The Room on Rue Amélie

Thomas returns home and is ordered to take two weeks’ holiday. He goes to visit Harry’s mother but leaves when he sees that he compounds her grief for her lost son. When he returns, his officer tells him that he can no longer fly over Europe, as he has sensitive information about the escape line. When Thomas protests, the officer figures out that he met a girl along his journey.

Thomas is sent to a mission in Morocco instead. He spends the next few weeks delivering aircraft, a safe but tiring job. He soon hears about an Allied invasion that turns the tide of the war. Thomas continues training new pilots for the war’s final days.

Ruby has been imprisoned for months and maintains her denial of being involved in illegal activities. She occasionally receives letters from Lucien telling her that Charlotte is safe and well. She gets to know her fellow prisoners and tries to care for her unborn child without drawing attention to her pregnancy.

Soon, she is moved to another prison. Every morning, several women are taken away and deported to Germany. Eventually, Ruby’s is also taken away. She arrives in Ravensbrück, a German concentration camp. The women are undressed and have their heads shaved, and a woman helps hide Ruby from the guards so they won’t notice her pregnancy. Ruby falls into a deep despair.

One day, the prison welcomes a group of new arrivals. There is tension between the old and new prisoners, but a Russian woman named Nadia diffuses the tension. Nadia speaks privately with Ruby; they learn that they have both aided escaping pilots. She also shares her rations with Ruby so that her baby has a chance at survival.

After a few months, several women are invited to interview for factory work, which is less taxing than the camp work. Ruby recognizes it as the only chance to save her baby, and Nadia believes working at the factory is an opportunity to sabotage German instruments. Ruby interviews with a kind man named Herr Hartmann. They get along well, and Ruby knows she’ll be selected.

Ruby and Nadia begin working at the factory, assembling rockets. Ruby fears that her weapons might hurt Thomas, but Nadia shows her how to assemble them loosely so they don’t work properly. She also begins an unexpected friendship with Herr Hartmann, who is appalled at the treatment of the prisoners. He offers to send a letter to her parents, and Ruby writes as much detail as she feels she can do safely. She tells Nadia about Charlotte and Lucien, and Nadia encourages her to have hope. She explains that her name, Nadia, translates to “hope.”

Soon, prisoners are being killed regularly, especially if they become ill. Ruby begins to feel sick. Nadia encourages her to go to Herr Hartmann for help before the guards notice her condition. Ruby goes to Herr Hartmann and confesses her pregnancy, though he admits he knew from the first time they met. Together, they create a plan for Ruby to escape.

Nadia and Herr Hartmann distract the guards while Ruby runs away. When a guard tries to stop her, Nadia attacks the guard and is killed. For a moment, Ruby wants to turn back and help, but remembers her baby and keeps running until she’s lost in the middle of the woods.

Ruby spends the night in the woods, then continues on, hoping to find someone who will help her. She eventually comes to a road and flags down a Red Cross vehicle. The driver is suspicious, but he allows her to ride with them and even offers her food. They let her out near the border with Switzerland, which is a neutral country and more likely to offer her aid.

Ruby continues walking until she comes to a house and meets the man who lives there. After a brief conversation in German, French, and English, the man offers Ruby his help. He and his wife shelter her for the evening, until suddenly Ruby goes into labor. Ruby writes down the names and contact information of her parents in America. Shortly after, her daughter is born.

Charlotte and Lucien celebrate the end of the war. They discuss Ruby and where she might be, and if her baby survived. Later, Charlotte reflects on her life with Lucien and how much has changed in the past few years. She looks out at the sunrise and wonders if Ruby can see it too.

Thomas is tasked with delivering a plane to an airfield in France, and he is excited at the prospect of going home to Ruby. He thinks about the end of the war and appreciates the beauty of his journey.

Suddenly, his plane malfunctions, and he begins to fall. He tries to eject from the plane but finds the hood jammed shut. He closes his eyes and sees Ruby in a field of poppies just before he dies.

Ruby wakes disoriented after giving birth and meets her baby for the first time. She names her Nadia. The farmer’s wife tells her that the war is over, and Paris is free. Ruby writes letters to her parents, Charlotte, and Thomas. She suddenly hears a sharp noise but seems to be the only one who hears it.

Once her letters are finished and arranged to be sent, she closes her eyes and sees Thomas amidst a field of poppies. They begin their life together as Ruby’s illness overtakes her, and she dies.

In the present day, the narrator from the first chapter continues his story of caring for his dying wife. The narrator is revealed to be Lucien. He recounts how he and Charlotte moved to America after Ruby’s death, adopting baby Nadia and joining Ruby’s parents.

Lucien carries Charlotte to the top of a poppy-covered hill, where only red poppies grow; Lucien sees it as a sign that Ruby is watching over them. They discuss the past, and Charlotte’s impending death. They lay down in the poppy field and Charlotte dies. Lucien carries her back across the field.