Blog Tour and Book #Review: Chasing Mona Lisa by Tricia Goyer and Mike Yorkey

About the Book:

It is August 1944 and Paris is on the cusp of liberation. As the soldiers of the Third Reich flee the Allied advance, they ravage the country, stealing countless pieces of art. Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring will stop at nothing to claim the most valuable one of all, the Mona Lisa, as a post-war bargaining chip to get him to South America. Can Swiss OSS agents Gabi Mueller and Eric Hofstadler rescue DaVinci's masterpiece before it falls into German hands?

With nonstop action, Chasing Mona Lisa is sure to get readers' adrenaline pumping as they join the chase to save the most famous painting in the world. From war-ravaged Paris to a posh country chateau, the race is on--and the runners are playing for keeps.

About the Authors:

Tricia Goyer is an acclaimed and prolific writer, publishing hundreds of articles in national magazines including Today's Christian Woman and Focus on the Family while authoring more than thirty-one fiction and nonfiction books combined. Among those are 3:16 Teen Edition with Max Lucado and the American Christian Fiction Writers' Book of the Year Award winners Night Song and Dawn of a Thousand Nights. She has also written books on marriage and parenting and contributed notes to the Women of Faith Study Bible. Tricia lives with her husband and four children in Arkansas. 

For more information about Tricia or her other books, please visit her website: www.triciagoyer.com. 

Mike Yorkey is the author or coauthor of dozens of books, including The Swiss Courier and the bestselling Every Man's Battle series. Married to a Swiss native, Yorkey lived in Switzerland for 18 months. He and his family currently reside in California.

For more about Mike and his other books, visit his website atwww.mikeyorkey.com.  


My Opinion:


This book starts just as Paris is about to be liberated from the Germans but it does set up a bit of the back history of the resistance movements going on during the occupation. The Free French following de Gaulle and the various communist groups all worked to rid the country of the Nazis and each expected their party to rule after their goal was achieved. History has shown how it all played out and this book uses the conflict between the two groups to good use.


The Mona Lisa is one of France's greatest treasures. The fear of losing it is the premise of the book. My problem is that although she is considered a masterpiece and a major work of art she never impressed me and all the fawning done over what is a very small, dark painting didn't ring true to me. I have seen the Mona Lisa in the Louvre and I was disappointed at best. I can understand the popular feeling of losing a treasure but not all of the individuals in the book exclaiming over this painting.


That being said......I did enjoy the overall story. It moved along quite nicely and the characters were well rounded. I found myself rooting for the main romance between Gabi and Eric - they worked well together both as spies and as boyfriend/girlfriend. It was fascinating to learn about the various efforts to keep the Mona Lisa hidden and far away from Nazi hands. The epilogue did seem a bit of a non sequitur with nothing in the beginning of the book to precede it.


Win an iTouch SPY Pack in the Chasing Mona Lisa Giveaway from @triciagoyer
@mikeyorkey!


Chasing Mona Lisa is the continuing tale of Gabi Mueller and Eric Hofstadler (first introduced in The Swiss Courier). This time the due are on a relentless quest to save the most famous
painting in the world  - the Mona Lisa. You can help Gabi and Eric
with your very own spy pack when you enter The Chasing Mona Lisa Giveaway!

One passionate protector will receive:

• iTouch (The must-have device for any spy. Camera, Maps & Music.)
  
• Starbucks Gift Card (For all those late nights.)
• Moleskin Notebook (For those important notes.)
• Invisible Ink Pen (Don’t want anyone reading those important notes.)
• Chasing Mona Lisa by Tricia Goyer & Mike Yorkey (Great
  handbook and intriguing tale for any spy-in-training!)

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends at noon on January 31st. The winner will be announced at the Chasing Mona Lisa Facebook Party on 1/31. Tricia and Mike will be hosting an author chat(on Facebook and Live from Tricia's website) and giving away their books and a Book Club prize pack! (Ten copies of the book for your small group or book club AND a LIVE Author Chat for your group with Tricia and Mike.)


So grab your copy of Chasing Mona Lisa and join Tricia and Mike on the evening of the 31st for an author chat, spy training (do you know how to pick a lock? ) and lots of giveaways. 

Don't miss a moment of the fun. RSVP today and tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 31st! 


You can see the rest of the Tour Schedule HERE

You can purchase Chasing Mona Lisa on Amazon.com


Disclosure:  I received a copy of Chasing Mona Lisa from Litfuse Publicity Group. Any opinions expressed are my honest opinions and were not impacted by my receipt of the free book. I received no monetary compensation for this post.