Summary by Goodreads:
Hughes will fill your heart with the sights, sounds, and flavors of new love, glamorous fashion, and decadent holiday cuisine.
Isabel Lawson is standing on the balcony of her suite at the Hotel Crillon as she gazes at the twinkling lights of the Champs Elysee and wonders if she’s made a terrible mistake. She was supposed to be visiting the Christmas tree in the Place de la Concorde, and eating escargots and macaroons with her new husband on their honeymoon. But a week before the wedding, she called it off. Isabel is an ambitious Philadelphia finance woman, and Neil suddenly decided to take over his grandparents’ farm. Isabel wasn’t ready to trade her briefcase for a pair of rubber boots and a saddle.
When Neil suggested she use their honeymoon tickets for herself, she thought it would give her a chance to clear her head. That is until she locks herself out on the balcony in the middle of winter. Thankfully her neighbor Alec, a French children’s illustrator, comes to her rescue. He too is nursing a broken heart at the Crillon for the holidays. With a new friend by her side, Isabel is determined to use her time in the city of lights wisely. After a chance encounter with a fortune teller and a close call with a taxi, she starts to question everything she thought was important.
Christmas in Paris is a moving and heartwarming story about love, trust, and self-discovery. Set during the most magical week of the year, the glorious foods and fashions of the most romantic city in the world are sure to take your breath away.
“You can fall in love for all sorts of reasons, but it’s wonderful to be with someone who makes you laugh.”
My Thoughts:
I have difficulties writing reviews on romance novels because I have such a love/hate relationship with them. I’m very pessimistic when it comes to love in general, so reading such seemingly perfect stories that revolve solely around romance just frustrates me–but then once I get a chapter or two in, I’m completely in love with the characters and the easygoing story and the drama of it all.
Christmas in Paris was no exception. I started reading the story because I wanted something I could escape into, especially at Christmas time, and I thought a love story was just what I needed. Admittedly at the start (as I am when I begin any romance novel) I was bitter towards the characters and the perfect meet-cute Hughes wrote. (Why can’t these things happen to me? Why do romance novels make it seem like meeting the man of your dreams is so easy?) But, Hughes’s writing enchanted me and the relatable character’s enticed me.
I enjoyed reading this love story from a male’s perspective every other chapter. It made me wonder if men really think this way about women, because if so, I want to marry a man like Alec. I also loved Isabel’s character and her obsession with Paris, shopping, and finding love. We all are just trying to find love, and like Isabel, sometimes we fail over and over again–but that doesn’t mean we should give up. I grew to love Isabel and her resilience and positivity. It inspired me to be that way myself.
There were a handful of sex scenes in this novel which I usually skim through, but Hughes wrote it so beautifully that I didn’t feel like I was reading a sex scene–I felt like someone was describing the passion of lovemaking, which is how you want sex to be described in a romance novel.
The world Hughes created was full of glamour and adventure. The female character was empowering. And the journey she takes you on is inspiring.
The love story itself was very satisfying. It was full of rich character histories, loves lost, and the unexpected drama that surrounds a new romance. And the fact that it took place at Christmas made it that much more romantic, enjoyable, and cozy to read during the holidays.
“Fear only holds you back, life is about moving forward.”
I recommend this book to…
…adults. Women. Women needing an escape into a romantic world full of glamour, drama, adventure, and the yearning for love. Also, read this if you want a quick, satisfying read.
Comfort Guide:
There are a handful of explicit sex scenes. Very detailed, but only last about a paragraph each. There were no uses of the “F” word and maybe only a handful–if any–of other curse words. No gore or violence. Mature content.
Info:
Author – Anita Hughes
Published – 2016
Page Count – 277
I need to borrow this one. I’ve got a lot if books I need to read, but keep procrastinating.
I have a lot you can borrow!