I have struggled with my rating of this a bit.
It's actually a cute, funny, lighthearted romcom with a mystery subplot and some of my favorite tropes: forced proximity, enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, and one bed!

That said, it's a bit too long. 450+ pages is much too long for a romcom. It needed some major condensing. In addition, the large cast of side characters seemed a bit unnecessary. Lastly, there were some parts that were just a bit too contrived. I won't say more in fear of spoiling things, but a lot of what went on here just wouldn't happen.

In the end, it was well written and enjoyable enough, so I think a lot of people will like this one, especially if they're able to overlook the parts that are a bit unrealistic. 💗

Thank you NetGalley and W.W. Crown for my gifted eARC and ALC.

Merry and Noah are the perfect detective pair and I love them! I have been loving the romance books that discuss romance tropes, books, and movies within the plot point and this book does that. Poor Merry watching the man she loves marry her sister, but go her for getting a free trip to France. Loved the dynamic between Merry and Noah, especially once they started to open up to each other and really get to know one another. Ends with an HEA!

Merry and Noah’s story is fun and exciting. A little fast paced in terms of the relationship for me (seemed to be a trend with this book, with Angela and Leo too) but I enjoyed it! I liked the mystery aspect with Noah’s backstory - it was a nice change from the usual romance books I read. Overall a very enjoyable read!

I understand living in your sisters shadow. This was a cute coming into your self book. Nothing special, but cute.

When Merry has to see her best friend Leo, marry her sister, her unrequited love is set in stone.. Or so she thinks.
An old chateau in France, a guy named Pierre, food and wine gives life a new perspective. Specially when Noah is also in France, who happens to be the one friend of Leo she can't figure out.

This book is truly about love, and not just romantic love. It's an adorable sweet book with humor and honesty.

Meredith always looked at herself as less interesting and less attractive then her sister Angela. Angela on the other hand has always led a charmed life getting what she wants, including Merry's love Leo. On Angela's wedding day, Merry gets so drunk she winds up in bed with her worst enemy - Noah Wright. Then at work she has to be the person who tells many of her co-workers they are terminated. With all this hanging over her head, she decides to flee to France and have an adventure for herself. Her aunt Jupiter tells her she can stay in the chateau in Annecy her aunt has purchased. Thrilled with the prospect, Merry finds two uncomfortable things when she arrives. The chateau is a wreck and Noah Wright is living in it. A fun, cute romance.

The phrase 'Impossible n'est pas français!' is one that will stick with me for a long time after finishing this book. With its perfect blend of spice and love, this romantic comedy had all the quirky charm I look for in the genre. As I read, I found myself transported to France, craving café au lait and plenty of baguettes with Brie. The story follows the classic enemy-to-friends-to-lovers trope, with the added twist of a surprising murder mystery subplot that kept me on my toes 😏

Normally I do not read romance books, however I am attempting to read what I normally would not.
This book was cute, quirky, and just a quick read. I enjoyed Merry as a lot of mannerisms and sayings are things I do myself, so I related to her. Everything felt very rushed, but that's common in romance books since everyone wants a Happily Ever After, so I don't fault it for that.
I now want a pet lobster named Louis.

French Holiday by Sarah Ready (coming out April 26, 2023)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥/5

Have you ever wanted to take a vacation from real life? That’s exactly what Merry does when she feels overwhelmed by her life. She borrows her godmother’s flight plan and runs away to France for the summer. What she didn’t plan on was her real-life villain Noah Wright crashing her fairytale summer. With missing artists, ferocious lobsters, and cucumber weapons, will Merry find her “coup de foudre”?

I adored this story because there have been many times that I was tempted to run away from real life. Merry is perfectly awkward and relatable, the setting is awe-inspiring, and the mystery in the air is palpable. After all, who doesn’t wish for a little magic sometimes?

#bookstagram #romcoms #sarahreadyauthor #romancebooks #bookreview

I loved this romance! It's a long but really good read. It has some mystery, some drama, some philosophy, and a slow burn romance. Believe it or not, my favorite character is a side character, Louie, and despite my love for the book, I would have loved an additional chapter with him playing a prominent role in the story.

This is a perfect romance to pick up on vacation or at the beach. Merry is in love with her best friend, but after he marries her sister, she escapes to a chateau in France for three months. But once she arrives she finds Noah, the best man, is also staying at the castle while doing research for a project.

This was fun with lots of tension, forced proximity, and unrequited love. They slowly establish a friendship and heal from their own personal heartaches, finding love along the way. The dilapidated castle and mysterious artist element adds to their chaos and adventures. Cute story overall and I recommend picking it up! This was my first by Sarah Ready but I look forward to reading more of her books!

Thank you NetGalley for my advance copy.

Beautiful setting for an enemies to lovers novel. A lush castle in France with a dreamy French neighbor is all Merry can imagine when she accepts the offer to reset her life in France. Her sister has just married the love of her life and she needs to get away before she loses it. Unfortunately the lush castle turns out to be a crumbling, dusty, full-of-bugs mess and her unwitting room mate ends up being the guy she loathes the most, Noah. Can they share a castle (and a bed) without sharing their hearts? Why does Noah dislike her so much anyway?

Compelling characters, the French countryside and a lot of humor made this a fun, lighthearted read. Definitely recommend! Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

Who wouldn't love Noah in this story...he sounds like the perfect guy with just enough mystery about him.
However, Merry isn't interested she has been hopelessly in love with Noah's friend..her best friend Leo.
We hardly hear about Leo though because he is almost instantly forgotten, which makes it a little heard to believe Merry was so in love with him for so long. I do though hate her sister, she is written as a petulant child who is wholly self involved and only thinks about what she wants, so how she gets Leo is astounding.
I enjoyed the story, there are some very humourous scenarios and a beautiful setting for the Noah and Merry story. I also liked that there was more to Noah's story than just being 'The One'
There are some gaps in the storyline that would bother me - I want to know how Merry went from stressing about the future to just staying in France in a Chateau and travelling with Noah..what about family or work etc?!

I absolutely loved this book! The characters are lovable, the background story is intriguing, and and the ending was swoon worthy. I loved the whole thing!

The writing was visceral! It felt like I was in the castle, in the garden, on the bridge, and could even taste the cucumber.

I listened to this book as an audiobook. And I have to say, I would recommend it! The narrator did a wonderful job, really bringing the character to life.

Five stars all the way around!!!

Thank you, NetGalley for the audio ARC!!

I received an eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

French Holiday is a beautiful story of unrequited love, finding one's self, and finding love in places you least expect. It made me feel like I was reading a movie script for a Netflix adaptation of someone's life without any of the cringy parts. It gives Eat, Pray, Love vibes with a moving tribute to family. There was comedy, tears (mine, probably not the characters'), and some quotable dialogue that I had to write down. It's a feel good book that made me want to explore a French countryside and tell my family how much they mean to me. Would definitely recommend to others.

French Holiday was a cute enemies to lovers romance set in a crumbling French chateau. Overall, the book had a lot of potential - it was a fun, light read, but the story did drag at times and there were little side dramas that took away from the main characters' stories. The banter between Merry and Noah was very entertaining and it was great to see the amazing friendship they formed along the way. This is the third book I've read by Sarah Ready and I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of her novels. Thank you to Swift & Lewis Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to read this novel.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Merry needs a vacation from her life, especially after she watches the man she loves get married to her little sister. Especially after she has a drunken one night stand after the wedding with the man she hates the most in the world, Noah. So when her godmother sends her off to France to live in a Chateau for the summer, she blissfully accepts. Until she gets there and Noah is already there. Can Merry still have her French holiday?

This book was such a great story that had more depth than the typical romcom. It was poignant and funny (the lobster scene had me laughing out loud). I liked the characters (except maybe Leo) and the way the story weaves it’s way into your heart. The pace was just perfect and I loved the little twisty tidbits.

This book made me want to take my own trip to France!

Cute little romance, predictable, but aren't they all? Nice beach read. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I was excited to read “French Holiday” and I ultimately enjoyed it. It has a delicious premise. The characters are well developed and there is more mystery and intrigue than I was expecting. This book was funny! The moment Merry met Pierre in real-life I laughed out loud. I only wish Noah was given some redeeming qualities sooner in the story. I needed more flashes of his interest in Merry or even more good things about him (other than physical attributes) that Merry should be interested in. It made their love story seem abrupt and based on nothing.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Meredith (Merry) spends her life giving her sister (Angela) whatever she wants just to watch her discard it when she's bored. When Angela marries the man that Merry thinks is "the one", Merry decides to take a 3 month long vacation to France while staying at her godmother's chateaux. She wants to spend the time there falling in love with France, herself, and hopefully a Frenchman named Pierre. However, when she arrives, Noah has just arrived and he has already paid her aunt to stay while filming his next travel documentary. Since Noah is Merry's least favorite human, they argue about who gets to stay. The begrudgingly decide to share the chateaux and stay out of each other's way.
This was a very cute story with the perfect amount of steam. The only part i didn't really love is the main character's full name because it kept taking me out of the story and making me think of Grey's Anatomy (her name is Meredith DeLuca iykyk). Thankfully her full name didn't come up too often so much brain didn't go wandering. I loved the side love story as well as the bonus mystery that was thrown in. I loved all the descriptions of the French food and countryside. This was a great book.