Review: Lost in France by Claire Ross Dunn

Lost in France
by Claire Ross Dunn

My Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Women’s Fiction/ Contemporary Romance
Age Category: New Adult and Adult
Type of romance: m/f

Blurb:
The click of a button could change your life.

A fresh start in France is just what this mother-daughter duo needs to transform their lives, perfect for fans of Under the Tuscan Sun.

Dedicated single mom and overworked film festival staffer Marlow buys a house online for one euro—then finds out there are strings attached. To sort out the mess, Marlow decides to take an impromptu holiday in France. But when the impossible local bureaucrat refuses her a refund, she decides to renovate and flip the house.

Along for the ride is Marlow’s teenage daughter, Sabine. Recently graduated but adrift, Sabine uses the trip as a chance to secretly reconnect with her Parisian father. And when a cute but arrogant boy enters the picture, things get even more complicated.

Meanwhile, Marlow finds herself caught between two men, the fascinating but irascible village handyman and the wealthy and charming owner of a nearby champagnerie. Torn between a safe but predictable life back in Toronto and a wonderful if uncertain future abroad, Marlow and Sabine must embrace spontaneity and the transformative power of being a little lost.

My Review

I received a free copy from the publisher through Netgalley and voluntarily reviewed it.

This one caught my eye when I saw it on Netgalley and I am glad I got approved for a copy. After just finishing a book about someone finding her way after inheriting a house I wanted more of the same vibes and picked up Lost in France, which hit the mark for what I was looking for.

Lost in France is told from the points of view of Marlow and her daughter Sabine. After getting drunk one evening Marlow accidentally buys a one euro home in a small town in France, being unable to get a refund they have to go there in person to claim the house and resolve things. There are a lot of plot lines going on from how things are in this small town, to the house as well as Sabine’s future and Marlow job and their romances.

I had a great time reading this book. I liked the one-euro home plot line and seeing Marlow and Sabine go to France and figure things out and work on their new home. I liked getting a feel for this small town and seeing them make friends. I also liked their plot lines of figuring things, although I would’ve liked a bit more progression in that regard as now a lot was left till the reveal at the end. Speaking of the end, I liked seeing how everything got resolved, but I would’ve loved an epilogue of some sort to get a glimpse of the future.

The setting in France was fun and there was quite a bit of French sprinkled throughout the book and I liked how the author always made sure it was clear what they were talking about. At times I wish there was more emotions and more thoughts of the character so I could better feel what they were going through. There are points were the writing style doesn’t quite work for me, but then in other parts I thought it fit the book just right.

I liked having both Marlow and Sabine’s point of views as they handled things differently and experience the situation in a different way. Sabine takes this as an opportunity to figure out what she wants to do next now that she finished high school and Marlow tries to find out how they can return to their orderly life, while she slowly falls in love with this small French town. While I liked getting both their point of views, I did think the point of view switches could get quite frequent at times and were a bit jarring in some chapters with the constant switching back and forth. I would’ve preferred to stay longer in the same point of view as the switching could be a bit much for me. Especially once Marlow and Sabine aren’t in the same place the switching point of view took more time and effort for me.

There also are two romantic plot lines. Sabine finds a possible romance with Aubin and I really liked seeing these two spend time together and figure out their futures. I still remember my struggles when deciding what to do after high school and I thought both of their struggles felt realistic and I enjoyed seeing them figure things out and grow closer. They were so sweet together. Marlow on the other hand gets a love triangle and I was not a fan of that. I had a preference for Luc who encourages her art, but wasn’t quite sure who she would end up with. And it takes till almost the last page to get the answer to that. I did think the characters handled the whole love triangle pretty maturely and actually talked about things, but I still did not like it and wished she had just one romance or resolved the love triangle earlier.

To summarize: I liked this book and had a great time reading it. The small town setting in France was great and I liked the renovating the one-euro house plot line. I also liked the themes of both Marlow and her daughter Sabine having to figure out what they want out of life and what’s next for them. And it all comes to a great conclusion to the end, although I would’ve loved an epilogue. Having both Marlow and Sabine’s point of views worked well and I liked both of their stories and seeing their different perspective on things. I did struggle sometimes with the frequent point of view switches and it could take some time and effort to switch especially when they were in different places, I think staying longer in the same point of view would’ve worked better for me. I liked how both Sabine and Marlow have a romance in this book. I especially liked Sabine’s romance with Aubin and their struggles to figure out what they wanted to do after high school felt relatable. Marlow’s romance is a love triangle which I was not a fan of and it drags on for most of the book, I did like how they actually talked about things and handled thing in a mature way, but I would’ve liked her to just have one love interest or an earlier resolution. All in all I had a great time reading about the summer these characters spend in France and seeing them figure out what they want from their lives.

Links:
– Goodreads
– Bookbub
– Amazon
– B&N
– Kobo

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Bookbub.