Wanted to like this one, but found the heroine just a little too 'perfect' in all the traumas she's had, how everyone wants to coddle her...yet she behaves like an absolute idiot with no brain cell in Colombia, thinking she can deal with such vicious and violent men there as if they'd have manners and leave her be for poking her nose in - felt very TSTL on this aspect, which didn't endear me to her from the start. Then it's all the trauma she's been through, how much everyone thinks she's fragile, it got exasperating after a while, and it sadly kicked me off enjoying this book.

I love a small-town romance, especially when the small town is a nice French country village. Add in a friends-to-lovers romance and things are coming along very nicely.

Lily is a filmmaker, she spends her life moving around the world, not putting down any roots and rarely coming home to see her beloved Mamie (grandmother) as often as she would like. She also hasn’t seen her old childhood friend Olivier and still remembers how he rejected her when she kissed him as a young girl.

They fall back into their friendship, but Lily’s feelings for Olivier are clearly still there, especially when she feels jealous about his engagement to someone new, even though his fiancee is very sweet and kind towards her and everyone else.

I think a lot of the tension between Olivier and Lily could have been worked out if they stopped projecting their own doubts onto each other and just had a conversation with each other instead of always assuming and then arguing.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read from Sophie Claire.

I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.

Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.

However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

A really beautiful escapism read with fascinating and loved characters. I enjoyed this one and had a lot of fun with it. Would highly recommend as a Summer read.

Hmmm this one was not for me (unlike other books by this author). A bit too good to be true... the happy ending...

A really great read . I really enjoyed this story Lily and Olivier were childhood friends but after a misunderstanding things become awkward between them and then Lily's job takes her to many different countries but after an accident she returns to France to convelesss with her beloved grandmother whose neighbour's are Olivier's family. Its obvious they have feelings for each other but will they ever be more than friends. It's a beautiful story and it's set in a lovely location with some lovely relationships that are very emotional and heartwarming. I really enjoyed it

Beautiful cover. Lovely feel good book to read. It was a joy to read. Lovely characters. Great plot. The book was charming. Very well written. I’d definitely recommend this boo. Lovely idyllic location. The author descriptive writing captures it perfectly

A beautifully written book, very heart warming and great characters.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This is a beautiful story about love, family and community, set in the South of France. Although at tim s I found it a little predictable , it didn’t affect my enjoyment at all reading this. The characters are well developed , the story beautifully written and I thought it was an enjoyable read.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

The perfect sort of book for a summer read. Heartwarming and easy to read, it is a brilliantly written novel with great characters.

A really enjoyable book by Sophie Claire, my first of hers.. Having lived in rural France it was lovely to feel the atmosphere, the scents of the country side and of course the ambience of the bakery! Lily and Olivier have a childhood history and the book dwells on their meeting again after a long absence. Throughly readable.
Thank you for a chance to read and review this book.

This was a brilliant read and is being featured on my blog for my quick star reviews feature, which I have created on my blog so I can catch up with all the books I have read and therefore review.
See www.chellsandbooks.wordpress.com.

This is my first read by this author and I loved it! The author writes emotional stories coming right to you from the heart.
A young woman is injured while doing her dream job of filming and must take time off to recover.
She goes home to recover to the quiet French seaside village where she spent her childhood and all the happy memories are and where Grandma is. It feels natural coming here, as though she hasn't even been away. Unknown to her her former crush who she's been avoiding for more than ten years is staying right next door to Grandma.
What happens when her former crush realizes she has come back for awhile and it abruptly changes what he thought he had planned out for life, like settling down with someone else and being content at his job? Unexpected twists in this heartfelt story that was a surefire win in my book.

Pub Date 27 May 2021
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. Thank you.
All opinions expressed are my own.

I really enjoyed this book it is a book that has romance and sadness but it grips you from the start and I didn’t take long to finish it.

Lily comes back to her Grandmother’s house as she has broken her arm and needs help. She meets her childhood friend Olivier they were inseparable as children getting up to pranks. I enjoyed the transaction between the two of them.

I had not read a book by this author before but certainly would recommend this book.

Lily is an adventurous film maker with a tragic past, Oliver is a homebody who can't wait to get married and he's also Lily's best friend.
When Lily returns home to her grandmothers house in a sleepy French village she reunites with Oliver after a long time and learns of his upcoming wedding and plans to buy his dream home in the local area. After planning to only stay while she recovers, a personal tragedy forces her to stay and her feelings for Oliver are unbottled.
A beautiful story which so sad at times is romantic, cheerful and funny in others.
Thank you for allowing me to read, looking forward to more from Sophie Claire.

An easy to read story. Perfect as a "beach read'. Wasn't enamoured with the characters and some parts were repetitive.

A lovely book for round the pool, nothing too taxing and the usual misunderstandings that come with this type of book, just enjoy the sunshine and the story

This was a fun, sweet and easy read. And I must admit that I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I loved the characters and the story. 3.5 stars

A delightful romantic escape bursting with charm, pathos and wit, Sophie Claire’s Summer at the French Olive Grove is impossible to resist.

Lily and Olivier had grown up together in the charming French village of St Pierre. Constantly in each other’s company, Lily and Olivier spent long summers getting up to all sorts of adventures – which frequently resulted in several trips to the local A&E. Having endured a horrific tragedy as a very young child, Lily had relished the time she had spent in Olivier’s company – until one day when she had decided to show him that her platonic feelings for him had developed into something far deeper and he had rebuffed her. Since then, Lily had become a filmmaker and she had always ensured that her visits to her grandmother in St Pierre took place when Olivier was in Paris. However, when Lily suffers a setback and is in need of some R&R, she decides to go back to St Pierre where she comes face to face with Olivier who manages to make her feel things she has never felt for anybody else, even after all this time…

Olivier still regrets the way he had handled Lily’s clumsy kiss when they had been teenagers. Having always been passionate about food, Olivier is now a very successful baker with businesses and bakeries dotted all over France. Despite of all his success, Olivier always makes time for St Pierre and when he hears that Lily is coming back to town, he vows to spend some time with her. From the very first moment the two clap eyes on one another, sparks immediately begin to fly between them, even if Olivier can sense that Lily seems to be very withdrawn and reserved. While she keeps insisting that everything is fine, Olivier is determined to find out what is really going on with Lily – even if by spending more and more time with her, he will end up having to face up to the fact that he is attracted to her.

Lily intends to keep her feelings for Olivier firmly under lock and key. But that proves to be far easier said than done. Under the bright blue French skies, Lily and Olivier find themselves getting closer with each passing day, but with Olivier engaged to another woman a future for the two of them is simply impossible…or is it?

A feel-good and heartwarming tale that makes for perfect summertime reading, let Sophie Claire transport you to France with her wonderful new novel perfect for fans of Jo Thomas and Sue Moorcroft. Summer at the French Olive Grove sparkles with beautifully descriptive writing that makes you feel as if you are in France, exquisite characterization, heartfelt romance and plenty of delicious humour to keep you engaged and completely spellbound.

Sophie Claire’s Summer at the French Olive Grove is a wonderfully written tale of second chances, finding somewhere to belong and falling in love guaranteed to put a great big smile on your face – whatever the weather!

This was a pleasant, easy read. But I did find it a little predictable and found Olivier slightly annoying with his insistence on trying to mould Lily into a life with him.

Film-maker Lily has had a life marked by tragedy and it has made her wary of letting anyone close to her. After a robbery and assault whilst filming a documentary in Colombia, she returns to her grandma's home in St Pierre to recuperate. Childhood friend and neighbour, Olivier is the one person who seems to see through her hard exterior. After a lot of will they, won't they, they finally admit they have feelings that extend beyond friendship. But Lily insists they don't have a future as they want different things, and she leaves for Belize to begin filming for a new project. Is their romance over before it has really begun?

Sweet and romantic, this was a pleasant escape but I just didn't connect with the characters as much as I'd like to.