{What's On Your Kindle?} David LeRoy on The Siren of Paris
Marc Tolbert, a young French-born man from a prominent American family, takes off to Paris for a fresh start after a breakup in 1939. Pursuing his dreams of attending a prestigious Parisian art school, he soon makes friends with some of history’s most notable figures, including Sylvia Beach and William Bullitt. Falling in love with an art model from one of his classes, he is blinded to the escalating violence around them as the war inches closer to the City of Lights.
What started as an adventure quickly becomes a nightmare as the war worsens, and Marc is faced with choices that will change his life forever.
When he finally faces the reality that he must leave Paris, fate deals him a cruel hand. Surviving the sinking of the RMS Lancastria, Marc is haunted by the deaths of his friends and the regret of not leaving sooner.
Returning to Paris, Marc is drawn into the resistance movement, risking everything to help those trapped behind enemy lines. But after being betrayed, he is captured and sent away to face the horrors of war and the guilt of his past mistakes.
The Siren of Paris is a powerful and emotional story that will keep you on the edge of your seat. With its compelling plot-driven narrative, vivid scenes, and intense action, this novel will transport you to the heart of war-torn Paris and leave you contemplating the weight of human choices and their impact on others. Whether you’re a fan of historical fiction, war stories, or symbolic themes, this novel will captivate and intrigue you from start to finish.
The Siren of Paris is available at Amazon.
LeRoy’s fluency in French and two-year sojourn in France afforded him unique insights into the French culture he deftly weaves into his literary work. With a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Religion, an MBA from California State University Sacramento, and an MSc. Applied Data Science from Paris, France, LeRoy is a polymath with diverse interests and an insatiable curiosity for knowledge.
He currently resides in California, where he continues to write and pursue his creative passions.
Connect with him on social media at:
╰┈➤ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesirenofparis
╰┈➤ Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14760740-the-siren-of-paris?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=v6UbhLIMmb&rank=1
Welcome, David! Your book, The Siren of Paris, sounds absolutely awesome. Can you tell us the story behind that intriguing title?
The title comes from a line in the novel from a German Army officer who speaks English. “What Siren of Paris is calling you back to that city?” Officer Sean asked Marc in 1941.
The story of The Siren of Paris is of betrayal that leads to the deaths of others in the context of war.
Can you tell us a little about your main characters?
Marc Tolbert is the young protagonist of the story. He is agreeable nice character that falls in love with a narcissistic alpha female. The relationship is volatile, manipulative and mirrors the nature of the war rages around them. He is among the civilians trap in France when the war breaks out. The number of Americans who find themselves inside the war zone is in the tens of thousands.
The other characters who appear in the story are all historical figures operating as they lived and died during the war. They include Joan Rodes, Dr. Sumner Jackson, and to many to list others whom I had discovered while preforming primary research into the missing persons of World War Two. The dogs, rabbit, horses and traveling circus are all historically accurate characters.
Marc Tolbert stands as the young protagonist. He is an agreeable man who falls for a narcissistic, dominant woman. Their volatile, manipulative bond mirrors the war that engulfs them. He becomes one of the civilians trapped in France as the war erupts. Tens of thousands of Americans find themselves caught inside the war zone.
Historical figures move through the story as they lived and died. These include Joan Rodes and Dr. Sumner Jackson, along with many others I uncovered during primary research into World War II missing persons. Dogs, rabbits, horses, and a traveling circus also appear as historically accurate elements.
Where is your book set and why did you choose that particular location?
The Siren of Paris unfolds in German-occupied France. I chose this setting because a missing relative was last seen there. My search began as a family investigation. War records pushed me to write a war story. I drew from primary sources. These include French newspaper reports, Gestapo arrest records, eyewitness testimonies, shipping logs, train logs, and early postwar accounts.
One detail stands out. Around June 10, flyers flooded Paris. They warned that Germany would close banks and seize money. The warning sparked panic. Crowds rushed banks before the fall. Paris did not wait in calm silence. Herds of sheep, goats, and cows clogged the streets. Farmers drove them south. Refugees from Belgium moved with them. The city filled with noise, fear, and motion.
What part would you say was the most exciting to write about?
Chapters one and forty-eight present mystical scenes. The “Known unto God” assemble. They stand, wait, and watch Marc’s soul join them in death.
I wrote the sinking of the RMS Lancastria as a vivid, immersive sequence. The death march stretches to mirror the ordeal. A 1928 red Stutz bursts into the scene. It carries Marc to safety as gunfire cuts others down.
The Siren of Paris draws on the work of depth psychology. It forges images that linger within the mind’s eye.
The Priest of Time was a Catholic priest in life. His congregation betrays him. He suffers in Buchenwald. He is called in death to gather the war dead from unmarked graves.
What's next for you?
The Flower of Chamula seeks literary agent representation. The story draws from San Juan Bautista. It recounts a spiritual war that erupts into violence during the 1990s Zapatista uprising. The novel blends Latin American magical realism and horror. It traces the forces that led to the Acteal Massacre of Las Abejas.
The Night Watchers remains in development. The story examines the 1977 cattle mutilations and deaths in Burns, Oregon.
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