To Capture What we Cannot Keep by Beatrice Colin

To Capture What we Cannot Keep by Beatrice Colin is set in Paris during the construction of the Eiffel Tower which was designed by Gustav Eiffel with his employee Maurice Koechlin for the World's Fair to mark the 100 year anniversary of the French Revolution and was to be the tallest structure in the world at that time.

While I enjoyed the historical setting  and time period of To Capture What we Cannot Keep, the story was a little lackluster. The romance is told from the point of view of a Scottish widow, Caitriona Wallace, chaparoning two charges in Paris, and Emile Nouguier an engineer employed by Gustave Eiffel.

Ms. Colin mentioned that she chose Emile Nouguier for the fictional story because little was known about him and she was able to create his persona. He had been the head of the Method's Department at Eiffel Enterprises and involved in many well known engineering marvels all over the world.



One Amazon review summed it up "Basically a romance with a lot of history thrown in."

At the time of the Eiffel Tower construction, Eiffel Enterprises was also involved in the costly Panama Canal. Not everyone was excited to have a large tower in the center of Paris and arguments consisted of:

Blocked views of Paris from windows of houses and apartments
Possibly an unsafe structure (Eiffel agreed to pay for the demolition of the structure should it prove to be unsafe)
Others claimed it would sink into the ground.
Worries that it would be a giant lightening conductor and attract more thunderstorms to Paris and electrocute fish in the rivers.