by Elsie Woods
About this book
Natalie is an American Texan girl who comes to Paris with 5 other girlfriends looking for a great French romance. She works as a hostess in a Michelin-star French restaurant, infusing her Southern charm into customer service.
Olivier is Natalie’s boss and heir to the Dubois empire. He does not want this responsibility and instead dreams of having an adventure in America. But he stoically bears the responsibility the family places on him, including an unspoken engagement with a childhood friend whom he does not love.
Things start to change as the two meet and learn from each other’s perspectives.
Book review
This is a sweet and cute romance. It is fun to learn about Natalie’s experience in Paris, struggling to fit her bubbly nature in the quietly elegant French culture. She shares a small apartment with her friends whom she had convinced to embark on this foreign adventure with her.
Olivier admires Natalie’s bravery and enthusiasm in embracing change and begins to question his beliefs about shouldering so much of his family’s expectations. It was encouraging to read about his journey to let go of these expectations and learn to live his own life.
I would have liked to know if Grandmama decided to share her story of her American love with her family eventually. It bothered me that she laid such a heavy secret on Natalie’s shoulders only.
We also got a peek into the side characters who seem quite interesting. It would be interesting to see if Olivier’s brother Sebastien got a story of his own. The next story in the series is of Natalie’s friend and her co-worker who is her nemesis. Looks like an interesting one to put on my reading list!
Rin Ranger 