You Had Me At Bonjour

This was a real feel good book about a woman wanting to take a Shirley Valentine break after her husband decides that he is isn't going to unpack his case after their holiday. He's going to move in with his girlfriend.

After she is made redundant she decides that she wants to escape the rat race whilst she decides what she wants to do with the rest of her life. She moves into an appartment and introduces herself to the other residents and enrols in some French lessons. After a slow and quite lonely start she starts to make friends and experience some of the luxury events going on within touring distance of the South of France. She attends parties, music Festivals and the Monaco Grand Prix.

The cast of characters are a charming mix - and her best friend and daughter come out to visit and add different dynamics to the burgeoning relationships.

Needing a way to support herself she starts to write articles about her adventures and they prove very popular.

Will she want to return to the Uk at the end of the year- or will she try adventures further afield.

This would make a perfect beach read and I really enjoyed the book. I will look out for more by this author.

With many thanks to Carina Uk, the publisher and Net Galley for a copy of this book.

I reviewed this on my blog as well as Good Reads and Amazon.
http://kims366.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/you-had-me-at-bonjour-jennifer-bohnet.html

Jessica was a happily married mother who was quite content with her cozy life until her husband Ben went and ruined everything. He's now shacked up with Samantha, who is conveniently also pregnant and has completely flipped Jessica's life upside down. Deciding that if Ben can move on so easily, so can she, she's off to France on a 'Shirley Valentine' year. The people she meets, her daughter and new friends are sure to keep her new life on track and who knows, life in France might even lead to some fun surprises along the way.

This was a lovely short chick-lit which is written in the format of an angst filled blog. The diary was a great format for Bohnet to use as it showed the passage of time well and shows how she develops over the twelve month time period. It also emphasises the difficulties of the divorce and it's impact on both Jessica and her twenty year old daughter, Katie. Katie takes out her feelings on her mother, despite it being her father who has caused the divorce. I really empathised with Jessica, especially at some points where her relationship with Katie is anything but perfect. The same can be said of her relationship with her best friend at times too...

The friends that Jessica makes such as Eloise who is living is the same block as her is a brilliant character. Though she is flawed, she helps provide Jessica with motivation, courage and confidence to regain control of her life. She also introduces here to members of her family, her friends and even someone who might end up being a bit more special.

It's a lovely, sweet book which though can at times be predictable, is a fun quick read to pass the time. I'd happily read more books written by this author!

You Had me at Bonjour tells the story of a year in the life of Jessica. Having been betrayed by her husband who has left her for another woman, Jessica decides to jet off to the south of France for twelve months to 'do a Shirley Valentine'.

The book is set out like a diary and during this time we see her go from a nervous newcomer, to a confident woman who makes friends and even finds some love interest in the form of Nino. I liked the format of writing it as a diary as it kept me aware of how quickly the twelve months were passing, but it was also snappy enough to flip between the events taking place.

Whilst Jessica and Nino are the main characters we also meet a number of supporting characters who really enhanced the story for me. Her best friend Bella seems like a real friend who can be relied on through good and bad. She pops over to see Jessica regularly and is also Godmother to Jessica's grown up daughter Katie. I couldn't help but feel for Jessica and Katie who are both struggling to come to terms with the marriage breakdown, albeit in different ways. There is a point in the book where their relationship is stormy and I really wanted them to work through it.

I really liked Eliosa who is an older lady living in the same block of apartments as Jessica. She came across to be as vivacious and wise woman. She takes Jessica under her wing and opens up her confidence and social life.

Whilst not the same as Shirley Valentine Jessica does have similarities in starting over and searching for happiness in life. I felt that Jessica got stronger as the year progressed and I loved her reaction when events occur with her ex husband later in the year.

The storyline is predictable and you could see what the outcome would be with her dilemmas. However the book was still enjoyable and I felt quite buoyed seeing her relax and grow in confidence. The book is well written and easy to follow. It is a quick read and I flew through it with it's lighthearted, snappy pace. It left me with a smile on my face....and a desire to travel and escape too. I am sure there are many more adventures to come and I would love to catch up with her again to see what happens next for them all.

Thank you to Carina UK for providing a copy of the book via Netgalley in return for an honest review.