The Blurb
"The
woman was one of those irritating expat types who felt she owed it to the world
to impart on her all her superior knowledge of life in France. I realised that
if I didn’t stop her now, she’d be bending my ear all the way to Bergerac.
‘Actually,’ I
said, leaning in toward the woman, ‘I’m planning to integrate my way into the
boxers of the first good-looking Frenchman I see. Can’t think of any better way
to learn the language myself. You wouldn’t happen to know the French for
"fancy a shag?" would you? Voulez-vous coucher avec moi just seems a
bit nineteen-seventies these days.’"
After one
particularly bad day at work, advertising executive and confirmed city girl
Melanie Jones decides to give up her old life in search of something new and
simpler in South West France. With little knowledge of the country, even less
of the language and just the memory of a disastrous school French exchange and
a few day trips to Calais, she embarks on her adventure with a suitcase full of
optimism and not a little bit of naivety. After all, how different can life in
France be?
After a
series of adventures with skirt-ripping tractors, handsome twin farmers,
celebrity not-quite-beens, unusual toilets and a bonkers ex-pat community, all
topped up, of course, with lashings of rosé, Melanie begins to discover that
her new life in France isn’t quite what she’d thought it would be.
The Review
I started
this book by planning to read it over a few evenings, however I started it and couldn’t
put it down, so ended up reading it all in one go and being very tired at work
the next!
The story
follows Melanie Jones, as she gives up being a PR queen in London for a quiet
life in rural France. Instead of glamorising her adventure we see the reality
of living the "French dream" through the eyes of the main character. As
someone who’s lived abroad I could really relate to Melanie and her struggles
with fitting into a new community and their culture, all with hilarious consequences!
I found there
was so many laugh out loud moments from line dancing, dead cats and concussion!
Mel is a character you can really relate to and like, she manages to get
herself into all sorts on embarrassing situations, that as reader left me
definitely feeling for her!
Also the French
farmer Mel ends up falling for, is likened to Channing Tatum in looks, so once
that was in my mind, I was hooked into the book even more! I was also intrigues
to note that the author herself had lived in France herself and I kept
wondering if any of it had actually happened in real life! If so Mel, I want
you as my friend!
I began this
book thinking it was going to be a run of the mill romantic comedy but in the
end it was so much more, it was a fun filled story about finding and falling in
love with yourself. About how people can change and adapt and I found it really
empowering. I just hope a sequel is on the way! I really recommend this book, it’s
full of laugh out loud moments and is a nice easy read, perfect for sitting out
in your garden with a glass of wine while the weather is gorgeous
'L'amour Actually’ has now been published for a year and is also one of Amazons Deals of the Day today! To celebrate Author Melanie Jones is giving one lucky reader of ‘Lipsticks
and Lashes’ a signed copy of the book! To be in with a chance of winning you
just need to enter via the Rafflecopter below! As with all my Giveaways it is
open internationally and I will be checking the winner is genuine and not some
made up account!
You only have
a short time to enter this Giveaway as it closes tomorrow at 9am, so what are
you waiting for?! Get entering!!
