Book review of The Making of Us by Debbie Howells

The Making of Us by Debbie Howells

The Making of Us by Debbie Howells

Two people are about to take off on a journey that could change their whole lives…

As the plane surges up into the clouds, Stevie finds herself clutching the hand of the stranger sitting in the seat next to her.

It is a moment that will change everything. But Ned is heading to see his dying mother, and Stevie is returning to France to escape a terrible loss in her past. Neither of them can think about that tiny flame that just flickered between them.

But then their paths keep crossing, leading them both to the same beautiful community garden in a small French village; run by a mysterious old man named Zeke – a man with many of his own secrets.

As it becomes clear that fate is going to keep bringing them together – the two of them have to ask – are they ready for a happy-ever-after? Do they even know how to find it?

As the seeds grow into plants and flowers all around them, Stevie begins to wonders if Zeke – and his garden – might just have the answers…

The Making Of Us is a heart-warming, uplifting novel about love, heartbreak, and living your truest life. Perfect for fans of Lucy Diamond, Beth Moran, and Nicholas Sparks.

The Making of Us by Debbie Howells

My review

This book is another powerfully emotional read from Debbie Howells. 

There is something particularly lovely about a book that brings me to a France I know, so with Limoges airport featuring in the opening chapters, and the characters setting off for a rural village in the Corrèze, I certainly felt at home within the pages. 

When they meet on a flight to Limoges in southwest France, Stevie and Ned are both in a difficult place. Stevie, alone and recovering from a loss, Ned, not sure where his life or career is going. I felt I bonded with them both from the beginning and couldn’t wait to see how their journeys would evolve.

Fay, alone in her second home in France, needs something different from her life, rather than being a dutiful wife at husband Hugh’s beck and call. Making the decision not to return to Surrey, but to immerse herself in a local allotment, run by the mysterious Zeke, is a decision that changes the path of her life and that of her family. Zeke was one of my favourite characters. Wise, caring, always believing in the signs nature sends him, but hiding a difficult secret.

The Making of Us by Debbie Howells

As we get to know them, and the other characters in the village, the intricacies of village life often made me smile, and I especially loved the way the character’s paths crossed, often without them realising the significance of the meeting. This book deals with illness, loss and grief sensitively and with feeling. There are family stories to piece together, new lives to carve out and a real sense of the community coming together.

Ultimately, it perfectly highlights the importance of life, living it to the best of our abilities and loving those who are important.

Zeke, Fay, Stevie and Ned, all touched my heart as I was immersed in their lives. It was great to be back in a Debbie Howells novel.

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French Village Diaries is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk at no extra cost to you.

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Debbie Howells

  

Author Bio  

Debbie Howells is a Sunday Times bestseller, who is now fulfilling her dream of writing women’s fiction with Boldwood. She has previously worked as cabin crew, a flying instructor, and a wedding florist! Now living in the countryside with her partner and Bean the rescued cat, Debbie spends her time writing.

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The Making of Us by Debbie Howells

You can read my reviews of some of Debbie’s previous novels here:

The Girl I Used to Be 

The Life You Left Behind 

Book review of One Winter at the French Chalet by Mandy Baggot

One Winter at the French Chalet by Mandy Baggot

One Winter at the French Chalet by Mandy Baggot

Things aren’t going well for travel writer Orla Bradbee.

With Christmas fast approaching, her boss is insisting Orla must travel to a rural village in France to interview a man who doesn’t speak. But with trouble at home – her teenage sister Erin is in a ‘situationship’ with a man online – Orla’s only plan is to take Erin with her.

Get the interview done, find out more about this online Romeo and still be back in time for Christmas dinner. Easy, right?

Saint-Chambéry is a picturesque French village nestled in the snow-capped mountains, but Jacques Barbier – gorgeous and brooding, yet a man of few words – makes it clear that Orla is wasting her time here.

Orla can’t deny that Jacques intrigues and infuriates her, but what is the mysterious Frenchman hiding exactly? And can she get close enough to uncover his secrets without risking her own heart?

Escape to the beautiful French Alps with Mandy Baggot for a romantic, heartwarming story to get you through the cold winter months! 

One Winter at the French Chalet by Mandy Baggot

My review

A last-minute assignment couldn’t have come at a worse time for Orla. As she uncovered one family issue after another, the last thing she wanted was to be sent on a wild goose-chase to the French mountains. However, the longer she was there, breathing in the crisp mountain air, the clearer she began to see things about her life. 

Jacques was an enigma from the beginning and getting to the bottom of his backstory kept me turning the pages, even when I should have been doing other things. For someone who was always 100% in control of himself and his surroundings, being thrown together with Orla in the run up to Christmas rocked his world in more ways than one. Meeting in such an unusual way, proved to be a timely reminder for both Jacques and Orla, how routine their lives had become and how this had led them to lose their spark for life.

One Winter at the French Chalet by Mandy Baggot

I instantly felt at home in the Alpine village of Saint-Chambéry, its quirky community felt rather familiar having lived in a rural French village for over twenty years. The characters were a great mix of interfering, yet caring and always proud of their traditions. Life here brought plenty of smiles to my face, especially the antics of those who have the community’s best interests at heart. Delphine in particular is someone I will remember fondly for her stubbornness and the delicious drinks served from her café. 

I also loved the teenagers, Erin, Tommy and Burim. Their take on life and the issues and emotions going on around them was insightful, their astuteness was something else and despite the serious nature of some of the topics, I couldn’t help but smile at them and the way they trumped their older siblings so effortlessly. 

This book was a real heartwarming read. Everyone learned something about themselves and those around them, and when things got serious the community came together to help and support each other. Add in a bit of Alpine magic to add sparkle to the dark days and you have a book as comforting as a hot chocolate after a frosty morning walk. 

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French Village Diaries is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk at no extra cost to you.

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Mandy Baggot

Author Bio  

Mandy Baggot is a bestselling romance writer who loves giving readers that happy-ever-after. From sunshine romantic comedies set in Greece, to cosy curl-up winter reads, she's bringing gorgeous heroes and strong heroines readers can relate to. Mandy splits her time between Salisbury, Wiltshire and Corfu, Greece and has a passion for books, food, racehorses and all things Greek!

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One Winter at the French Chalet by Mandy Baggot

Book review of You had me at Château by Portia MacIntosh

You had me at Château by Portia MacIntosh

You had me at Château by Portia MacIntosh

Romantic comedy writer Amber Page is stuck in a rut.

After her editor tells her she needs to "up the spice" in her books (literally Amber's worst nightmare...), she is at a crossroads of what to do with her career.

When the opportunity arises to go on a writer's retreat at an exclusive château in the beautiful French Alps, Amber reluctantly agrees, hoping a change of scenery will help with inspiration.

While she tries and fails to spice up her writing - with the unhelpful guidance of the eccentric romance writers at the château - she meets two leading men who cause her own real-life romantic comedy to unfold...

A laugh-out-loud love triangle, forced proximity romantic comedy from million-copy bestseller Portia MacIntosh.

You had me at Château by Portia MacIntosh

My review

I bonded with Amber from the beginning of this book. Her life seemed to be one disaster after another, starting with her parents announcing a pre-divorce, a disastrous meeting with her editor - who she isn’t seeing eye to eye with, and the simmering stress of her writing not going anywhere and her deadline fast approaching. What should have been the opportunity of a lifetime, to join her respected contemporaries at a writing retreat in the French Alps, revealed things aren’t always how you imagine them to be, especially when they were reluctant to let her into their established friendship circle.

Luckily, as she stumbles from one nightmare situation to another, there are lots of laughs to diffuse the tension, and she has her brother Tom to sound out on about their parents.  Then there is the resort she is sent to, which is a picture-perfect Christmas wonderland, with snowy scenes outside, crackling log fires inside and delicious food at every mealtime. Add into the mix an unlikely friendship with famous influencer Caleb, who she had met in the most hilarious of situations, and the strange world she finds herself transported to, doesn’t seem so bad after all.

You had me at Château by Portia MacIntosh

I loved this book, devouring it in a matter of hours, but it was the humour that was the icing on the cake for me. I’m not always convinced by book blurb that claims ‘laugh out loud’ but I can’t think of a better way to describe the snorting and chuckling this book caused me. Do read this book, but it’s probably better not to read it in quiet public spaces.

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French Village Diaries is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk at no extra cost to you.

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Portia MacIntosh

Author Bio  

Portia MacIntosh is the bestselling author of over 20 romantic comedy novels. From disastrous dates to destination weddings, Portia’s romcoms are the perfect way to escape from day to day life, visiting sunny beaches in the summer and snowy villages at Christmas time. Whether it’s southern Italy or the Yorkshire coast, Portia’s stories are the holiday you’re craving, conveniently packed in between the pages.

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You had me at Château by Portia MacIntosh

 

La vie est Belle

A bike ride along the river Belle, Deux-Sèvres

La Vie est Belle

 

September, how could you, my birth month, have been so disappointing weatherwise this year? I have vivid memories of September 2004, our first full month in France, where temperatures regularly topped 30º, breakfasts, lunches and dinners were eaten outside, and it seemed summers in France would go on forever.

Looking back on twenty years of photos, sunny days, hot bike rides, touristy days out under blue skies, and sultry vistas of our orchard looking crisp and dry at the end of the season are far more common than the low-hung grey skies, vivid greens of soggy water-logged land and the stormy days you have showered on us this year.

Had we been blessed with a summer of endless sunny days a moist September might have come as a welcome relief. As it was, summer had hardly seemed to get going as August drew to a close, and I was eagerly anticipating a September where foggy mornings gave way to hot afternoons, where despite the shortening of the days, evenings were still warm enough to be outdoor events. The disappointment of a September that has been so far from my expectations has been hard to accept.

Terra Aventura parcours, Exireuil, Deux-Sèvres

As October arrives, so does the ominous date of the 14^th, marking exactly one year since the weather turned, becoming wet and unsettled following a gorgeous six-week period of late summer heat. This year, I think I’d be hard pushed to count six decent, hot days in the last six weeks, but I do know we have made the most of them, often following the routes and answering the questions on the Terra Aventura geocaching app. This has seen us clambering over boulders in the river gorge, as we explored les puits d’enfer (hell’s wells) in Exireuil, alongside the military town of Saint-Maixent-l’Ecole in the Deux-Sèvres, as well as discovering hidden gems in Civray and Charroux in the Vienne.

A September sunset ride

The Bromptons continue to be our faithful companions, whether to and from work, enjoying rarely glimpsed sunsets after work, or the glowing autumnal colours of Chef-Boutonne on market day. We also discovered the Belle valley, less than thirty kilometres from home, where lavoirs, lost lanes and fairy bridges hidden in the trees reminded us that la vie est belle, life is beautiful (whatever the weather).

Sunshine in Charmé, Charente

I have yet to cycle my traditional 100km in a day birthday bike ride, something I have been doing since September 2015, although we did manage a fabulous 93km on the 20^th September. Our route took us through the Charente vineyards ripe with fruit, past Romanesque churches, lavoirs and fields of sunflowers with drooping seed heads, awaiting harvest. In Mansle, on the banks of the Charente River, we enjoyed a coup de soleil from a local patisserie. This new to us delight had a base of an apricot clafoutis with a lightly whipped topping of crème patisserie and Chantilly cream and was a real burst of sunshine in our mouths. Sadly, with storm clouds and thunder rolling in around us, we didn’t risk adding on the required seven kilometres to hit the 100. Ten days later and it seems the stormy showers and high winds, although interspersed with sunny spells, are still with us. I’ve had enough. Like the lizards I watch soaking up the heat on the steps of the château, I need to recharge my solar panels before winter arrives.

I can only hope that October gives us some respite from the cold and damp before winter truly sets in. 

  

Book review of Christmas at the Little Paris Hotel by Rebecca Raisin

Christmas at the Little Paris Hotel by Rebecca Raisin

Christmas at the Little Paris Hotel by Rebecca Raisin

Turn a tumbledown Paris hotel into a perfect boutique, bookish retreat, and have it open for Christmas? What could possibly go wrong?

When Anais receives a near-derelict Paris hotel in her divorce settlement, her first thought is to tidy it up and sell it immediately. All she wants is to move on and forget her disaster of a marriage ever happened.

But selling it proves impossible, so she has only one option: to make it gorgeous and open by Christmas… when her funds will almost certainly run out.

She’s not counting on the grumpy American bar-owner next door, Noah, coming and interfering at every moment though. Nor is she expecting to find a mysterious room – which holds the key to a one-hundred-year-old secret – about a woman who chose love against the odds.

One thing’s for sure… as the fairy lights twinkle all over the city of lights and the first snowflakes start to fall… this will be a Christmas in Paris to remember.

A totally gorgeous, escapist romantic comedy, with an unforgettable mystery! A perfect festive read for fans of Emily Henry and Sarah Morgan to curl up with this winter.

Christmas at the Little Paris Hotel by Rebecca Raisin

My review

Romance author, Anais is well shot of her phoney ex-husband, but the only thing she has walked away with in the divorce settlement is a run-down boutique hotel in Paris and a simmering anger towards overbearing men. With her cousin Manon by her side, she is determined to get the hotel partially renovated and open before Christmas, with her ultimate goal being to show others it has potential, sell it and finally move on from a few traumatic years. 

The hotel, however, has other ideas. As the renovations begin, it slowly reveals secrets from its past, including a literary mystery that needs unravelling and solving. With a little help from her friends, Anais begins to heal her broken heart, bring the hotel back to its former glory and discovers a romance or two along the way. 

Christmas at the Little Paris Hotel by Rebecca Raisin

This book was an absolute delight for a literary nerd like me, containing references to some of the great Parisian novels from the past as well as cameo appearances from the characters in A Love Letter to Paris, one of my favourite books this summer, also by Rebecca Raisin – but that is not all. Two of my favourite ‘new life in Paris’ memoirs also get a starring role; Paris Letters by Janice Macleod (that I read and reviewed on the blog in 2014) and the emotionally honest Meet Me in Paris (2015) by Juliette Sobanet (whose romance novel Sleeping with Paris just happened to be my first introduction to kindle ebooks a very long time ago).  It was a stroke of genius and I can’t describe how wide the grin was on my face as I read this book.

With local knowledge of the Christmas hotspots and Parisian literary must-sees, I am sure anyone who loves the magic of Paris will fall under the spell of this book like I did. My only disappointment was that I couldn’t get straight on to Booking.com and reserve a suite for a romantic weekend away this winter. 

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French Village Diaries is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk at no extra cost to you.

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Rebecca Raisin

Author Bio  

Rebecca Raisin writes heartwarming romance from her home in sunny Perth, Australia. Her heroines tend to be on the quirky side and her books are usually set in exotic locations so her readers can armchair travel any day of the week.

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You can read my reviews of some of Rebecca’s previous novels here:

A Love Letter to Paris 

Elodie’s Library of Second Chances 

Christmas at the Little Paris Hotel by Rebecca Raisin