Tuesday 10 November 2015

The Little Bookshop on the Seine by Rebecca Raisin


Le Vie En Rose


Bookshop owner Sarah Smith has been offered the opportunity to exchange bookshops with her new Parisian friend for 6 months! And saying yes is a no-brainer – after all, what kind of a romantic would turn down a trip to Paris…for Christmas?


Even if it does mean leaving the irresistible Ridge Warner behind, Sarah’s sure she’s in for the holiday of a lifetime – complete with all the books she can read!


Imagining days wandering around Shakespeare & Co, munching on croissants, sipping café au laits and watching the snow fall on the Champs-Élysées Sarah boards the plane.


But will her dream of a Parisian Happily-Ever-After come true? Or will Sarah realise that the dream of a Christmas fairy tale in the city of love isn’t quite as rosy in reality…

A deliciously feel-good Christmas romance perfect for fans of Debbie Johnson and Julia Williams



I would like to thank Carina for auto-approving me to read this book on NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I would also like to thank author Rebecca Raisin for being there when I needed her the most and sending me bits of this story to help me through, love you (sorry it's taken me awhile to write this review)  xx.

I will start with this gorgeous cover of all of becks books this really has to be my favourite and carina have outdone themselves with this one.

In this story, we meet up again with Sarah the main character from The Bookshop on the Corner.  She is still in the small town of Ashford and it was lovely to meet up with some familiar characters, in Lil and CiCi.  The Sarah's friend Sophie has a proposal for them to swap bookshops as Sophie has had her heartbroken and needs to get away.  Sophie would live and run Sarah's bookshop in Ashford and Sarah run Sophies in Paris.  For Sarah this idea is a no-brainer especially with the love of her life Ridge away for longer periods of time and the feeling that they are growing apart, after all he could visit her in Paris just as easily as he could in Ashford.

I loved that Sarah decided to invest into the adventure and enjoyed following her around Paris, for me it is a place I have half wanted to visit especially places like the Eiffel Tower but, on the other hand, isn't Paris the city of love?  I loved Bec's descriptions of the City and can tell she really invested in the time she spent there earlier this year.

This is the longest book the Bec has written and personally I think it is one of her best, although I will always love the Gingerbread books. I know with each books Bec's writing is getting better and better.  It's worth all the blood sweat and tears honey, you're fantastic.  So if you want some escapism in the city of love that has a bookshop this one is for you.  Looking forward to the next book in the series.



The Little Paris Collection: 
The Little Bookshop on the Seine 
The Little Antique Shop under the Eiffel Tower 
The Little Perfume Shop off the Champs-Élysées 

Also by Rebecca Raisin 

The Gingerbread Café trilogy:
Christmas at the Gingerbread Café
Chocolate Dreams at the Gingerbread Café
Christmas Wedding at the Gingerbread Café 

The Bookshop on the Corner
Secrets at the Maple Syrup Farm 

Sainsbury’s 




A book lover’s paradise

I’m smitten with Paris, and always have been. So when my editor approved my idea for the next series The Little Paris Collection my brain went into overdrive! There’s so much beauty in Paris, from the Gargoyles perched atop the Notre Dame, to the simple pleasures of munching on a buttery croissant as you walk by the bank of the Seine, stopping at the little book stalls along the way.
If you’re anything like me, and my character Sarah from The Little Bookshop on the Seine, then you’ll adore Paris for its ode to everything booky! I thought I’d share some literary-esque stops in case you’re ever in Paris!

The bookshops are plentiful in Paris, but a must see is Shakespeare and Co. It’s a ramshackle world of gorgeousness on the bank of the Seine, and sells mainly English books. It’s the go-to place for bibliophiles! If you visit, perhaps try to go in the evening as through the day it’s jam packed full of tourists! There’s lots of rich history associated with this shop, so take a wander through, and I bet you won’t want to leave…

Visit the Bibliothèque nationale de France, the Paris library. This has to be seen to be believed. Such a stunning place! Check out the reading room, and make sure you give yourself enough time to explore the booky wonderland inside.

I’m obsessed with The Lost Generation, all those American writers who escaped to Paris, and made it their home and wrote masterpieces there. I had goosebumps walking past cafes where Hemingway wrote, and parks Gertrude Stein used to walk her pooches. I had to visit one, have a café au lait, and write a few sentences just to say I wrote where Hemingway did! A bustling café called Les Deux Magots is one of this old haunts, so go and grab a coffee and people watch!

A little slice of heaven can be found along the banks of the Seine with the Les Bouqinistes, who sell antiquarian books from their tiny stalls. They’ve been around since the 16th century selling books this way, and also sell replicas of vintage style posters, and postcards. Old books written in French, you just have to buy one!

All this walking will no doubt make you thirsty. Stop for a vin blanc at Le Rosebud, a place Henry Miller, Hemingway, and F Scott Fitzgerald frequented.

We stayed further out in a bigger apartment when we visited Paris, but I found out after there are literary hotels! Check out the Apostrophe Hotel! I think it would cap off a fun, book loving day! 
I could go on and on about all the delights Paris has to offer! I don’t think there’s much that tops off a long day of sight-seeing, than grabbing a book, and sitting by the Eiffel Tower, and reading!
I hope you’ve check out some of these places, and let me know where your favourite bookshop is. 

Love Bec xxx




Rebecca Raisin is a bibliophile. This love of books morphed into the desire to write them. She’s been widely published in various short-story anthologies, and in fiction magazines, and is now focusing on writing romance. The only downfall about writing about gorgeous men who have brains as well as brawn is falling in love with them – just as well they’re fictional. Rebecca aims to write characters you can see yourself being friends with. People with big hearts who care about relationships, and, most importantly, believe in true, once-in-a-lifetime love.

Follow her on twitter @jaxandwillsmum 


Website: rebeccaraisin.com





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