.

I found this book to be enthralling and look forward to discovering more by this author.

Jan Rehner won the Arthur Ellis Award for her first novel, Just Murder. On Pain Of Death is even better, proving Rehner is a writer to watch.

The setting is Second World War France. We've had a spate of novels about life under the Occupation with men as the focus. Rehner takes us into the lives of two women, both trapped in France. Juliette Benoit is a Canadian, a student at the Sorbonne. She joins the Resistance and helps Jewish orphans escape. Meanwhile, in formerly sleepy St. Leger, Gabrielle Aubin is searching for a murderer. When the two women meet, they discover they have much in common, and both are marked for death by the Gestapo. Rehner really knows her French history and her strong characters keep the story moving.

... I can state that On Pain Of Death is the finest present day fiction I have read in close to a decade.... Let it be plainly said that fiction has taken a terrible nose dive into the mundane and is in desperate need of a resurrection... .It would appear that Sumach Press holds itself and its expectations from its authors to a higher standard as any mystery fiction published by Sumach has great storylines, complex characters and a world of depth within the plots and pages.

On Pain Of Death as a mystery is somewhat a misnomer because it is more to the point a complex historical drama with suspense threaded from start to finish (I don't think a shelf exists in the bookstore for this category just yet). So finely executed was this novel that I was already imagining who I would cast for the Hollywood film adapted from the novel... On Pain Of Death is an intricate and complex story that keeps the reader in suspense at each page turn. It is a riveting, and an entirely realistic plotline rooted in the harrowing truths of ugliness during times of war. Author Jan Rehner's second novel shows the depth and breadth of a talented and eloquent writer who has fully developed her characters and managed to merge history with human nature. Rehner is a compelling writer... She has made meticulous efforts to develop both plot and character development in equal parts. I couldn't read On Pain Of Death fast enough! I had to know what was happening around every twist and turn that Rehner invented. Even as the story unfolds and seemingly irrelevant elements emerge, I learned early on to trust Rehner's storytelling and simply log the information as it seemed to always be revealed as important in the long run. On Pain Of Death is a fabulous read! ...On Pain Of Death is an extremely enjoyable and satisfying novel that stands alone in its own category of quality and standard...

— excerpted from review by Kindah Mardam Bey AnEVibe, Nov 19/07, www.anevibe. com

On Pain Of Death is a moving story about two women and their tenuous place in the hostile world that dominated Paris during the German occupation of the Second World War.

With an assured and poignant voice, author Rehner explores how deep the well to life can become when complicated by the torture, lies and deception of wartime.

A Canadian student, Juliette, is trapped in Paris. She conceals her identity, discovers that her lover has vanished and assumes the care of the young sister of a Jewish friend who is evading the Gestapo net. Juliette joins the Resistance to help the little girl escape to safety. Another woman, Gabrielle, grieving the unjust execution of her husband for the murder of a German soldier, also joins the Resistance in the hopes of trapping the real killer.

On Pain Of Death comes alive with rich historical detail that is more than description. Its painful reality becomes the intimate backbone of the story's landscape. The tension, full of revelation and desperate pain, escalates as the two young women and their French compatriots are caught in the ever-tightening Nazi noose.

Rehner has written a weighty story of faith, despair and remorse. On Pain of Death is one of the best mystery stories of 2007!