Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of The Bordeaux Book Club by Gillian Harvey in exchange for my honest review and opinion. I loved this book so much and was so sad to finish it. Beware -- once you read this book, you are going to have a VERY strong desire to go live abroad! Checking flights now! :)

I really enjoyed the book! I really enjoyed the growth the reading club experiences and how important they become to each other.
The characters are all complex individuals with their own, quite big, problems and I really liked how they supported each other and how they became like family.
There is even some seriously heavy events and they support each other through those.
I also really like how the importance of open communication becomes one of the messages I took from the book and overall I really enjoyed the growth all the characters go through.
Overall, this is quite a brilliant book!

This is an amusing, fun read about a group of very different ex-pats. But it is also so much more than that. It is a story about friendship and not judging people before you get to know them. There is also an underlying dark theme concerning the psychological state of a teenage girl . Thankfully this is where friendship comes.into its own and the motley crew of readers band together to help one of their own.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this lovely bookj

Beautiful cover, dreamy location, a book club, cosy vibes… this is one of those novels that feel like a warm hug, which is perfect at this time of year.

Grace and Leah are friends. They have both moved to France in search of a different kind of life, but this new life is not turning out quite like they had imagined.

Monica, George and Alfie are three other British expats with a void to fill… and this is where the Bordeaux book club comes in and starts working its magic.

With a glass of wine here and a classic book there, these strangers become friends in a novel that will restore your faith in humanity!

Yes, we judge books by its cover and of course books about books we start reading just because of the topic: a book club! Of course it is like reading a book just because of the cover, you can get disappointed. Going to Bordeaux like Leah and her family did sounds lovely but it isn't all French flowers and nice wine. The life they dreamt of when they left it behind them abroad isn't going as smoothly as wished and when Nathan starts to leave the house for some time alone, Leah knows something is wrong. Her escape is the book club which Grace started. Monica is a young mother who joins to improve her French and have some contact with adults, George also left his life behind for a while after a break up and the young Alfie has a difficult time too. But through the books they discuss they get a glimpse of each their life and person, each so different from eachother. They open a little bit more and the easiness of discussing books opens also a new life for this eclectic group of foreigners. A cute, relaxing story is the Bordeaux book club, but also a story which develops at a nice, calm pace with just the right amount of twist and turns, mysteries. Like a nice Matcha latte that you drank enough too know how it will be, but every time surprises you a little bit still. That is what happened for me in this nothing special but still at the same time very beautiful story of new challenges, friendship, life and it's beauty but also troubles.

Such a lovely book, it kept me engaged from the beginning to end. I loved the characters. Great cosy read or to take on holiday. Recommended to all my friends. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

You know how it goes, a group of misfits come together to form a book club and end up learning so much more than just the literature they set out to read. So it is with Gillian’s, The Bordeaux Book Club where they read classics such as Pride and Prejudice and Wuthering Heights which is lovely to see. So escape to France and join this unlikely group as they learn of the power of books to unite people, supporting each other through life’s many challenges.

Leah, her husband and daughter move to France to become self-sufficient. It isn't what they were expecting and even growing a carrot takes forever. Her teenage daughter is not happy, she is belligerent and acting out. Her husband keeps disappearing and Leah is worried he might be having an affair. Her friend Grace came to France to live years ago at her husband's request, but when he left, she stayed. Always finding something to keep her busy, she starts a book club for other anglophiles. Leah joins as well as Monica, George and young Alfie. Drinking some wine and discussing the books they read, they begin to get to know each other and become friends. They share secrets, give each other advice and become a found family.

The Bordeaux Book Club introduces us to an eclectic group of characters who are all very different from one another. As we get to know them, they become so relatable and I wanted to join this group. This is a wonderful book about characters, but also about the books they read and how they affect their lives. There are themes of friendship, discovering self and what you really want out of life and moving on. I enjoyed the descriptions of life in France, especially living on the farm trying to be farmers and self-sufficient. There were times that I laughed, and times I was sad for the characters. There were times where the story bogged down a bit, but overall, this was an enjoyable read.

A group of unlikely friends forms in France, united by a love of books and wine. Gradually they get to know each other and learn their secrets...
The Bordeaux Book Club is a book about the complexities of friendships and relationships.
Grace starts a book club in the aftermath of splitting up. Leah is having problems at home with her husband potentially having an affair and her daughter being constantly embarrassed by her. Monica is a young mum whose husband is a pilot so is often away. George is a gregarious but lonely builder and Alfie is a shy young man living with his mum.
I felt sorry for the band of unlikely friends. Leah and Grace have made sacrifices for their husbands but this has been unappreciated. Now Grace is alone and throwing herself into social events while Leah finds herself worried about her husband's strange absences. Monica is struggling to cope with her baby and feels like a terrible mum.
I enjoyed the inclusion of the discussions on the books including Great Expectations and Wuthering Heights. The characters discuss the books and relate their own experiences to what they have read. We gradually find out more about the main characters as they explore the books and get to know each other better.
There are some wonderful descriptions in the book and the setting in France feels realistic. The main characters are easy to like and I liked how their friendships develop over the course of the book. They felt very authentic and I could easily imagine their emotions and thought processes. In particular, I identified with Monica and Leah as they consider their roles as mother, and I liked the contrast between the baby and teen years.
The Bordeaux Book Club is a gently emotional book about friendship and I loved it.

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Leah and her family have relocated to France for the chance of a new way of live but everything seems to go against them. A new book club is being launched by Leah’s friend as she persuades Leah to join and do something for her self for a change. The book club is a group of misfits and the book club brings them closer together. Leah discovers that happy ever afters don’t always turn out how we plan.

Such a wonderful book. What a story that thoroughly kept me engaged from the beginning to end. I loved the characters and how they developed throughout the story. Would definitely say that this is a great vacation read or story night curl up with a good book read. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

EXCERPT: George was just stepping out of the café, takeaway coffee in hand, when he saw Grace appear in the window of the tabac opposite. He recognised her instantly, despite his throbbing temples, and felt his neck prickle as he remembered trying to talk to her at the garden club meet and finding his tongue had tied itself in knots. It had shocked him, this sudden mutism; he'd always been able to talk for England, so everyone told him. But then he wasn't in England any more. And he'd felt a bit out of place among all those posh retirees.
The cold, silvery, winter light crept softly around the edges of the white, February clouds, and fell on Grace's skin as she searched for an empty place in the window. Reaching up, her tongue protruding slightly at the edge of her mouth, she pressed the corners of the A4 sheet against the glass alongside the adverts for a local artisan market, a babysitting service and a poster advertising a music night, the date of which had already passed. He could just make out the word 'club' in bold on the paper.
Another club. He tried not to laugh. He barely knew the woman, but he'd gathered that if there was an event or club or fete or pretty much anything going on in the local community, she'd be involved somehow. He wondered what she was up to this time.
He busied himself, looking at the property adverts in the estate agent window while he waited for her to leave, and then, when she had, strolled nonchalantly across the street and had a quick gander.
Sure enough, it was an advert for a new organisation - with Grace at its helm. This time, it seemed, she was starting a book club for 'Anglophones' - the advert written in English, with French translation underneath in the hope of attracting a wider clientele.
He wasn't sure why he took a picture of the number with his phone. Just in case, he told himself. He hadn't read a book for years, not a fiction one at least. But maybe it was time. Another night in with the boys at the house would probably finish him off - he was getting too old for so much alcohol. And he couldn't just sit around in his tiny flat - he'd go mad. At least it would be something to do.

ABOUT 'THE BORDEAUX BOOK CLUB': Love books? The Bordeaux Book Club is seeking new members!

When Leah and her husband moved to France, it was with the dream of becoming self-sufficient. But in truth, it’s not the ‘good life’ she’d imagined, as three hours of digging barely yield a single straggly carrot. Worse, her teenage daughter is acting up, and her husband seems to find every strange excuse under the hot French sun to disappear.

So, when her friend entreats her to join the new bookclub she’s forming, Leah decides it’s something she will do for herself. The chance to make new friends, to drink a few glasses of wine, and to escape into stories that take her miles away from the life she’d thought would be her own happy-ever-after.

But the book club is a strange group of misfits. There’s prickly Grace, who lives alone and seems to know everybody and like no-one. Buttoned-up Monica, who says her husband is away and appears to be parenting her baby all alone. Handsome builder George, who has barely read a book before. And Alfie – who is a full two decades younger than everyone else, and is hiding a devastating secret…

As the stories they read begin to bring the new friends closer together, Leah is about to discover that happy-ever-afters don’t always look how you expect them to…

MY THOUGHTS: The Bordeaux Book Club is an eclectic mix of characters -
Grace, divorced, heading for sixty, organised and opinionated;
Leah, who has a sullen teenage daughter, a husband who suddenly needs 'me time', and a terrifying clutch of chickens;
Monica, a mother with a young baby, an absent husband, who is missing her friends and family back home;
George, a builder helping a friend renovate his French dream home; and
Alfie, a sixteen-year-old who joined the book club to please his mum.

They don't sound like a scintillating bunch of people, do they? And yet, as I came to know them and their life problems are slowly revealed, I began to feel a great affection for them. Their problems are ordinary ones, nothing exceedingly dramatic, just problems, at least some of which, we all experience at one time or another.

I think this is the first book about a book club I have read where the books are discussed fully and frankly, and I gained a new perspective on some old favorites. As friendships are formed and support networks build up, the book club members find their lives changing slowly and inexorably for the better.

A charming and uplifting read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.4

#TheBordeauxBookClub #NetGalley

THE AUTHOR: I'm a British author and freelance writer, currently living in France with my husband and 5 children. I write contemporary, uplifting and emotive fiction, often set in France.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Boldwood Books via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of The Bordeaux Book Club by Gillian Harvey for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

Took a while to read this one. Ultimately a sweet story about friendship, trust and family… but I have to admit that I found it a little slow and miserable to start with, stopping halfway through. I picked it up again after reading another book in the middle.

Likeable characters but didn’t really grab me in the way that I was hoping. Even the intrigue behind one of the characters didn’t really grab me. The later chapters were more rounded and engaging but not enough to pull it up from a 3*.

Moving away is never easy especially when it’s a different country! Love to see how Leah manages and finds herself being part of the club.

Brilliant, loved it, found myself lost in the pages and my imagination kickstarted. It's a well written book and the characters are great. Recommended read.

Leah moves to France for a new life and to try and be self sufficient but it's not turning out that way. She decides to join a book club and they're a strange mixture of people with different situations

What a book - I loved it and read it over 2 days. The characters come together via the book club and we learn each has their own back story and reasons for being in Bordeaux. Easy to read, flowed beautifully and the characters were warm and likeable. I found this to be a book that I knew I was going to love within a few pages. Would love to read more Gillian Harvey novels.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Beautifully written and a calm, relaxing read. I enjoyed being on the character's journey throughout the book

An enjoyable, different book, with good character development, and written in an easily readable style. Very good synopsis of the developing relationships among a group of disparate strangers with the central theme of a monthly book club meeting holding it all together. I will be seeking other books by this author.

I love books about books and bookclubs - I like to hear how they do theirs compared to the ones that I go to!
This is a lovely story of 5 different people who have moved to France in search of something different - they become friends when they all attend a book club. I loved all the charachters and enjoyed how they changed as the book went on. I particularly enjoyed the bits where they discussed the classic books that they read in the bookclub! A perfect summers read. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this one.