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One Winter at the French Chalet by Mandy Baggot #Review

  We are travelling to France for Mandy Baggot's latest romcom, One Winter at the French Chalet which was published by Boldwood Books on October 4th. 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 with

My Map of You by Isabelle Broom

    My Map of You strikes me as the ultimate summer read. Mainly set on the Greek island of sun drenched Zakynthos, we follow Holly, a rather emotionally detached young woman, after she has found out that she inherited a house there, from an aunt who she had never met and was unaware of. We find out the reasons why Holly has built an invisible wall around herself and uncover family secrets along the way. 

    The supporting cast of characters are warm and varied. There is a romance to unravel but what is interesting is that all of the characters are flawed and completely human. You can see the principal characters grow and develop, especially Holly who gains a greater understanding of her place in life. For me, the settings steal the show. Metropolitan London is a good contrast to the shimmering island of Zakynthos which is described in such detail. The pace of the story never flags and for an escapist read, this fits the bill.

In short: a descriptive, evocative, heart warming summer read. 

My thanks to the publisher, Penguin Random House, for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
     

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