What do you think?
Rate this book
Една френска сватба
Група приятели, които се познават още от студентските си години, решават да се съберат отново – поводът е един специален рожден ден, а мястото е омагьосващата френска провинция. В компанията на пенливо вино, неустоими рецепти и съблазнителна носталгия те ще изживеят наново младостта си… и може би ще открият за себе си неща, които твърде дълго са били пазени в тайна.
Макс е залязваща рок звезда, в чийто живот трайно се е настанил споменът за миналото. Освен това той най-сетне е събрал кураж да разкрие чувствата си пред Хелън – неговата сродна душа, която дори не подозира за намеренията му. Майсторката в кулинарията Жулиет пък наскоро е минала през тежка раздяла и единственото, което може да я разсее от депресията, е фокусът ѝ върху работата. Тримата обаче неволно формират странен, но страстен любовен триъгълник, изходът от който ще доведе до неочаквана развръзка… и до една трогателна френска сватба.
Новозеландската писателка Хана Тъниклиф ви кани да изживеете истинска романтична авантюра – пикантен, еуфоричен, завладяващ, цинично игрив и секси, романът Една френска сватба заслужава всички тези комплименти, защото изкусно обединява хапливия си стил с апетитна музикална гарнитура и с обрати, които са колкото изненадващи, толкова пленяващи сърцето.
Корица: Фиделия Косева
Макс е залязваща рок звезда, в чийто живот трайно се е настанил споменът за миналото. Освен това той най-сетне е събрал кураж да разкрие чувствата си пред Хелън – неговата сродна душа, която дори не подозира за намеренията му. Майсторката в кулинарията Жулиет пък наскоро е минала през тежка раздяла и единственото, което може да я разсее от депресията, е фокусът ѝ върху работата. Тримата обаче неволно формират странен, но страстен любовен триъгълник, изходът от който ще доведе до неочаквана развръзка… и до една трогателна френска сватба.
Новозеландската писателка Хана Тъниклиф ви кани да изживеете истинска романтична авантюра – пикантен, еуфоричен, завладяващ, цинично игрив и секси, романът Една френска сватба заслужава всички тези комплименти, защото изкусно обединява хапливия си стил с апетитна музикална гарнитура и с обрати, които са колкото изненадващи, толкова пленяващи сърцето.
Корица: Фиделия Косева
340 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2020
About the author
Hannah Tunnicliffe
5 books123 followersHannah Tunnicliffe was born in New Zeland but is a self-confessed nomad. After finishing a degree in social sciences, she lived in Australia, England, Macau, Canada and, memorably, a campervan named Fred. A career in human resources temporarily put her dream of becoming a writer on the backburner. She currently lives in Sydney, Australia with her husband, Matthew, and their two daughters. The Color of Tea is her first novel.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 211 reviews
August 2, 2020
Като слаб сценарий, с нахвърляни изречения, накъсани мисли и случки, които не правят история. Меко казано , ужасна. Как я докарах до край , нямам идея. А защо , също не знам. Може би, за да се накажа , че съм платила за нея прескъпо. Ще спра да си купувам изданията на това издателство. Напоследък подбора е много слаб.
February 9, 2017
First, thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for providing me with a digital ARC of this novel, in exchange for an honest review.
I'll start with what I liked and what drew me to the book: the cover, which is gorgeous and so evocative of a summer day with friends; the blurb about a tight knit group of friends coming back together, keeping secrets, and the teaser of a wedding.
What I didn't like: the execution of the concept. The story felt disjointed with all the different third person POVs that still didn't have a significantly unique voice to differentiate them so I failed to see why the author even bothered pretending they were really different POVs when it could just have been told by a traditional omniscient third person narrator.
The characters were stereotypes or boring blank canvasses. I couldn't, for the life of me, bring myself to care about a single one of them. Max, the cliched bad boy in a band/ cliched middle aged man in crisis, complete with drugs and meaningless sex. Helen the pixie manic dream girl, even at 40, whose "twist" you could see coming from a million miles away. Juliette, the "salt of the earth" kind of character that's supposed to act as contrast to all the others but was so bland and had such a predictable backstory that she was a waste of story line. Rosie, the disappointed middle aged woman in an empty marriage who has regrets about her ex-boyfriend. Soleil, the young annoying millenial who is also hypersexualized for no reason. Sophie, the angsty teenager who's angry for... no reason, also. And on and on.
The characters had no chemistry among them/ between them. A bunch of them were supposed to be best friends but there was no evidence of that. The one supposed to be funny fell flat to me.
The plot... well, for about 2/3rds of the book there was very little plot, a lot of exposition, and nothing but my commitment to review this book inviting me to turn the pages. It was absolute page-filler writing. Most of the actual action happens in the last third of the book and the big drama was really not that big at all, it felt out of place too. You never doubt that it will be resolved favorably. There are no stakes here.
You can guess who's getting married almost from the start because the author is as subtle as a hammer to the head, giving hints that are basically spoilers.
The prose is lengthy but empty. Paragraphs and paragraphs describing food that have no purpose other than to occupy space. There's also a lot of "dialogue" that's also there just to occupy space. I don't have my copy at hand at the moment but some of the dialogue felt like this:
"Oh, Rosie, we can't tell anyone."
"But, Nina, we must."
"No, we can't, not yet."
"Oh, but we must."
No one talks like that. The characters often said the names of the person they were talking to in the dialogue. Be honest, when you're chatting with your mates, how often do you say their names to their own faces?
"John, what shall we watch tonight?"
"Oh, Mayela, I don't know, why don't we watch something on Netflix?"
"Excellent idea, John."
"Indubitably, Mayela."
For me, nothing worked in this book; not the characters, not the plot, not the writing. I had high hopes for it, loved the cover and the blurb, but the execution was irredeemable.
I'll start with what I liked and what drew me to the book: the cover, which is gorgeous and so evocative of a summer day with friends; the blurb about a tight knit group of friends coming back together, keeping secrets, and the teaser of a wedding.
What I didn't like: the execution of the concept. The story felt disjointed with all the different third person POVs that still didn't have a significantly unique voice to differentiate them so I failed to see why the author even bothered pretending they were really different POVs when it could just have been told by a traditional omniscient third person narrator.
The characters were stereotypes or boring blank canvasses. I couldn't, for the life of me, bring myself to care about a single one of them. Max, the cliched bad boy in a band/ cliched middle aged man in crisis, complete with drugs and meaningless sex. Helen the pixie manic dream girl, even at 40, whose "twist" you could see coming from a million miles away. Juliette, the "salt of the earth" kind of character that's supposed to act as contrast to all the others but was so bland and had such a predictable backstory that she was a waste of story line. Rosie, the disappointed middle aged woman in an empty marriage who has regrets about her ex-boyfriend. Soleil, the young annoying millenial who is also hypersexualized for no reason. Sophie, the angsty teenager who's angry for... no reason, also. And on and on.
The characters had no chemistry among them/ between them. A bunch of them were supposed to be best friends but there was no evidence of that. The one supposed to be funny fell flat to me.
The plot... well, for about 2/3rds of the book there was very little plot, a lot of exposition, and nothing but my commitment to review this book inviting me to turn the pages. It was absolute page-filler writing. Most of the actual action happens in the last third of the book and the big drama was really not that big at all, it felt out of place too. You never doubt that it will be resolved favorably. There are no stakes here.
You can guess who's getting married almost from the start because the author is as subtle as a hammer to the head, giving hints that are basically spoilers.
The prose is lengthy but empty. Paragraphs and paragraphs describing food that have no purpose other than to occupy space. There's also a lot of "dialogue" that's also there just to occupy space. I don't have my copy at hand at the moment but some of the dialogue felt like this:
"Oh, Rosie, we can't tell anyone."
"But, Nina, we must."
"No, we can't, not yet."
"Oh, but we must."
No one talks like that. The characters often said the names of the person they were talking to in the dialogue. Be honest, when you're chatting with your mates, how often do you say their names to their own faces?
"John, what shall we watch tonight?"
"Oh, Mayela, I don't know, why don't we watch something on Netflix?"
"Excellent idea, John."
"Indubitably, Mayela."
For me, nothing worked in this book; not the characters, not the plot, not the writing. I had high hopes for it, loved the cover and the blurb, but the execution was irredeemable.
November 29, 2019
This was a very enjoyable, light novel set in France. It is easy to read, a lot of fun in several ways and unexpected in others. It was at times a bit of a rocky reading experience for me and I am going to hop in and out of spoilers as I go, maybe don't read them unless you have already read this book.
Personally, I feel that the cover description may not be the best effort to truly represent this novel. While the cover suggests that the story is mostly about six friends getting together for Max's fortieth birthday weekend in his French country house (catered by Juliette), and there is a strong suggestion of romance between the lead male and female. This is..... Maybe not very precise.
Our main character and narrator is Juliette, we start with her and her experiences as a restaurateur, but we start with that, a year earlier than the story begins and then skips to 'present day'. So, quite obviously, the description on the back promising that "...set over a single weekend..." is false advertising. Bad PanMacmillian, Bad. We also have a lot of flashbacks, lots, often Juliette's.
To me, Juliette and her story are actually the main theme for the book, rather than the fortieth party which is a very good setting, but did not feel like the main theme. Juliette's story is not enhanced by regular attempts to create mystery and secrets. This is an ongoing theme in Juliette's part of the book, these 'mysteries' were not very mysterious and often made me impatient. The attempts to create secrets around non secretive things felt, to me, like clumsy writing.
Then we have Max, an international rock star who is throwing a weekend party on his fortieth birthday for his oldest friends, ones he has known since university. Max's burning ambition for this party is to declare his love for Helen, an old girlfriend. He has even bought an engagement ring, in hopes that she will return his love and turn his world around. Max needs his world turned around, he is bored with the music he is making, drinks too heavily and does too many drugs, but it is clear to the reader (and to his friends) that Helen is not likely to fall in with his plans.
The party! This was interesting, I liked the descriptions of the different people there and I found their interactions absorbing. I liked the fact that there were random guests that were not part of the original friend group, like a new girlfriend, a sister, a teenage daughter. They created a larger and more fluid social setting than just the old friends would have. What I did not like was how some of the characters were kind of abandoned, with stories suggested but then not taken any further. At this point I also really enjoyed how Max's dissipation is written, Juliette's connection with the group is also very nice indeed.
Righteo, this is where I go to town with my complaints; bearing in mind that I DID enjoy reading this book quite a bit, I do think it is a nice novel and I do recommend it. Still some things really got to me, and they are all spoilers
I loved the food; the descriptions of the different ingredients, the dishes and the settings all were a highlight for me. But at the end of the day, this felt to me like it was a story about Juliette and the attempt to make Max? or maybe the group of friends? or the party? a dual theme with Juliette's story, this made for slightly confusing reading at times.
Well, in the end a good book, with really nice social situational scenes. The house party was the high point for me, and the food. The author is pretty new by the look of it, perhaps the things that felt coy and clumsy to me are just a new author, with a lot of talent, finding her way toward her full potential.
Personally, I feel that the cover description may not be the best effort to truly represent this novel. While the cover suggests that the story is mostly about six friends getting together for Max's fortieth birthday weekend in his French country house (catered by Juliette), and there is a strong suggestion of romance between the lead male and female. This is..... Maybe not very precise.
Our main character and narrator is Juliette, we start with her and her experiences as a restaurateur, but we start with that, a year earlier than the story begins and then skips to 'present day'. So, quite obviously, the description on the back promising that "...set over a single weekend..." is false advertising. Bad PanMacmillian, Bad. We also have a lot of flashbacks, lots, often Juliette's.
To me, Juliette and her story are actually the main theme for the book, rather than the fortieth party which is a very good setting, but did not feel like the main theme. Juliette's story is not enhanced by regular attempts to create mystery and secrets. This is an ongoing theme in Juliette's part of the book, these 'mysteries' were not very mysterious and often made me impatient. The attempts to create secrets around non secretive things felt, to me, like clumsy writing.
Then we have Max, an international rock star who is throwing a weekend party on his fortieth birthday for his oldest friends, ones he has known since university. Max's burning ambition for this party is to declare his love for Helen, an old girlfriend. He has even bought an engagement ring, in hopes that she will return his love and turn his world around. Max needs his world turned around, he is bored with the music he is making, drinks too heavily and does too many drugs, but it is clear to the reader (and to his friends) that Helen is not likely to fall in with his plans.
The party! This was interesting, I liked the descriptions of the different people there and I found their interactions absorbing. I liked the fact that there were random guests that were not part of the original friend group, like a new girlfriend, a sister, a teenage daughter. They created a larger and more fluid social setting than just the old friends would have. What I did not like was how some of the characters were kind of abandoned, with stories suggested but then not taken any further. At this point I also really enjoyed how Max's dissipation is written, Juliette's connection with the group is also very nice indeed.
Righteo, this is where I go to town with my complaints; bearing in mind that I DID enjoy reading this book quite a bit, I do think it is a nice novel and I do recommend it. Still some things really got to me, and they are all spoilers
I loved the food; the descriptions of the different ingredients, the dishes and the settings all were a highlight for me. But at the end of the day, this felt to me like it was a story about Juliette and the attempt to make Max? or maybe the group of friends? or the party? a dual theme with Juliette's story, this made for slightly confusing reading at times.
Well, in the end a good book, with really nice social situational scenes. The house party was the high point for me, and the food. The author is pretty new by the look of it, perhaps the things that felt coy and clumsy to me are just a new author, with a lot of talent, finding her way toward her full potential.
June 7, 2017
Intrigued by the blurb and the teased wedding, I thought that the surprise bride and reconnection of college friends would provide a novel rich in depth and emotion, all backed up with the scenery and food. Unfortunately, from the beginning to end, this story was a mess. Third person voice for each character with no distinction between them made the story awkward: better suited to a third person omniscient narration. Then we add in characters – so flat as to be wooden, and utter stereotypes to boot. It’s fine to have one or two secondary characters that are “just” that, but when no effort to provide distinction or depth is evident, then I’m left frustrated, hoping that the dialogue may just give a bit of personality or oomph.
And then, the dialogue is wholly inappropriately phrased and felt as if it were ripped from the mid 1800’s: antiquated words (indubitably?!!), too much back and forth, repetition and no actual appearance of an emotional investment in the statements so casually bandied about. And while these are workable in the most part, if the story crafting and plot are moving forward, with big secrets and reveals appearing for each character, the story would have had some redeeming features. But, the ham-handed foreshadowing, the all tell no show writing and the absolute lack of forward motion with the plot all contributed to a lack of interest for this reader.
As I was reading, I kept wanting to skim and skip over the over-long passages that just felt like ‘filler’, none of those passages added to drive the plot forward, or bring a wandering thread around to a point. What I was left with was the feeling that this book was written to a word count, without consideration of characters, readers or an editor’s touch. Not a great introduction to this author’s work, but I find myself uninterested in trying another title.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review. All conclusions are my own responsibility.
Review first appeared at I am, Indeed
And then, the dialogue is wholly inappropriately phrased and felt as if it were ripped from the mid 1800’s: antiquated words (indubitably?!!), too much back and forth, repetition and no actual appearance of an emotional investment in the statements so casually bandied about. And while these are workable in the most part, if the story crafting and plot are moving forward, with big secrets and reveals appearing for each character, the story would have had some redeeming features. But, the ham-handed foreshadowing, the all tell no show writing and the absolute lack of forward motion with the plot all contributed to a lack of interest for this reader.
As I was reading, I kept wanting to skim and skip over the over-long passages that just felt like ‘filler’, none of those passages added to drive the plot forward, or bring a wandering thread around to a point. What I was left with was the feeling that this book was written to a word count, without consideration of characters, readers or an editor’s touch. Not a great introduction to this author’s work, but I find myself uninterested in trying another title.
I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review. All conclusions are my own responsibility.
Review first appeared at I am, Indeed
June 9, 2019
Can I give it less than 1 star?
I should know better than to attempt to read a book with the words « french » and « wedding » in the title, in particular when the author is not french and is just using the location as a prop.
No, peppering the text with a few french world does not makes an atmosphere. No, talking about food does not automatically imply french-ness. And no, a bunch of pretend college friends, aging parents and a cottage in Brittany does not make a story. It COULD, but it doesn’t.
I should know better than to attempt to read a book with the words « french » and « wedding » in the title, in particular when the author is not french and is just using the location as a prop.
No, peppering the text with a few french world does not makes an atmosphere. No, talking about food does not automatically imply french-ness. And no, a bunch of pretend college friends, aging parents and a cottage in Brittany does not make a story. It COULD, but it doesn’t.
February 1, 2017
A tight group of college friends get together for a weekend to celebrate one of their 40th birthdays . It's the story of the group and the outsiders they have relationships with. It's intertwines the stories of their youth and their lives now. It's of friendship, love, aging and it has twists and turns in it. I couldn't put it down. It was an easy read and well developed. Thanks Netgalley for letting me read this!
August 21, 2020
Perfect summertime read! If you like "The Big Chill," you may like this 21st century group of friends and what happens over the course of a weekend. Even though I knew from the beginning there will be a wedding one year later, it kept me guessing whose wedding, all along the way. There was one unexpected surprise near the end, but then I thought, how could I have missed *that*?! Beautifully descriptive, complex characters -- what more could I ask?
July 22, 2016
2 1/2 stars - a lovely glimpse into the French countryside - the descriptions of the landscape and food were beautifully written. The story of six friends coming together for a weekend after many years apart and hoping to recapture the heady days of their past. I liked the food more than the characters in the story.
September 6, 2019
This was more like 3.75 stars, but I rounded up. I was wavering around a 3 for most of this book but the ending brought it up. The writing was very good - beautiful descriptions of the French settings and the descriptions of the food, wow! The characters were rather annoying and not very likeable, but many of them redeemed themselves, at least part way, by the end. This was like a modern take on the movie The Big Chill.
July 22, 2023
Definitiv nicht das was man von diesen kurzem Titel erwartet hat. 🙂😂 Bin noch immer verwirrt 🙈. Aber war ganz okay und doch irgendwie spannend 👀😂.
June 8, 2017
3.5 stars
This book has been compared to The Big Chill, and the comparisons are easy to see: a group of college friends reunite at the home of one of them, during which secrets are revealed and new relationships formed. Some of the characters, too, could fit in with the Big Chill crowd. Yet A French Wedding is different in scope and feel.
At one point in the not too distant past, Max was a successful rock star. He's a guy who had it all - and who trades on that for concupiscent companionship. To celebrate turning 40, he invites five friends from college to join him at his home in Brittany: Eddie, a former member of an early band of Max's who brings his young girlfriend Beth; Lars and Nina, an unmarried couple who has been together since the beginning and who bring their teenage daughter Sophie; Rosie, who at one time dated Eddie but now is married to the awful Hugo, with whom she has two sons; and Helen, Max's best friend and the woman he plans to ask to marry him. Overseeing all of the festivities is Juliette, a chef and housekeeper who has a sad soul.
As the outsider, Juliette represents you, in a way. She watches over the group, finding cracks and strengths. Her quiet steadiness belies an inherent melancholia. She's alone, yet she finds herself drawn to Max's group of friends. Hanna Tunnicliffe also delivers her story from other characters' points of view, but the primary lenses are Juliette's and Max's. Of the two, you get to know Max a little better, as Tunnicliffe shows you how he wound up still alone, yet hopeful for the fantasy of marriage to Helen.
In fact, for such a pivotal character, Helen remains a bit of a mystery. You get some background on her family, but even at the end of the book, you don't feel as if you know her well. I would have liked to have had her more solidly fleshed out. Juliette, on the other hand, is richly complex. She is one of those "still waters run deep" people, and her sadness is heartbreaking. When Juliette musters her courage to ask for what she wants, you will cheer for her,
One thing Tunnicliffe does quite well is create the atmosphere around these people, incorporating the setting - both physical and emotional - into the story. Max's home is on a beach, where the tides deliver and take away, much like the characters do. Some of them will form new bonds, some will break their bonds, and some will strengthen them. Max plans a proposal to go along with his birthday. Whether he gets his wish or not is almost beside the point. What does matter is this group of people, coming together and supporting each other.
This book has been compared to The Big Chill, and the comparisons are easy to see: a group of college friends reunite at the home of one of them, during which secrets are revealed and new relationships formed. Some of the characters, too, could fit in with the Big Chill crowd. Yet A French Wedding is different in scope and feel.
At one point in the not too distant past, Max was a successful rock star. He's a guy who had it all - and who trades on that for concupiscent companionship. To celebrate turning 40, he invites five friends from college to join him at his home in Brittany: Eddie, a former member of an early band of Max's who brings his young girlfriend Beth; Lars and Nina, an unmarried couple who has been together since the beginning and who bring their teenage daughter Sophie; Rosie, who at one time dated Eddie but now is married to the awful Hugo, with whom she has two sons; and Helen, Max's best friend and the woman he plans to ask to marry him. Overseeing all of the festivities is Juliette, a chef and housekeeper who has a sad soul.
As the outsider, Juliette represents you, in a way. She watches over the group, finding cracks and strengths. Her quiet steadiness belies an inherent melancholia. She's alone, yet she finds herself drawn to Max's group of friends. Hanna Tunnicliffe also delivers her story from other characters' points of view, but the primary lenses are Juliette's and Max's. Of the two, you get to know Max a little better, as Tunnicliffe shows you how he wound up still alone, yet hopeful for the fantasy of marriage to Helen.
In fact, for such a pivotal character, Helen remains a bit of a mystery. You get some background on her family, but even at the end of the book, you don't feel as if you know her well. I would have liked to have had her more solidly fleshed out. Juliette, on the other hand, is richly complex. She is one of those "still waters run deep" people, and her sadness is heartbreaking. When Juliette musters her courage to ask for what she wants, you will cheer for her,
One thing Tunnicliffe does quite well is create the atmosphere around these people, incorporating the setting - both physical and emotional - into the story. Max's home is on a beach, where the tides deliver and take away, much like the characters do. Some of them will form new bonds, some will break their bonds, and some will strengthen them. Max plans a proposal to go along with his birthday. Whether he gets his wish or not is almost beside the point. What does matter is this group of people, coming together and supporting each other.
June 1, 2017
Food + France + Friends = a recipe for a book I am guaranteed to love. The descriptions and setting and characters in this book just made me warm and happy, even though the events themselves weren't warm and happy all the time. Tunnicliffe created a sumptuous read that I haven't been able to stop thinking about since finishing the book - I want to be a part of this group of friends and live in this area of France and eat all the delicious food and see all the beautiful things!
There is just one tiny thing that brought this down to a 4 star from 5 star for me, and that's a twist toward the end that I wish hadn't been a twist - I wish it had been a natural part of the story from the beginning, not a big reveal. No spoilers, but you'll know what I'm referring to when you read it!
If you understand what it's like to hit adulthood (and middle age) and realize that you are actually growing up, and that all your friends are too, this is the book for you. If you have friends you've known forever, and love books about France and food, add this to your TBR list immediately!
Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC - all opinions are my own.
There is just one tiny thing that brought this down to a 4 star from 5 star for me, and that's a twist toward the end that I wish hadn't been a twist - I wish it had been a natural part of the story from the beginning, not a big reveal. No spoilers, but you'll know what I'm referring to when you read it!
If you understand what it's like to hit adulthood (and middle age) and realize that you are actually growing up, and that all your friends are too, this is the book for you. If you have friends you've known forever, and love books about France and food, add this to your TBR list immediately!
Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC - all opinions are my own.
June 3, 2021
Overall I did like this book, it did take me a little bit to get into. Once I got the characters straight and had my phone for the odd google translate as there is some phrases in French I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed seeing different characters perspective and the flashbacks to previous years it really helped to understand them more
July 6, 2020
I was hooked until the very last chapter. The characters were fun and interesting. It was a great arch to a climax that just fell flat, leaving me disappointed and feeling a little cheated, honestly. Still not sure why the author felt the need to be so mysterious about Juliette, seemed a little unnecessary.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 19, 2019
I didn't like this book as much as I wanted to. It had a ton of promise, but it didn't just deliver.
I love stories with long-time friends coming together again. In this case, a group of college friends are meeting back at the home of Max to celebrate his fortieth birthday. So there is to be a weekend of reminiscing and celebrating, and somehow or another, a wedding will occur at some point because there is a wedding in the prologue.
Max is hosting his own birthday celebration as a chance to reconnect with his friends. As the synopsis indicates, Max has an additional plan which is to make one of his friends aware that he loves her and always has. Max also has a personal chef - Juliette - who is in the absolute perfect position to be in the background while everyone is talking and mingling and catching up on life. She is able to overhear drama and all of the secrets while she moves around serving dinner and chopping vegetables and refilling drinks, and since she is able to overhear snippets of story from everyone in the group, Juliette is privy to quite a bit of knowledge. This aspect of the story was fun for me.
Also fun for me was the food aspect of the story, as Juliette was very into French cuisine and there were many descriptions of the food she served, the ingredients she used, and bread she made. It was mouthwatering, really.
If Juliette would have stayed within her role as personal chef, I think I'd have liked this book more. But somehow, over the course of just a few days, Juliette enmeshed herself with this group. Or maybe she thought she did. Because there was a point where she wasn't really "peeping in" on the guests anymore, she was hanging out with them and interacting with them. This isn't a bad thing in terms of real people living real lives, but it made this story less interesting.
Since characterization is important: these characters aren't terribly interesting. I found it really hard to care about them. I tried to, I really did. But I found them a little flatter than I wanted to, than they needed to be for such a character-driven story. I didn't really mind that they ALL had big issues and problems (because who doesn't?) and I didn't mind that they were almost all unlikable. I don't even mind that there isn't much resolution to some of their issues during the course of this book because this is just a small look into their lives, a weekend. (Example: Max is depressed, drinks too much, does too many drugs.) But I think when you add all of their issues, don't resolve them, and make them unlikable too - without fully robust, interesting characters: this doesn't add up to me being able to make a connection in a character-driven book.
Finally, there is an event that happens toward the end of the book that comes out of nowhere and really changes the course of the entire story. I honestly didn't care for it. I had a hard time focusing on the story after this because literally everything veered from the central plot, which was Max's birthday and the events that were happening at his weekend celebration. The central focus changed to this other character and drama that unfolded as a result of the behavior that went down unexpectedly. I'm just going to stop right here about this because I'm being so vague so I won't spoil it, but from this point until the end, the book was a huge disappointment.
I appreciate that a few of the loose ends were tied up, but ultimately I feel like I don't know what happened with a few of the main characters because I wasn't able to interpret that ending. After the big, twisty thing that happened, I really needed some sort of closure to these friends' weekend together.
I really wanted to love this one. I think there was promise with the characterization and with Juliette's character, who changed over the course of the book -- but I just wasn't a fan of how all of this was executed. I'm sad that I'm not even 100% sure who got married. This just wasn't the "friends reconnecting" story for me.
Audiobook Notes: I grabbed the audiobook from the library to listen to so I could see what the pronunciation of the French words sounds like. The audiobook is narrated by Katharine McEwan, who has many audio titles to her name. She has a lovely voice and it was so neat to hear her say the French words, particularly the names of the French foods. That was my favorite thing about the audiobook.
But I ultimately abandoned the audiobook because the narrator gave the one American character a twang (or maybe a drawl?) that I couldn't listen to anymore. It changed and became more pronounced? overdone? over the course of the book and by the end, I was noticing the narration instead of paying attention to the story. So the audiobook had to go.
I love stories with long-time friends coming together again. In this case, a group of college friends are meeting back at the home of Max to celebrate his fortieth birthday. So there is to be a weekend of reminiscing and celebrating, and somehow or another, a wedding will occur at some point because there is a wedding in the prologue.
Max is hosting his own birthday celebration as a chance to reconnect with his friends. As the synopsis indicates, Max has an additional plan which is to make one of his friends aware that he loves her and always has. Max also has a personal chef - Juliette - who is in the absolute perfect position to be in the background while everyone is talking and mingling and catching up on life. She is able to overhear drama and all of the secrets while she moves around serving dinner and chopping vegetables and refilling drinks, and since she is able to overhear snippets of story from everyone in the group, Juliette is privy to quite a bit of knowledge. This aspect of the story was fun for me.
Also fun for me was the food aspect of the story, as Juliette was very into French cuisine and there were many descriptions of the food she served, the ingredients she used, and bread she made. It was mouthwatering, really.
If Juliette would have stayed within her role as personal chef, I think I'd have liked this book more. But somehow, over the course of just a few days, Juliette enmeshed herself with this group. Or maybe she thought she did. Because there was a point where she wasn't really "peeping in" on the guests anymore, she was hanging out with them and interacting with them. This isn't a bad thing in terms of real people living real lives, but it made this story less interesting.
Since characterization is important: these characters aren't terribly interesting. I found it really hard to care about them. I tried to, I really did. But I found them a little flatter than I wanted to, than they needed to be for such a character-driven story. I didn't really mind that they ALL had big issues and problems (because who doesn't?) and I didn't mind that they were almost all unlikable. I don't even mind that there isn't much resolution to some of their issues during the course of this book because this is just a small look into their lives, a weekend. (Example: Max is depressed, drinks too much, does too many drugs.) But I think when you add all of their issues, don't resolve them, and make them unlikable too - without fully robust, interesting characters: this doesn't add up to me being able to make a connection in a character-driven book.
Finally, there is an event that happens toward the end of the book that comes out of nowhere and really changes the course of the entire story. I honestly didn't care for it. I had a hard time focusing on the story after this because literally everything veered from the central plot, which was Max's birthday and the events that were happening at his weekend celebration. The central focus changed to this other character and drama that unfolded as a result of the behavior that went down unexpectedly. I'm just going to stop right here about this because I'm being so vague so I won't spoil it, but from this point until the end, the book was a huge disappointment.
I appreciate that a few of the loose ends were tied up, but ultimately I feel like I don't know what happened with a few of the main characters because I wasn't able to interpret that ending. After the big, twisty thing that happened, I really needed some sort of closure to these friends' weekend together.
I really wanted to love this one. I think there was promise with the characterization and with Juliette's character, who changed over the course of the book -- but I just wasn't a fan of how all of this was executed. I'm sad that I'm not even 100% sure who got married. This just wasn't the "friends reconnecting" story for me.
Audiobook Notes: I grabbed the audiobook from the library to listen to so I could see what the pronunciation of the French words sounds like. The audiobook is narrated by Katharine McEwan, who has many audio titles to her name. She has a lovely voice and it was so neat to hear her say the French words, particularly the names of the French foods. That was my favorite thing about the audiobook.
But I ultimately abandoned the audiobook because the narrator gave the one American character a twang (or maybe a drawl?) that I couldn't listen to anymore. It changed and became more pronounced? overdone? over the course of the book and by the end, I was noticing the narration instead of paying attention to the story. So the audiobook had to go.
June 28, 2017
What a surprise ending! Certainly not the wedding or the coupling I never saw coming.
July 9, 2017
I'm not sure I've ever been more disappointed in a book, especially a book I paid full-price.
Initially it was fine but it seem to go nowhere. The connection between Juliette and Max her boss, his friends is tenuous at best.
Max is in love with Helen, one of his friends from his youth. The group Max, Helen, Eddie, Rosie, Lars and Nina remain close even with great spans of time apart. Meeting at rockstar, Max's beautiful by the sea old French home, for his 40th birthday is the setting.
It's a weekend fraught with angst, drugs, alcohol, unrequited love, a serious health issue, fights etc. I don't see any wedding in the future. And when the connection between Juliette and Max turns out to be they both love Helen (and Helen is gay as is Juliette), it very anti climatic. Juliette leaves her job. Then the story jumps to a year later and again it's just bleh.
I'd save my money and skip this one.
Initially it was fine but it seem to go nowhere. The connection between Juliette and Max her boss, his friends is tenuous at best.
Max is in love with Helen, one of his friends from his youth. The group Max, Helen, Eddie, Rosie, Lars and Nina remain close even with great spans of time apart. Meeting at rockstar, Max's beautiful by the sea old French home, for his 40th birthday is the setting.
It's a weekend fraught with angst, drugs, alcohol, unrequited love, a serious health issue, fights etc. I don't see any wedding in the future. And when the connection between Juliette and Max turns out to be they both love Helen (and Helen is gay as is Juliette), it very anti climatic. Juliette leaves her job. Then the story jumps to a year later and again it's just bleh.
I'd save my money and skip this one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 29, 2019
A chef, a musician, a 40th birthday, a wedding, and set in France...loved it!
May 31, 2017
Thanks so much to Doubleday for sending me an ARC for an honest review. As always, all opinions are my own.
When I first heard about this book, I was picturing a French This is Where I Leave You. A group of friends who haven't seen each other in years getting together to celebrate a fortieth birthday. And I'm happy to report, that's kind of what I got!
The story follows a group of friends who meet up to celebrate a birthday. Max, the birthday boy is a washed up rock star who has been pining after Helen since they were in college. Rosie and Hugo have three sons but their marriage has been rocky since Rosie started her own jewelry company. Things are even more stressful when Rosie's ex-boyfriend, Eddie meets up with the gang, the latest of his girlfriends, a twenty-something American in tow. Nina and Lars round out the group, along with their 15-year-old daughter Sophie. Juliette, Max's chef and housekeeper, narrates a large portion of the book, reminiscing about her past in Paris.
I love the long lost friend trope, and Tunnicliffe does it fantastically. The plot of the story is subtle, expertly woven into flashbacks of days gone by. While most of the story is present day, there are snippets of college life, showing how the characters' have been shaped.
The writing in this book is so lyrical and dreamy. I found myself getting lulled in by Tunnicliffe's delicious descriptions, whether it was the gourmet meals Juliette prepared or just the interactions between the guests. I've found that writing a book set in somewhere like France can easily fall prey to cheesiness, however, Tunnicliffe is able to avoid this issue and uses the small town French backdrop in a way that created a charming feeling.
I loved reading about the groups' woes, their romances, and their scandals. I really felt as though I was there with them, at the very least, a close friend of the group. Tunnicliffe does a great job of describing each character, I was worried about having that many people in the story that I wouldn't be able to keep track of them. She also does a good job of expressing their emotions, I felt like I was able to connect with each of the characters, especially the female ones.
I think this book would be a great beach read, quick enough to read in a few hours and engrossing enough to devour at a day at the beach. The writing is charming and the plot will grab you from the start.
I appreciated the one year later epilogue, I always love a good epilogue but this one in particular left me satisfied. I liked knowing how things had panned out for the couples, and I loved seeing the wedding! Very clever!
Overall, a great summer read, I highly recommend.
When I first heard about this book, I was picturing a French This is Where I Leave You. A group of friends who haven't seen each other in years getting together to celebrate a fortieth birthday. And I'm happy to report, that's kind of what I got!
The story follows a group of friends who meet up to celebrate a birthday. Max, the birthday boy is a washed up rock star who has been pining after Helen since they were in college. Rosie and Hugo have three sons but their marriage has been rocky since Rosie started her own jewelry company. Things are even more stressful when Rosie's ex-boyfriend, Eddie meets up with the gang, the latest of his girlfriends, a twenty-something American in tow. Nina and Lars round out the group, along with their 15-year-old daughter Sophie. Juliette, Max's chef and housekeeper, narrates a large portion of the book, reminiscing about her past in Paris.
I love the long lost friend trope, and Tunnicliffe does it fantastically. The plot of the story is subtle, expertly woven into flashbacks of days gone by. While most of the story is present day, there are snippets of college life, showing how the characters' have been shaped.
The writing in this book is so lyrical and dreamy. I found myself getting lulled in by Tunnicliffe's delicious descriptions, whether it was the gourmet meals Juliette prepared or just the interactions between the guests. I've found that writing a book set in somewhere like France can easily fall prey to cheesiness, however, Tunnicliffe is able to avoid this issue and uses the small town French backdrop in a way that created a charming feeling.
I loved reading about the groups' woes, their romances, and their scandals. I really felt as though I was there with them, at the very least, a close friend of the group. Tunnicliffe does a great job of describing each character, I was worried about having that many people in the story that I wouldn't be able to keep track of them. She also does a good job of expressing their emotions, I felt like I was able to connect with each of the characters, especially the female ones.
I think this book would be a great beach read, quick enough to read in a few hours and engrossing enough to devour at a day at the beach. The writing is charming and the plot will grab you from the start.
I appreciated the one year later epilogue, I always love a good epilogue but this one in particular left me satisfied. I liked knowing how things had panned out for the couples, and I loved seeing the wedding! Very clever!
Overall, a great summer read, I highly recommend.
July 9, 2017
Lovely story, but not what I expected. I thought, “A wedding! France! Cheese! Pastry!” And I got a wedding… but not until the very very end; France… well a part of France caught very much in between England and France in language and culture; cheese… yes, but not everyone liked it; and pastry… oh the very best pastries and cakes made by chef Juliette.
Juliette set aside her personal baggage to be Max’s personal chef. For Juliette, life was even easier that way. When Max invited a bunch of friends to stay at his home for the weekend, Juliette was ready to cook for them like a madwoman. But things went wrong at every turn due to the shadow Max’s mood cast. Whether he meant to or not, Max kind of ruined everything for his friends and his chef. And that kind of ruined the story for me.
Good writing, good plot, depressing main character.
https://randombookmuses.com/2017/07/0...
Netgalley provided an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
May 30, 2016
Really enjoyed this novel from Hannah. Love her novels, I always want more and never want them to end. You feel like you want the characters to live on and as time passes you find yourself thinking more and more about them, what are they up to? Where are they now?. Then there is the food - yum - lemon sole - seafood caught that day - Kouign-amann(a French pastry). All set in amazing places, you get transported there. Can't wait for the movie!
July 12, 2017
I started listening to the audioversion of this book but finally stopped due to profanity and talk of sex. The story had sounded interesting but, unfortunately, these offensive elements ruined the book and any chance of me finishing it. I could only see it getting worse.
June 20, 2016
Wonderful story, beautifully written with food descriptions that made the taste buds tingle and music references that revived emotional memories.
August 8, 2017
A quintessential beach read: Tunnicliffe breathes enough life and personality into her characters so as to avoid them coming off as one-dimensional and her plot as fluff, while not delving too deep into any one character's story—her storyline is equal parts heartwarming (with a tale of true lifelong friends) and heart-wrenching. Her novel strikes the perfect balance between substance and buoyancy, which is what essentially qualifies A French Wedding as a beach read of note.
I enjoyed Tunnicliffe's use of language and imagery throughout the novel (especially in her descriptions of food, particularly kouign amann) - she also used these opportunities to infuse the story with an element of whimsy. The only leitmotif in the book I found slightly irritating (though I understand the author's rationale in perpetuating it throughout the story) was Tunnicliffe's propensity for having Juliette speak completely in English and then randomly insert a French word in her sentences (p.57, et al.).
Overall I enjoyed A French Wedding and highly recommend it as a read for a beach getaway or vacation - my only regret is that I didn't get to first experience this book while languidly sprawled under the summer sun.
Favorite quotes and passages:
"In Juliette's parents' opinion, the solution to every problem lay at the bottom of a teacup. If in doubt, put the kettle on. In an act of rebellion Juliette had started drinking coffee at the age of eleven, the blacker the better. But these days, she accepted the milky, sweet cups of tea with resignation. Perhaps her parents were right; perhaps tea would make it all better...Rituals were to be obeyed." (p.15)
"Lars is in the kitchen when Juliette returns inside. He is at the counter eating, still wearing his running gear. Nina goes to him, fitting neatly under his chin." (p. 104)
"Max gives Beth a benevolent smile and tips an oyster into his mouth. Here is a sign of him being grown-up: he eats oysters now. The Cancale oysters are small and clear, dressed simply. A good oyster tastes simply of rock and ocean—fresh, salty, delicious—like a woman laid back in his bed." (p. 116)
"She has a repertoire of standard answers that all elude the truth. Because the truth is like a cut diamond; it has many sides: yes, no, always, and never—all of them partially true and none of them completely true." (p. 127)
"She longed for the person who had broken her heart, whom she was supposed to be forgetting. It was almost cruel how much a person needed kindnesses, needed touch...That was the problem with the heart, it didn't take good advice and it never listened to reason." (p. 128)
"Max falls into music the way a person falls into cool water; he swims in it. It is tangible to him and yet fluid, like the silk of water against skin. It fills him. It makes him whole. Music saturates Max. It goes through him to the bone. It changes his mood, moves his world, rearranges his cells. Makes him feel as though he can fly, makes him feel as though he cannot take another breath. It lifts and crushes him, soothes and lacerates him." (p. 167)
I enjoyed Tunnicliffe's use of language and imagery throughout the novel (especially in her descriptions of food, particularly kouign amann) - she also used these opportunities to infuse the story with an element of whimsy. The only leitmotif in the book I found slightly irritating (though I understand the author's rationale in perpetuating it throughout the story) was Tunnicliffe's propensity for having Juliette speak completely in English and then randomly insert a French word in her sentences (p.57, et al.).
Overall I enjoyed A French Wedding and highly recommend it as a read for a beach getaway or vacation - my only regret is that I didn't get to first experience this book while languidly sprawled under the summer sun.
Favorite quotes and passages:
"In Juliette's parents' opinion, the solution to every problem lay at the bottom of a teacup. If in doubt, put the kettle on. In an act of rebellion Juliette had started drinking coffee at the age of eleven, the blacker the better. But these days, she accepted the milky, sweet cups of tea with resignation. Perhaps her parents were right; perhaps tea would make it all better...Rituals were to be obeyed." (p.15)
"Lars is in the kitchen when Juliette returns inside. He is at the counter eating, still wearing his running gear. Nina goes to him, fitting neatly under his chin." (p. 104)
"Max gives Beth a benevolent smile and tips an oyster into his mouth. Here is a sign of him being grown-up: he eats oysters now. The Cancale oysters are small and clear, dressed simply. A good oyster tastes simply of rock and ocean—fresh, salty, delicious—like a woman laid back in his bed." (p. 116)
"She has a repertoire of standard answers that all elude the truth. Because the truth is like a cut diamond; it has many sides: yes, no, always, and never—all of them partially true and none of them completely true." (p. 127)
"She longed for the person who had broken her heart, whom she was supposed to be forgetting. It was almost cruel how much a person needed kindnesses, needed touch...That was the problem with the heart, it didn't take good advice and it never listened to reason." (p. 128)
"Max falls into music the way a person falls into cool water; he swims in it. It is tangible to him and yet fluid, like the silk of water against skin. It fills him. It makes him whole. Music saturates Max. It goes through him to the bone. It changes his mood, moves his world, rearranges his cells. Makes him feel as though he can fly, makes him feel as though he cannot take another breath. It lifts and crushes him, soothes and lacerates him." (p. 167)
July 21, 2018
Max wird vierzig Jahre alt und möchte diesen Geburtstag mit all seinen Freunden feiern. Dazu lädt er sie in sein Haus in der Bretagne ein. Ein Wochenende lang will er mit ihnen tanzen, trinken, lachen und in Erinnerungen schwelgen.
Und er will ihnen endlich ein lang gehütetes Geheimnis verraten.
Juliette hat ihren Eltern zuliebe, ihr Restaurant in Paris aufgegeben. Um sie zu pflegen, kehrt sie in die Bretagne zurück - und landet als Köchin auf Max' Geburtstag.
Ohne, dass beide es vorher wissen, hält das Schicksal einiges für sie bereit. Aber sind die diesem auch gewachsen?
Ich muss sagen, der Einstieg ins Buch viel mir nicht so schwer. Die ersten Seiten mit Juliette als Hauptprotagonistin haben mir wirklich gefallen.
Aber eben nur der Anfang. Ein plötzlicher Szenenwechsel hat mich als Leserin zu Max und seinem Haus in der Bretagne geführt.
Dort wird gefeiert, dort wird gelacht und auch Juliette, die eigentlich nur als Köchin eingestellt ist, nimmt an der Feier teil.
Ich will nicht sagen, dass der Schreibstil der Autorin mir das Lesen erschwert hat, denn eigentlich war er wirklich flüssig zu lesen.
Irgendwie hat mich die Umsetzung der Geschichte aber ein wenig ... gestört, wäre da falsche Wort. Es hat mich eben einfach nicht fesseln können.
Eigentlich geht es hauptsächlich um Max, der seinen Geburtstag feiern will.
Max, der aber gar nicht ert richtig auftaucht und Juliette mit seinen Gästen alleine lässt. Das fand ich schon ein wenig befremdlich und ich könnte nicht mal sagen, wie ich an ihrer Stelle richtig reagiert hätte.
Oder wie ich mir gewünscht hätte, dass sie reagiert.
Die Perspektiv - und auch Jahreszeitenwechsel haben mich an manchen Stellen wirklich verwirrt. Ich hatte ein paar Schwierigkeiten, mich richtig zurecht zu finden.
Und das Gefühl von Sommerblau oder allgemein von Sommer hat mir in Laufe des Buches wirklich gefehlt.
Oder aber ich habe es einfach nicht gefunden.
Max als Charakter war mir außerdem von Anfang an unsympatisch. Sein Verhalten, manchmal seine Gedankengänge.
Irgendwie war er der Charakter, bei dem ich gar nicht so viele Bratpfannen zücken konnte, wie ich sie ihm über den Kopf ziehen wollte.
Juliette hinwegen war eine Person, die ich sofort mochte. Ich hätte echt gerne noch ein wenig mehr über sie erfahren.
Durch das Buch merkt man schnell, dass jede einzelne Person ihr eigenes Problem hat, dass er mit sich rumschleppen muss.
An sich fand ich das gar nicht so schlecht, immerhin ist das auch im realen Leben oft so, aber mir hat einfach der Tiefgang zu gewissen Problemem gefehlt.
Es war eine keine richtige Handlung zu erkennen, sondern einfach irgendwie .. eine Art Therapiesitzung, bei der jeder mal ein wenig von seinen Probleme erzählen darf, die die anderen Teilnehmer dann versuchen zu lösen.
Schade eigentlich, denn ich hätte mir wirklich gewünscht, dass mich das Buch alleine schon wegen des schönen Covers ein wenig mehr hätte begeistern können.
Und er will ihnen endlich ein lang gehütetes Geheimnis verraten.
Juliette hat ihren Eltern zuliebe, ihr Restaurant in Paris aufgegeben. Um sie zu pflegen, kehrt sie in die Bretagne zurück - und landet als Köchin auf Max' Geburtstag.
Ohne, dass beide es vorher wissen, hält das Schicksal einiges für sie bereit. Aber sind die diesem auch gewachsen?
Ich muss sagen, der Einstieg ins Buch viel mir nicht so schwer. Die ersten Seiten mit Juliette als Hauptprotagonistin haben mir wirklich gefallen.
Aber eben nur der Anfang. Ein plötzlicher Szenenwechsel hat mich als Leserin zu Max und seinem Haus in der Bretagne geführt.
Dort wird gefeiert, dort wird gelacht und auch Juliette, die eigentlich nur als Köchin eingestellt ist, nimmt an der Feier teil.
Ich will nicht sagen, dass der Schreibstil der Autorin mir das Lesen erschwert hat, denn eigentlich war er wirklich flüssig zu lesen.
Irgendwie hat mich die Umsetzung der Geschichte aber ein wenig ... gestört, wäre da falsche Wort. Es hat mich eben einfach nicht fesseln können.
Eigentlich geht es hauptsächlich um Max, der seinen Geburtstag feiern will.
Max, der aber gar nicht ert richtig auftaucht und Juliette mit seinen Gästen alleine lässt. Das fand ich schon ein wenig befremdlich und ich könnte nicht mal sagen, wie ich an ihrer Stelle richtig reagiert hätte.
Oder wie ich mir gewünscht hätte, dass sie reagiert.
Die Perspektiv - und auch Jahreszeitenwechsel haben mich an manchen Stellen wirklich verwirrt. Ich hatte ein paar Schwierigkeiten, mich richtig zurecht zu finden.
Und das Gefühl von Sommerblau oder allgemein von Sommer hat mir in Laufe des Buches wirklich gefehlt.
Oder aber ich habe es einfach nicht gefunden.
Max als Charakter war mir außerdem von Anfang an unsympatisch. Sein Verhalten, manchmal seine Gedankengänge.
Irgendwie war er der Charakter, bei dem ich gar nicht so viele Bratpfannen zücken konnte, wie ich sie ihm über den Kopf ziehen wollte.
Juliette hinwegen war eine Person, die ich sofort mochte. Ich hätte echt gerne noch ein wenig mehr über sie erfahren.
Durch das Buch merkt man schnell, dass jede einzelne Person ihr eigenes Problem hat, dass er mit sich rumschleppen muss.
An sich fand ich das gar nicht so schlecht, immerhin ist das auch im realen Leben oft so, aber mir hat einfach der Tiefgang zu gewissen Problemem gefehlt.
Es war eine keine richtige Handlung zu erkennen, sondern einfach irgendwie .. eine Art Therapiesitzung, bei der jeder mal ein wenig von seinen Probleme erzählen darf, die die anderen Teilnehmer dann versuchen zu lösen.
Schade eigentlich, denn ich hätte mir wirklich gewünscht, dass mich das Buch alleine schon wegen des schönen Covers ein wenig mehr hätte begeistern können.
June 22, 2018
Das Buch habe ich eher zufällig gesehen, fand aber den Klappentext recht interessant und habe mich entschlossen, die Geschichte zu lesen.
Die Autorin schickt den Leser nach Frankreich. Hier treffen wir auf Juliette, die kurz vor einer Auszeichnung steht, allerdings auf Grund der Krankheit ihrer Eltern zurück in ihr Heimatdorf geht. Dieser Einstieg hat mir eigentlich ganz gut gefallen, denn ich fand es ganz interessant. Allerdings wechselt dann plötzlich die Perspektive und wir treffen Max und für diesen arbeitet Juliette nun, also hat es auch einen Zeitsprung gegeben, was ja im Normalfall nicht grob störend ist, aber es gibt hier keine Erklärungen von der Autorin. Das fand ich irgendwie schade. Persönlich hatte ich auch im weiteren Verlauf der Handlung irgendwie das Gefühl, dass die Linie bzw. der rote Faden fehlt. Es tauchen dann auch noch weitere Personen auf, eine Art Clique und man erfährt als Leser so einiges. Der wichtigste Aspekt war für mich aber, dass man sieht, dass jeder ein Problem hat und mit sich selber damit fertig werden muss.
Persönlich konnte mich die Geschichte jetzt nicht wirklich überzeugen, denn ich fand es stellenweise doch recht anstrengend, dass man doch auch einiges aus der Vergangenheit erfährt, denn die Personen teilen ihre Erinnerungen und dann wurde wieder die Erzählperspektive gewechselt. Für mich ging es doch sehr viel hin und her. Was mich dann doch auch dezent gestört hatte, war, dass trotz der vielen Personen und Erlebnisse viele Dinge einfach oberflächlich auf mich gewirkt haben. Die einzigen Zwei, die etwas tiefgründiger gewirkt haben, waren Max und Juliette, denn man erfährt dann doch noch so einiges über die beiden. Gerade Max fand ich dann doch recht interessant und sympathisch beschrieben.
Die Schreibweise war sehr locker und flüssig. Das Buch hat sich sehr gut lesen lassen. Das Setting war mal was anderes, denn fast alles hat sich in Max’s Haus abgespielt und man erfährt leider dann doch etwas weniger über die Gegend.
Das Cover gefällt mir recht gut. Ich finde sehr passend zu einem Sommerroman.
Zur Autorin:
Hannah Tunnicliffe wurde in Neuseeland geboren. Sie studierte Sozialwissenschaften und lebte danach in Australien, England, Macao und Kanada. Sie arbeitete einige Zeit in der Personalwirtschaft und als Karriere-Coach und wandte sich dann ihrem Traum, dem Schreiben, zu. Mit ihrem Mann und ihren zwei Töchtern lebt sie heute in Sydney, Australien.
Quelle: Verlag
Fazit:
3 von 5 Sterne. Leider nicht ganz überzeugend, deswegen nur drei Sterne. Es ist auch aus meiner Sicht übrigens kein typischer Liebesroman.
Die Autorin schickt den Leser nach Frankreich. Hier treffen wir auf Juliette, die kurz vor einer Auszeichnung steht, allerdings auf Grund der Krankheit ihrer Eltern zurück in ihr Heimatdorf geht. Dieser Einstieg hat mir eigentlich ganz gut gefallen, denn ich fand es ganz interessant. Allerdings wechselt dann plötzlich die Perspektive und wir treffen Max und für diesen arbeitet Juliette nun, also hat es auch einen Zeitsprung gegeben, was ja im Normalfall nicht grob störend ist, aber es gibt hier keine Erklärungen von der Autorin. Das fand ich irgendwie schade. Persönlich hatte ich auch im weiteren Verlauf der Handlung irgendwie das Gefühl, dass die Linie bzw. der rote Faden fehlt. Es tauchen dann auch noch weitere Personen auf, eine Art Clique und man erfährt als Leser so einiges. Der wichtigste Aspekt war für mich aber, dass man sieht, dass jeder ein Problem hat und mit sich selber damit fertig werden muss.
Persönlich konnte mich die Geschichte jetzt nicht wirklich überzeugen, denn ich fand es stellenweise doch recht anstrengend, dass man doch auch einiges aus der Vergangenheit erfährt, denn die Personen teilen ihre Erinnerungen und dann wurde wieder die Erzählperspektive gewechselt. Für mich ging es doch sehr viel hin und her. Was mich dann doch auch dezent gestört hatte, war, dass trotz der vielen Personen und Erlebnisse viele Dinge einfach oberflächlich auf mich gewirkt haben. Die einzigen Zwei, die etwas tiefgründiger gewirkt haben, waren Max und Juliette, denn man erfährt dann doch noch so einiges über die beiden. Gerade Max fand ich dann doch recht interessant und sympathisch beschrieben.
Die Schreibweise war sehr locker und flüssig. Das Buch hat sich sehr gut lesen lassen. Das Setting war mal was anderes, denn fast alles hat sich in Max’s Haus abgespielt und man erfährt leider dann doch etwas weniger über die Gegend.
Das Cover gefällt mir recht gut. Ich finde sehr passend zu einem Sommerroman.
Zur Autorin:
Hannah Tunnicliffe wurde in Neuseeland geboren. Sie studierte Sozialwissenschaften und lebte danach in Australien, England, Macao und Kanada. Sie arbeitete einige Zeit in der Personalwirtschaft und als Karriere-Coach und wandte sich dann ihrem Traum, dem Schreiben, zu. Mit ihrem Mann und ihren zwei Töchtern lebt sie heute in Sydney, Australien.
Quelle: Verlag
Fazit:
3 von 5 Sterne. Leider nicht ganz überzeugend, deswegen nur drei Sterne. Es ist auch aus meiner Sicht übrigens kein typischer Liebesroman.
November 8, 2017
A FRENCH WEDDING: A Confusion of Story
http://fangswandsandfairydust.com/201...
This book felt like the author had ideas for several books but could only write the one. Over and over we reach a dead end in a story line and there’s a surprise to bail out the author.
Rock star and abuse victim has a drinking and drugging problem. A woman born in France to British parents has a tough time handling her parents deaths. The beginning is about the chef, them middle about the rock star, his friends and peripherally, the chef cooking them meals. The blurb says it is a coming of age story. For 40 year olds?!
This could work if the story threads melded together in ny but the very contrived way they seem to. I was also confused by who was Breton French and who was British.
The reader was fine. I had some questions in regards to pronunciation but from an American accent POV. Honestly, I was so annoyed by the story that the narrator could have been amazing and I would not have seen it. The big issue for this book as an audio is that it is hard to understand the names of places and, one particular Breton dish I heard as “Queen Yeman,’ but which, I think, is
Kouign-amann (pronounced [ˌkwiɲˈamɑ̃nː], pl. kouignoù-amann) is a Breton cake. It is a round crusty cake, originally made with bread dough (nowadays sometimes viennoiserie dough), containing layers of butter and sugar folded in, similar in fashion to puff pastry albeit with fewer layers. The resulting cake is slowly baked until the butter puffs up the dough (resulting in the layered aspect of it) and the sugar caramelizes. The effect is similar to a muffin-shaped, caramelized croissant. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kouign-...
The cake is very important to the story only in that it is mentioned again and again. But, it is not that the cake saves anyone’s life, or that it allows Juliette to continue to explore her identity – she’s just good at making it. I gather the story is mostly to have occurred in a town called Douarnenez, but which sounded like D’Annez — not too far off. Both are in my featured image graphic.
This was a story about whiny people in their late forties with addiction issues, sexual identity issues and commitment issues. It is like an potpourri: a romance: rock stars, France, and food, but even location couldn’t save it.
Oooh, it’s in France! But, not all experiences in France are stellar; France is not some magical panacea for the world. Seriously!
http://fangswandsandfairydust.com/201...
This book felt like the author had ideas for several books but could only write the one. Over and over we reach a dead end in a story line and there’s a surprise to bail out the author.
Rock star and abuse victim has a drinking and drugging problem. A woman born in France to British parents has a tough time handling her parents deaths. The beginning is about the chef, them middle about the rock star, his friends and peripherally, the chef cooking them meals. The blurb says it is a coming of age story. For 40 year olds?!
This could work if the story threads melded together in ny but the very contrived way they seem to. I was also confused by who was Breton French and who was British.
The reader was fine. I had some questions in regards to pronunciation but from an American accent POV. Honestly, I was so annoyed by the story that the narrator could have been amazing and I would not have seen it. The big issue for this book as an audio is that it is hard to understand the names of places and, one particular Breton dish I heard as “Queen Yeman,’ but which, I think, is
Kouign-amann (pronounced [ˌkwiɲˈamɑ̃nː], pl. kouignoù-amann) is a Breton cake. It is a round crusty cake, originally made with bread dough (nowadays sometimes viennoiserie dough), containing layers of butter and sugar folded in, similar in fashion to puff pastry albeit with fewer layers. The resulting cake is slowly baked until the butter puffs up the dough (resulting in the layered aspect of it) and the sugar caramelizes. The effect is similar to a muffin-shaped, caramelized croissant. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kouign-...
The cake is very important to the story only in that it is mentioned again and again. But, it is not that the cake saves anyone’s life, or that it allows Juliette to continue to explore her identity – she’s just good at making it. I gather the story is mostly to have occurred in a town called Douarnenez, but which sounded like D’Annez — not too far off. Both are in my featured image graphic.
This was a story about whiny people in their late forties with addiction issues, sexual identity issues and commitment issues. It is like an potpourri: a romance: rock stars, France, and food, but even location couldn’t save it.
Oooh, it’s in France! But, not all experiences in France are stellar; France is not some magical panacea for the world. Seriously!
June 7, 2017
Juliette runs a very nice restaurant in Paris called Delphine. She has always loved to cook since she was a girl growing up in Brittany on the west coast of France. Sadly, her mother is very ill and in the hospital. Therefore, she must go to Brittany and help her father take care of her. Not long after her mother passes away, her father follows. During that time, Juliette has decided to sell her restaurant and remain in Brittany. She knows all of the people in her town and all of the markets and great foods. Soon, she sees an ad for a housekeeper/chef for a wealthy rock star, Max, at his large home in her town and she is happy to get the job.
Max and a number of his college friends are heading to his home to help celebrate his 40th birthday. The one person Max is anxious to see is Helen. He has always loved her but theirs is a friendship-only relationship. Now, he plans to propose to her.
As the couples arrive, they spend time catching up and talking about the fun they had during their college days. Most everyone seems to be having fun, but one husband is bored because he met and married his wife later and does not know these other people well. The anger between him and his wife makes for some tension. As the days pass, we see that things are not perfect for everyone. But, whose life is perfect?
Ah, but the highlight is Juliette as she prepares beautiful meals using local seafood and produce. The platters of fresh caught shellfish, homemade breads, perfectly cooked vegetables and luscious cheese plates are all described perfectly.
I was drawn to this book because I have enjoyed visiting the Brittany area several times and loved the local seafood and lamb. Quite honestly, I found the conversations and the problems the friends have to be mundane and rather boring. But again, the food descriptions are delicious.
Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Max and a number of his college friends are heading to his home to help celebrate his 40th birthday. The one person Max is anxious to see is Helen. He has always loved her but theirs is a friendship-only relationship. Now, he plans to propose to her.
As the couples arrive, they spend time catching up and talking about the fun they had during their college days. Most everyone seems to be having fun, but one husband is bored because he met and married his wife later and does not know these other people well. The anger between him and his wife makes for some tension. As the days pass, we see that things are not perfect for everyone. But, whose life is perfect?
Ah, but the highlight is Juliette as she prepares beautiful meals using local seafood and produce. The platters of fresh caught shellfish, homemade breads, perfectly cooked vegetables and luscious cheese plates are all described perfectly.
I was drawn to this book because I have enjoyed visiting the Brittany area several times and loved the local seafood and lamb. Quite honestly, I found the conversations and the problems the friends have to be mundane and rather boring. But again, the food descriptions are delicious.
Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
July 3, 2017
Im rating this 3.5 stars!
I just finished A French Wedding by Hannah Tunnifclife, today actually! I had to hop on here and post my review while I was still lost in the French town dreaming of warm bread and cheeses.
A French Wedding is the story of a group of friends who come together for a friends 40th birthday, bringing with them their life struggles and accomplishments as well as some baggage from the past. At the same time, this story is about Juliette, a Parisian chef who loses both parents within a year from each other and moves back into her childhood home in a small French village as she tries to cope with her loss. In doing so, she finds herself working for Max as housekeeper/personal chef and the leader of that group of friends.
Taking place over the course of a weekend, A French Wedding is one of those books that make you feel like you got to know everyone just enough in the book to maybe want to keep reading more about them after its over. I'm not sure if this was Hannah Tunnicliffe's intention or not, but I felt like I got to know each character only briefly, even Juliette. I would've like to know her better and in doing so, feel like I was really rooting for her in the end (and in the final chapter that takes place one year later).
I loved the descriptions of the small French village, of the food Juliette was cooking and of the relationships between the friends. The flashbacks definitely helped fill in some details. All in all, this was a fairly low key story that left me feeling mostly satisfied when it was finished. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a story set in a beautiful foreign place, where good food abounds (so many wonderful descriptions!) and friendships are at the heart of the story.
I just finished A French Wedding by Hannah Tunnifclife, today actually! I had to hop on here and post my review while I was still lost in the French town dreaming of warm bread and cheeses.
A French Wedding is the story of a group of friends who come together for a friends 40th birthday, bringing with them their life struggles and accomplishments as well as some baggage from the past. At the same time, this story is about Juliette, a Parisian chef who loses both parents within a year from each other and moves back into her childhood home in a small French village as she tries to cope with her loss. In doing so, she finds herself working for Max as housekeeper/personal chef and the leader of that group of friends.
Taking place over the course of a weekend, A French Wedding is one of those books that make you feel like you got to know everyone just enough in the book to maybe want to keep reading more about them after its over. I'm not sure if this was Hannah Tunnicliffe's intention or not, but I felt like I got to know each character only briefly, even Juliette. I would've like to know her better and in doing so, feel like I was really rooting for her in the end (and in the final chapter that takes place one year later).
I loved the descriptions of the small French village, of the food Juliette was cooking and of the relationships between the friends. The flashbacks definitely helped fill in some details. All in all, this was a fairly low key story that left me feeling mostly satisfied when it was finished. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a story set in a beautiful foreign place, where good food abounds (so many wonderful descriptions!) and friendships are at the heart of the story.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 211 reviews