My second pre-Christmas read, and it’s such a pleasure to share my review of This Christmas in Paris by Sophie Claire. Published by Hodder & Stoughton, the ebook and audiobook were published on 17th August – and it’s now also available in paperback. The e-copy I read was my own, purchased for kindle via Amazon.
I’ve mentioned before, I know, that I first discovered Sophie’s writing through the lovely short stories she contributed to the Miss Moonshine anthologies, and I found she had a particularly special touch with her summery romances too – I really enjoyed An Escape to Provence, read last year, infused with sunshine and the warmth of the community, with its vividly drawn setting and the most tremendous chemistry between the two main characters (you’ll find my review here). But I do have rather a particularly soft spot for her wintery books – the first I read and loved was The Christmas Holiday, back in December 2019 (you’ll find my review here), and I was delighted to find myself back in Willowbrook at Christmas with A Winter’s Dream in October 2020. That was such a gorgeous romance, everything Christmassy you could possibly ask for along with a really well told story, strong characters, some armchair travel, and plenty of emotional content and gentle humour along the way (you’ll find my review here). I had high hopes for her latest – I already know how much I always enjoy her writing, but isn’t Paris just the perfect setting at Christmas?
What could be more magical than Christmas in Paris?
When Carys is offered the chance to run a little French café, she leaps at the chance to discover an exciting city where she can dream big.
Meanwhile, struggling journalist Mat is living in the City of Love – but he’s never found romance himself.
Then, a chance encounter changes everything, and it feels like the start of something wonderful. But Carys and Mat are both keeping secrets…
Can they open their hearts to one another – and maybe even find love, just in time for Christmas?
In an attempt to move on from her past – an accident has left its scars, but its impact was more than physical – Carys decides a fresh start is needed, away from concerned and sympathetic friends, overplaying the extent of her previous experience to take over the management of a quirky Parisian cafe in the run up to Christmas. Feeling a little out of her depth dealing with staff issues and introducing fresh ideas to bring the customers through the door, she finds loneliness an issue too – until a chance meeting with Mat, and their regular Sunday meetings and outings become something of a lifeline. He’s an unappreciated journalist working for a free newspaper, but with hopes of securing a post with a national which would go some way towards him living up to his successful father’s high expectations – and he has a plan for how to make that happen.
Work takes a back seat when they’re together and their friendship begins to turn into a romance – and he provides both a refuge and support when Carys closes the cafe for Christmas, her efforts having failed to turn around its fortunes. But this isn’t a romance where things go smoothly. She trusts him with her deepest secrets as they fall in love – but he has a secret that’s even more deeply hidden, and the consequences when it’s finally uncovered are devastating for them both.
I must say that the characterisation in this book is quite superb. Carys is immensely likeable and sympathetic, and it’s lovely to share her excitement about her new venture and her little victories – and it really hurts to see her dreams falling apart along with her disappointment that her trust might have been misplaced. But Mat is also very much the romantic lead I wanted him to be, a all-round really lovely guy – equally trying to follow his dreams, until some of his actions begin to inspire feelings of a rather different kind. It’s very clever writing, digging into the reasons why people sometimes do the things they do, especially when there are good (or, at least, justifiable) reasons – and we see the situation from both sides, which makes our sympathy and understanding wax and wane. And the author’s emotional touch is quite perfect – there were a few times she had me very close to tears, although there was also plenty of content that made me smile.
But there’s so much more about this book than that central relationship and the way things go so badly wrong. There’s a really strong supporting cast, many of the characters having stories of their own. Some are older, and particularly well drawn – Madame Jalibert is flamboyant and quite wonderful, and I really enjoyed Mat’s friendship with and care for his elderly neighbour Madame Parot. I also found young waitress Aurelie’s story strong and well told – sometimes appearances just don’t give the full picture. And the whole setting is just fantastic – the cafe itself but also street level Paris perfectly drawn in every detail, and with every bit of added Christmas glitz and sparkle you could possibly ask for.
This was a book I very much enjoyed – with a very real and convincing romance, unexpected twists and turns, much more depth and nuance than I expected, and a strong story that had me hooked from the first page to its wholly satisfying ending. Very much recommended – I loved it.
About the author
Sophie Claire writes emotional stories set in England and sunny Provence, where she spent her summers as a child.
She has a French mother and a Scottish father, but was born in Africa and grew up in Manchester, England where she still lives with her husband and two sons.
Previously, she worked in Marketing and proofreading academic papers, but writing is what she always considered her ‘real job’ and now she’s delighted to spend her days dreaming up heartwarming contemporary romance stories set in beautiful places.
Sophie is a member of Novelistas Ink, a group of writers who meet regularly and share a blog. The Novelistas’ support and encouragement was invaluable during her journey to publication and continues to be so.
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