Paris for One is a collection of short stories by celebrated popular author Jojo Moyes and if you're a fan of her books, you'll enjoy what this collection has to offer. I personally find some of her books more compelling than others, and I found the same with this collection. For the most part they're engaging and interesting, with lots of realistic detail about the nitty gritty of the mostly female protagonists' daily lives, many of them "holding on in quiet desperation", as is the English way. The French way seems to be to seize the moment and enjoy life :) I really enjoyed the first story, the title story, and also Honeymoon in Paris (which could have been a novel in itself really), Last Year's Coat and The Christmas List. These ones I felt had more emotional depth, with the central character feeling a certain kind of loneliness that I could really relate to. Not every story in this collection is a gem but on the whole it makes for a very pleasant read on the train home.

A charming collection of contemporary short stories with a humorous and insightful look at relationships. Or at least, straight relationships. To be clear, there are at least 10 couples in this collection and all are straight. Perhaps it was this, that all the stories were told from the woman's perspective, or the general style of the writing, but I did find the stories to be a little too similar to be read one after another. A few of the stories fell a little flat for me, but overall it is a charming, enjoyable collection. The author does a great job of writing in a light, funny way, and each story feels as though it has as a moral or theme running through it. I particularly enjoyed the titular novella 'Paris for One' and the short story 'The Christmas List'.

Recommended for fans of honest and humorous contemporary romance told from the woman's perspective.

JoJo Moyes' books are normally full of eloquent prose, superior to a lot of the lazy, cliche-ridden "chick lit" around today. This collection of short stories (the first short story takes up around half the whole book) could have been from one of those aforementioned chick lit authors. The writing was weak, the storylines were predictable, and the stories were filled with cliches. This falls way below Moyes' normal standard.

Jo Jo Moyes does it again: this is a delightful collection of easy to read short stories, most of which can be read in a few snatched minutes. It's a perfect book for just picking up when you have some time to kill.

A good selection of short stories, including Paris for One which was the longer of them all. 9 stories in total.

I really enjoyed Paris for one, and enjoyed the trip taken by the heroine and how the story developed.

A great collection by JoJo Moyes, who is one of my favourite authors. There were other shorts which were all great in their own way. As usual, JoJo Moye's writing style is flawless. If you like a touch of romance, you'll thoroughly enjoy this collection!

Lovely collection of short stories, a few set in my favourite city of Paris. Perfect for a quick read with a cuppa

Really enjoyed Paris for One, easy to get into and couldn't put it down. Read in one sitting!!

Entertaining stories set in England or Paris but there were none that compare to the brilliant Me Before You

A collection of easy to read short stories set around Paris.

This was a great book of short stories. I felt like I was on holiday in Paris! The stories felt so true to life and the characters we really vibrant.

Fun, short reads with good characters however, a bit too chick lit for me but a good break in between my usual genres. I preferred a couple of the other short stories in the book to the main one. Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.

Short stories by their very nature can be hard to get into - just as you feel you are relating to the characters it ends. I think that Jojo Moyes has made these stories the perfect length, each one just right. I felt I did get to know the characters and will definitely be re reading these stories again.

Some are very short and sweet and others are like novellas such as the story of Nell alone in Paris as her boyfriend fails to show up. Also there is a story that covers two timelines one in 1912 and one in 2002. Initially I thought I had slipped into another story as the other story suddenly began to be told leaving the first one unfinished. It was clever the way the two stories mirrored each other over the decades.

All the stories feature women as the main character and a glimpse into their lives. They are not chick lit - but real life stories and not all good times along the way. One is sweet and heartwarming called the Blue Coat.

I felt transported to Paris by these stories - although short they are memorable.

I'm giving this book 4 out of 5 stars. My thanks go to Netgalley for an advance copy of the book for review.

Light read, with a few romantic stories (especially the opening one). However, most of the stories felt like fillers and were quite bland- nothing too much to say unfortunately.

An enjoyable set of stories, all very readable. I don't think I'd have guessed the author, so great to see that she can write in such different styles.

This is a collection of stories, the first one is longer than the rest and I loved that one. I also enjoyed a good number of the rest but not all of them, some were just ok. This is a great book to pick up for quick reads, without any issues of forgetting what you have read previously.

Overall a very good book and 4 stars from me.

I really enjoy Jojo Moyes writing so I was already sure I'd enjoy this collection before I started reading and it certainly lived up to my expectations. I've read a couple of the stories before, including the title novella, but I found the second reading just reminded me of how much I had enjoyed them previously. I love the light touch that the author uses when describing love and romance and the variety of characters kept me interested. I particularly liked the festive themed stories at the end, I'd love to just abandon everything and fly off to spend the holidays with a friend some day!

Absolutely great collection. I love this author!! Brilliantly detailed and gripping, read it in one day. Only wish I'd started them earlier!

I'm not usually a fan of short stories, preferring to read something I can sink in to. I am a fan of jojo moyes so thought I would give this collection a go.

I found the main story, paris for one very inspiring and a light joyful read would have liked to have read this as a full story with more depth. The other titles in this collection were nice easy reads but just snippets of characters lives.
Overall I think this book was well written and would make a great holiday read, very light and easy going, not requiring much concentration but it didn't change my opinion on short stories and think i will stick with my novels in the future.

Paris for One

I had actually read Paris for One before, but I really wanted to read the other stories!

Jojo Moyes never fails to entertain with her stories and this book is no exception. There are nine short stories in this book that are entertaining and great for dipping in and out of! A great holiday read, 4*.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher.

Jojo Moyes' story collection contains two novellas and a selection of short stories focused on relationships, particularly wives and girlfriends dissatisfied with their other halves. They don't have the emotional punch of Jojo's novels and there would appear to be a lot of unfaithful partners in the short stories.

The title story, Paris for One, is a perfectly enjoyable novella, previously published as part of the Quick Reads initiative. It is a bit predictable but sometimes that's what you want in a light read. Nell is the opposite of impulsive but she takes a leap of faith when she books a short break for her and her boyfriend, a romantic weekend in Paris.

But her boyfriend makes excuses and Nell is left alone on a train to Paris. It’s not a story about how exploring a city by yourself isn’t so bad, instead Nell meets a man. For a character described as getting anxious about everything, her anxiety doesn't really come through in the writing. She makes lists but overall, she seems to cope fine with a crappy situation.

The other novella is a prequel to The Girl You Left Behind. This is worth reading if you've read the novel but loses some of its significance without knowing the circumstances. Liv's disappointing honeymoon is heart-breaking knowing David's life was so short. As in the novel, the perspectives switch between past and present, giving the story of how the painting came to be.

Despite numerous people having a rubbish time in Paris, these stories still romanticise the place. I'm not sure I see the appeal of such a busy city, which has its fair share of problems. Not all the stories are set in Paris but the shorter ones didn’t work so well for me. Jojo’s stories are best when you have time to really connect with her characters and care what happens with their relationships.