I am currently studying A2 English Literature, and as our first piece of coursework this year we must compare Charlotte Gray and Captain Corelli's Mandolin. I'm actually struggling to say anything positive about either book!
Charlotte Gray was a difficult read for me, and I really wouldn't recommend it to anyone. The characters are poorly developed, as the "heroine" of the story, Charlotte, tends to spend little time acting upon everything, and every other line appears to be her own evaluation of her emotions - it almost reminds me of a poor actor who tends to overact everything. Her love for Gregory is entirely unrealistic - their time together is short to say the least, she becomes intent on finding him, and then this particular part of the "plot" just seems to dissolve.
Faulks just seems to throw the Holocaust in at the last minute, as though he has also realised what a waste of time this book is, and he wanted to add something legitimate to it - the Holocaust, one of the most horrific and disgusting events of our time, cannot possibly be thrown into a book as some extra material because the rest isn't quite good enough - the concept is just ridiculous!
If, like myself, you are remotely interested in politics, the political aspects of Charlotte Gray, the insight into a country which has essentially been run on lies since WWII, might appeal to you, but I really wouldn't expect much from this awful mish-mash of ideas, characters and emotion.