Paris Mon Amour

by Isabel Costello (Artist)

The first time I caused terrible harm to the people I love it was an accident. The second is the reason I'm here.

When Alexandra discovers that her husband Philippe is having an affair, she can’t believe he’d risk losing the love that has transformed both their lives.

Still in shock, Alexandra finds herself powerfully attracted to a much younger man. Jean-Luc Malavoine is twenty-three, intense and magnetic. He’s also the son of Philippe’s best friend.

With every increasingly passionate liaison, Alexandra is pulled deeper into a situation that threatens everyone she holds dear.

Beautifully told through the boulevards and arrondissements of the City of Light, Paris Mon Amour is a sensual novel about inescapable desire and devastating betrayals. It is the story of one woman and two men, and what happens when there is no way out.

‘A truly emotional ride. A story of lust, love and loss with a beautifully described Paris as its backdrop. I galloped through it in a couple of days’ Claire Fuller, author of Our Endless Numbered Days

Isabel Costello is the host of the Literary Sofa blog, which features authors from new talent to New York Times bestselling novelists. Guest writers on the blog have included Patrick Gale, Linda Grant, Tracy Chevalier and Karen Joy Fowler. She read Modern Languages (French and German) at Oxford, before pursuing a career in marketing and communications. She is now a full-time writer, and lives in London.

Genres: Fiction

400 pages, Paperback

Published May 22, 2017

Reviews

[Louisa Treger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paris mon Amour has the most compelling opening I have read in a long time:
‘The first time I caused terrible harm to the people I love it was an accident. The second is the reason I'm here.’
What follows doesn’t disappoint! Alexandra is a married woman drawn into a passionate affair with a much younger man –who is also the son of her husband’s best friend – thus putting everything she holds dear at risk. This is a sophisticated and honest exploration of love in all its complexities. It works on every level: a well-constructed plot, strong, compelling characters, and lovely writing. I particularly liked the Paris setting – the city is so vividly described, I felt like I was actually walking through the boulevards and arrondissements, taking in all the sights, sounds and smells. I highly recommend this novel, and look forward to many more by Isabel Costello.

[Tracy Shephard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love all things French and the backdrop of this novel, the beautiful Paris is perfectly fitting.

Alexandra, who at the age of 40, has an insecurity with her mother, an artist. So when she 'suggests' that Alexandra's husband is seeing someone else, Alexandra doesn't really know what to do.

Life's lessons mould people and Alexandra's life is not untouched by tragedy and sadness. However, I think this story is more about about the two men in her life, her husband Phillippe and the gorgeous, but incorrigible Jean-Luc.

Costello's debut novel is beautiful. It is emotionally charged and elegantly penned. It is not a silly romance tale, it has a grown-up intelligent feel to it. It also has a certain sexiness in the way it is written. Such lines as...my skirt was deeply creased over the hips and my underwear was chafing at my skin, give Alexandra a more womanly elucidation. OK, we know she's a woman, but would we know she's a sexual being in need of manly contact and monogamous love if it wasn't for these 'suggestions'.

I fell completely into this read, and absolutely loved it.

[Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sensitive, intelligent story of a doomed love affair. I raced through this page-turning novel. Loved the Paris setting, the depictions of the worlds of art and publishing. Alexandra is an engaging narrator/protagonist. All the characters are flawed and nobody is singled out for blame - there are no cads or femme fatales, which is refreshing. This is a wisely written story about that most difficult of things - being human. Highly recommended.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel is beautifully presented, the cover is delicate and very inviting, and the blurb is intriguing. I was especially taken by the first line: "The first time I caused terrible harm to the people I love it was an accident. The second is the reason I'm here." This is a bewitching opener and the beginning of a story that is beautifully written, with care and feeling.

Alexandra is an English woman, living in Paris with her husband Philippe. They have a busy, fairly glamorous life and when Alexandra's waspish Mother slyly implies that Philippe is having an affair, Alexandra reacts in an unusual way.
It is Jean-Luc, seventeen years younger than her, and the son of Philippe's best friend who becomes her answer and she embarks on a sensuous and compulsive affair with him.

Isabel Costello's writing is stylish and accomplished. Paris Mon Amour is not just the story of an affair, it is a detailed examination of complicated and tense family relationships, all set against a wonderfully imagined Paris. I especially enjoyed the examination of the female relationships; Alexandra and her mother, and then later in the novel between her and her stepdaughter Vanessa.

Paris Mon Amour is an insightful story, deftly written and filled with characters who complement the setting perfectly. I enjoyed it very much and look forward to reading more from Isabel Costello.

[Laurel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.
Alexandra has a strained relationship with her mother and when her mother visits she suggests that Alexandra's husband is having an affair. So she ends up having an affair herself with a friend's son 17 years younger than her and falls in love.
A tale of secrets and betrayals, relationships and lots of passion narrated well in quite an old fashioned style.
Somehow this book for me missed the mark. I felt it was a bit confused with too many angles which did not mesh together. There is a certain naivety for me in the author's attitude to love and relationships.
3***

[Hemmie Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this wonderful and emotionally absorbing book in two days - I was lucky enough to win a signed copy from the author. The characters are well rounded and lingered with me after I'd finished the book - and I actually felt it was I who had cheated on my husband, until I realised it was Alexandra who had the amant (lover), not me!

It's a bitter-sweet novel, that had me thinking about the character's actions, and feeling for them all over the course of the story. I don't want to say anything about the plot as the back cover blurb says all that needs to be said - I think this story should be unfolded by the reader and not the reviewer.

It was also wonderful to be reacquainted with many French words and phrases I had forgotten over the years. Loved this book!

[Jill's Book Cafe · Rating 3 out of 5]

More 3.5 than 3

I was initially drawn to this by the cover and when I then read the blurb, it sounded an intriguing read that raised a lot of questions. What was the accident in Alexandra’s past? What caused Philippe to have an affair and more specifically what was it about Jean-Luc that induced such powerful attraction. Well now I know the answers, and with regards to Alexandra’s affair, I didn’t feel the lure of the all encompassing passion that I expected. I felt that rather than Alexandra and Jean-Luc being drawn into an all consuming passion they were actually escaping their own damaged pasts. Would Alexandra have been so susceptible if she hadn’t discovered that her husband was having an affair of his own, would Jean-Luc have been so attracted if Alexandra wasn’t so wrong on so many levels. For me, I feel the answer was no and I just didn’t feel the ‘passion’ which I will admit influenced my view of the affair

As ever, though, these things are subjective and anyone else reading this may well feel differently, as other reviewers clearly do. What can’t be denied is that the book certainly captures the selfishness, guilt and recklessness that comes with embarking on an affair (not that I speak from experience – just in case my husband is reading this review). It paints a vivid picture of the social and cultural milieu that the characters inhabited, with the boulevards and arrondissements of Paris as the perfect backdrop.

While the implied focus of novel is the relationship between Alexandra and Jean-Luc with all that, that entails. I was as interested in the way that the other relationships played out, between Alexandra and Philippe and his estranged daughter, between Alexandra and her mother, and between Alexandra and the Malavoine family. Perhaps it was the emphasis in the blurb and on the cover that suggested this book had a narrower, more focused remit, that influenced my views. Ultimately this was a story well told, that did keep me reading, and I would not have guessed that this was a debut. I would certainly look out for more by this author, but perhaps be less influenced by the cover and blurb.

[Lisa Bentley · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was my love of Paris that made me request Paris Mon Amour. As a self-confessed Francophile, I love France – Paris, in particular – and therefore make the rather foolish assumption that I will love anything to do with France. That isn’t always the case.

I didn’t love Paris Mon Amour. I found that the story was too slow paced for me. However, I did appreciate it for what it is – a story about the dysfunctional lives of people; about how people act and behave on impulse often to detrimental consequences.

The central storyline of infidelity was really well told. Alexandra’s extra-marital affair sizzled with passion and I think Costello accurately described what an affair would be like – the drama and the secrecy. It is what I imagine that situation to feel like. Costello managed to present this affair whilst maintaining the likeability of her protagonist.

More than anything, we feel for Alexandra – her marriage has lost its sparkle and passion and whilst that doesn’t justify her actions we can see why this may have influenced her decision to cheat on her husband.

Overall, Paris Mon Amour wasn’t for me but that is not to say that it isn’t well written. It is, I just couldn’t identify with Alexandra. Whilst I felt sympathy for her I didn’t empathise with he and for me, that fact kept me at a distance rather than feeling completely immersed in the novel.

Paris Mon Amour is a book about love, lust, infidelity and deception among many other things.

Paris Mon Amour by Isabel Costello is available from July 1st 2016.

For more information about Isabel Costello (@isabelcostello) please visit her official website https://isabelcostelloliterarysofa.com/.

For more information about Canelo’s (@Canelo_co) titles please visit the official website www.canelo.co/.

[Marina Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading so many psychological thrillers which deal with adultery, it was refreshing to read a book which does not make a dark mystery about it. And yet it is far removed from the humour and lightness of chick lit. It's a grown-up look at adultery, at how we become embroiled in things we think we can control, and then they end up controlling us. I thought the author did an excellent job of describing how torn and guilty people can feel, yet still continue to do something bad.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful, evocative writing and a compelling story that kept me reading late into the night. Highly recommended.

[Lorna · Rating 4 out of 5]

PARIS MON AMOUR by Isabel Costello
‘The rare woman who indulged her desires, regardless of cost or consequence....’ The city of Paris. Haute cuisine. Wealthy art collectors. This stylish novel has plenty to recommend it, even before you reach the erotic parts! Alexandra is the forty year old British-American second wife of Philippe, a French art dealer. When she discovers that her older husband is having an affair, Alexandra explores her adopted nation’s attitudes to adultery and becomes receptive to the advances of Jean-Luc Malavoine, the twenty-three-year-old son of Philippe’s best friends. The result is secret, visceral, compulsive sex, whenever and wherever the opportunity arises. Meanwhile, unsuspecting Philippe ends his affair, and the dynamic between him and Alexandra shifts when his troubled adolescent daughter Vanessa moves in. This complex scenario has to end badly, and it does, but with a redeeming twist. The story is told in first person. The reader follows Alexandra’s point of view while she negotiates her tragedy-stained relationship with her own mother, her socially tense interaction with Madame Malavoine and a developing closeness to her step-daughter. Childless and infertile, Alexandra soon - rather too soon to be convincing, I thought - has Vanessa eating out of her hand, almost literally as they share a secret fondness for Kraft mac and cheese. This brings me to the treatment of food in this novel. Victoria loves her food and celebrates it with at least as much passion as she does the body of her young lover. The high point for me is when she describes a dish served by the Malavoines,‘mushrooms and apple slices in a heavy cream sauce laced with Calvados liqueur,’ and wonders if identifying its provenance would be ‘trying too hard’. Considering that she has been secretly pleasuring the son of her hosts all ways up, this seems ironic! Alexandra is ‘hedonistic, assertive, impulsive,’ the kind of character at whom the reader wants to yell, ‘Why did you do that?’ or ‘Don’t even think about it!’ or simply ‘Nooo!’ Of course this is enjoyable, as is the contrast between the heightened intellectual atmosphere of the gallery where she works and what she does there with Jean-Luc after closing time. But there’s another side to their affair, as she discusses Baudelaire’s poems with her lover, who tells her ‘I’ve never felt a connection like I did with you.’ Although there are excursions into a grittier Paris of unpaid Romanian builders, mad bag ladies and all-night petrol stations, in some ways ‘Paris Mon Amour’ is a comedy of manners, with a strong contrast between the social niceties of wealthy Parisian intellectuals and what goes on – I was going to write ‘between the sheets’ but in fact that is one of the few locations where the passion of Alexandra and Jean-Luc is not consummated. I found ‘Paris Mon Amour’ immensely enjoyable and entertaining, with undertones of tragedy. I recommend it to lovers of Paris, lovers of food and lovers in general.

[Kate A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating 4.5/5

A French maxim I adopted without question was that a woman needs to preserve a sense of mystery. But it’s a short hop from mystery to secrets and an even shorter one from there to betrayal.

When we meet Alexandra she is at the end of her story and begins to recount to us how she came to be at this point. What starts with the discovery of her husband Philippe having an affair, turns into a story of love and redemption, as she herself embarks on an extramarital relationship, whilst dealing with uncertain and evolving family dynamics.

Paris Mon Amour is beautifully written. It is effortless in absorbing you onto the streets of Paris and into the Parisian lifestyle. I think even if you haven’t been to the city before, you will feel as if you have been transported there through the detailed descriptions, not just of the city itself but of the emotions that being there evokes in the writer.

This book is not just about an affair; it actually deals with a lot of serious subjects through all the different relationship dynamics. These subjects are dealt with spectacularly, because even though you can feel the emotion through the writing, it isn’t overly dramatised or made a spectacle of. These are situations that you feel immersed in because they are written in such a realistic way.

I’ve always wondered what it must be like to be in someone else’s head, how it would feel to be a good person with a clear conscience, who’s never mean or bitter, who’s never caused anyone any pain. There can’t be many people like that, can there?

There was only one little thing that held me back in this novel, it is told as if Alexandra is talking to a therapist. Now at the beginning of the book and as the story progresses I can appreciate the reason for it, as it fits with the themes in the book. However for me personally at points I found it a little disruptive, I was so engrossed in the story to then find myself pulled out a little.

Despite that little niggle I honestly couldn’t recommend this book enough. It is a very honest look at infidelity and how it’s effects on all the parties involved. This is a magnificent story.

Thank you to Canelo and Netgalley for the review copy of this book.

Originally posted on everywhere and nowhere

[Len · Rating 3 out of 5]

A secretive, illicit and passion-fueled love story, set in Paris? Count me in!
This author is surprising in how she flirts with almost-raunchy love scenes, while writing some beautifully evocative thoughts a moment later. You're struck by the beauty of a certain line, and then all of the sudden she drops an F-bomb which is, delightfully, unexpected.
I liked this story, as tortured as it - and its characters are.
If I had one complaint - the reason, perhaps, I didn't push to 4 stars - it is that it could have been longer.
Yup, I said that.
I was interested - hooked - and could have kept going; wanted to know more about these characters, spend more time delving deeper. Instead, I was left with less than satisfying portraits of what could have been more interesting reading.
Good - could have been much better.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a love story. Alexandra, a 40-year-old British-American woman, lives in Paris with her French husband. She embarks upon a clearly doomed affair with a much younger man, who just happens to be the son of her husband’s closest friends. What makes the book special is the clarity and intensity the author brings to the exploration of the subject, picking apart the motives and feelings of Alexandra with a scalpel. Alexandra isn’t likeable – that’s not the point – she is flawed and human, my favourite kind of protagonist. This is a very grown up book, by which I mean it deals with emotions, but recognises the grey areas, particularly the moral ones. Alexandra understands an important fact of life that her younger lover hasn't yet learned: that it’s not always possible to get what you want, and that even if you do, there is always a price to be paid.

[Claire Dyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

As other reviews have said this is not a light-hearted romance but a proper, grown up, intelligent book about many different sorts of relationships. However, what struck me most was the self-knowledge that Alexandra attained and the sometimes brutal honesty with which she faced up to her desires, her actions and the outcomes of those actions. And Paris too isn't spared. It's shown for what it can be: an ambitious, jealous, beautiful and intriguing place. A great read and one I'd highly recommend.

[Jane Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compelling story of an ill fated, doomed love affair.
Very believable though, the way passion can take hold of a persons senses and leave them acting in unbelievably cruel ways.
Issues of the loss of her brother and the break down of her relationship with her mother resonate through the story.
Highly recommend.

[Cath Barton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. Great pace. Just the thing for reading in lockdown. Actually I'd give it 4.5 stars.

[S.L. Sourwine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Complex, passionate story with a mid-life woman at its centre. Fabulous.

[Rio Alexis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Straddles the line between chick-lit and chic-lit very nicely. An easy autumn read (but when I say 'easy' I do mean 'simple').

[Sharp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exquisite writing, a gossamer web of words to pull you in. I loved the unflinching exploration of Alexandra's relationships with her mother, husband, lover, step-daughter, friends and therapist. The fascinating world of fine art is the perfect foil for all the steamy sex (and oh! it's steamy). A refreshing, non-judgemental, acutely observed story of uncontrollable passion, cleverly wrapped in romp of a story, that saunters along with true Parisian style.

[Anne Goodwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

The language is lovely, the Parisian setting beautifully realised, the plot expertly handled, the predicament psychologically astute and the characters all have emotional depth. With sensual and unflinching descriptions of sex, it’s a risk-free alternative to an affair if you’re that way inclined.
Full review
Fictional affairs in Paris and Dublin http://annegoodwin.weebly.com/1/post/...

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paris Mon Amour is a love story. It's a story about being human and the things that befall us human beings both bad and good. How we respond to those things is what drives this story.

Alexandra is headed to a therapist she has never met at the beginning of the book. As the book unfolds, Ms Costello periodically reminds us that Alexandra is relating her experience to the therapist. She tells it with an urgency and desperation that pulls us into her life immediately. She is an exPat married to a frenchman, Philippe; her American mother lives in California and visits when necessary; her British father left the family when Alexandra was 10 years old and moved to Brazil. The Why is a trauma that has changed each member of the family and is only told in full towards the end of the book.

Alexandra meets Jean-Luc, the son of her husband's best friend, He is 13 years her junior. The two have an instant connection which turns sexual fairly quickly. Alexandra rationalizes that her husband is having an affair therefore she can. But she is not prepared for the depth, the immediacy, the ecstasy and release of inhibitions that the connection gives to her. She experiences the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, she can't come to terms with what she is doing. The story is complicated by Vanessa, Philippe's teenage daughter who is desperate for love and attention in any way she can get it and Genevieve, Jean-Luc's mother whom Alexandra has never felt comfortable with but has had to accept as she is the wife of Phillipe's best friend.

Everyone is seen thru Alexandra's eyes and she fleshes out the humanity in each of them. Alexandra has known deep pain and she is sensitive to it in those around her. We race with her as she makes one decision after another often contradicting the one before. The reader is not in the grandstands rooting for anyone, we are totally caught up in Alexandra's heart and head as she tries to navigate her way through her own and everyone else's feelings.

I don't usually read this kind of book. It was under general fiction. However, I live in Paris and tend to read the synopsis of books that have Paris in the title. I was intrigued enough to try this one. I read it in two sittings and almost got no sleep the first night. I imagine that most female readers will find something to identify with in Alexandra's life and personality. I certainly did and reading this book took me back to the rush of first sexual love, to the time when there is nothing and no one but the loved one. Costello describes beautifully each sexual act so that we are intimately bound to Alexandra's fate.

Amazingly I learned a few things about Paris and Parisians. Costello read French and German at Oxford and seems to know this city well and how very difficult, if not impossible, it is for someone non-french to be fully integrated into Parisian life. Reading her bio led me to her blog The Literary Sofa where she has an interview with Alexandra. It is not the Alexandra torn to pieces by her highs and lows that we have come to know in the book but it was interesting to learn that Ms. Costello has an affection for therapy and perhaps chose that venue as therapy requires talking and talking in therapy demands that one go deep enough to find one's truth.. .

[Saarah Niña · Rating 4 out of 5]

Devastatingly Raw

This book had me watching The Jeremy Kyle Show, it had me thinking about the wrong choices I and others have made, and how such issues are resolved.  I've never minded reading about characters who cheat on their loved ones which is funny since, I can't tolerate cheating partners in real life. Committing adultery, for me, has always been a vile, cruel and, selfish act. And this book demonstrates that: when Alexandra begins cheating, that's how she feels. She chastises herself constantly but, as these stories go, she just can't stop seeing the youthful, charismatic Jean-Luc. In all honesty and quite surprisingly, I didn't have a problem with their age gap. With the brilliant storytelling, I didn't mind much at all. Isabel Costello has a way with words, I can't quite explain it, but it was this intelligent way of keeping the information from the reader, and gradually letting things spill. You could just never forsee anything. I loved it, the way new plots would spring up from a past moment. It  certainly had me sitting up and paying attention. It was remarkably subtle so it wasn't  'over-the-top' with the suspense.

An example of such an instant: "I didn’t so much walk back across the courtyard as float. It was raining and I didn’t care. Nothing could affect me in my bubble; I could feel the flush lingering on my cheeks. We could switch between states in an instant: sadness and elation, stress and excitement, post-coital satisfaction and…sheer horror."

I think the only problem I had with this book was the unrealistic nature of some aspects, a married forty-something woman was betraying her husband in the worst way possible, amidst feelings of certainty that he was doing very much the same thing to her. I understand that these feelings did materialise as a cause for concern as she had seen his texts. I suppose I'd rather that she spoke to him about her justified paranoia. It wasn't the wisest decision to run into another man's arms. I know it didn't quite happen that way, but it did seem awfully convenient. In very much the same way, I felt that she wasn't thinking. Initially, she seemed to be an intelligently, mature woman so I expected her to use her head instead she allowed her libido to take over. I felt for her husband, even if he was cheating, he was a kind man that I felt that her reasons for cheating could only have been that he was cheating.  But in spite of her mistakes and foolish judgment, from the start of the book to the end- she had definitely come a long way.

And it's because she did learn, that she did move on (I wish she had a choice in this),that I figured 'all is well'. Committing adultery does hurt all those involved, and I'm grateful that this book didn't take that away. I'd say this book is more of a woman's fiction but last I checked, that never stops a guy from reading it.  I can tell you now that this isn't a soppy, sickly sweet, novel. Even if Alexandra's lover did constantly confess to thinking about her. 

This was a genuinely wonderful book, even if sometimes shockingly devastating, and will keep you company for a long time afterwards. 

I received this book through NetGalley.

[Paterson Loarn · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘The rare woman who indulged her desires, regardless of cost or consequence....’ The city of Paris. Haute cuisine. Wealthy art collectors. This stylish novel has plenty to recommend it, even before you reach the erotic parts! Alexandra is the forty year old British-American second wife of Philippe, a French art dealer. When she discovers that her older husband is having an affair, Alexandra explores her adopted nation’s attitudes to adultery and becomes receptive to the advances of Jean-Luc Malavoine, the twenty-three-year-old son of Philippe’s best friends. The result is secret, visceral, compulsive sex, whenever and wherever the opportunity arises. Meanwhile, unsuspecting Philippe ends his affair, and the dynamic between him and Alexandra shifts when his troubled adolescent daughter Vanessa moves in. This complex scenario has to end badly, and it does, but with a redeeming twist. The story is told in first person. The reader follows Alexandra’s point of view while she negotiates her tragedy-stained relationship with her own mother, her socially tense interaction with Madame Malavoine and a developing closeness to her step-daughter. Childless and infertile, Alexandra soon - rather too soon to be convincing, I thought - has Vanessa eating out of her hand, almost literally as they share a secret fondness for Kraft mac and cheese. This brings me to the treatment of food in this novel. Victoria loves her food and celebrates it with at least as much passion as she does the body of her young lover. The high point for me is when she describes a dish served by the Malavoines,‘mushrooms and apple slices in a heavy cream sauce laced with Calvados liqueur,’ and wonders if identifying its provenance would be ‘trying too hard’. Considering that she has been secretly pleasuring the son of her hosts all ways up, this seems ironic! Alexandra is ‘hedonistic, assertive, impulsive,’ the kind of character at whom the reader wants to yell, ‘Why did you do that?’ or ‘Don’t even think about it!’ or simply ‘Nooo!’ Of course this is enjoyable, as is the contrast between the heightened intellectual atmosphere of the gallery where she works and what she does there with Jean-Luc after closing time. But there’s another side to their affair, as she discusses Baudelaire’s poems with her lover, who tells her ‘I’ve never felt a connection like I did with you.’ Although there are excursions into a grittier Paris of unpaid Romanian builders, mad bag ladies and all-night petrol stations, in some ways ‘Paris Mon Amour’ is a comedy of manners, with a strong contrast between the social niceties of wealthy Parisian intellectuals and what goes on – I was going to write ‘between the sheets’ but in fact that is one of the few locations where the passion of Alexandra and Jean-Luc is not consummated. I found ‘Paris Mon Amour’ immensely enjoyable and entertaining, with undertones of tragedy. I recommend it to lovers of Paris, lovers of food and lovers in general.

[Joanne Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes you come across a book that you start to read and realise that it's nothing like you had expected it to be. This book was a breath of fresh air really as it went beyond the usual women's fiction path and took us more on an emotional, very grown-up journey of an adulterous affair and the rippling effect it has on all those involved.

The setting of Paris for this novel seemed to lend itself to the authors style of writing as it all felt very...well, French! I know it sounds strange but everything seemed to live and breath that French chic that only the French do so well, and they don't even know they do it! There was an air of nonchalance and effortless style to every page and the character of Alexandra, certainly stuck out as a foreigner even though she fitted in to Parisian life almost like a native. When she discovers her husband is having an affair, she doesn't get angry or passionate in her reaction, she responds by having her own affair with the 23 year old son of her husband's best friend. But her descent into an incredibly sensual relationship with Jean Luc will have far reaching consequences for all those closest to them.

I just flew through the pages of this book. The writing and the short chapters just flowed so perfectly that I couldn't bring myself to interrupt its rhythm. I have to admit that if I had seen this book in a bookshop or online, I probably would have passed it by. The cover is gorgeous but it didn't give any hints to the story inside and the blurb didn't exactly draw me in. But by about 3 pages in, I realised that this was going to be very different to my expectations as I got immediately caught up in Alexandra's dealings with her mother and the reason for their strained relationship. The only character I struggled to bond with was actually Jean Luc but maybe that was just me as a mother struggling with the concept of the age difference between him and Alexandra and also his maturity being beyond most 23 year old men that I know. But then again I don't know many French 23 year old men come to think of it!

A candid and seductive debut from a writer with plenty more to give based on this emotional but ultimately uplifting tale.

Thank you to Heloise and Canelo Books for my review copy and this is my unbiased review provided in thanks.

[Kate Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must admit that after reading some of the titles on the Baileys Prize shortlist, I was feeling pretty depressed. Seriously, these are some grim stories. Being that I am off to Paris for a weekend in a couple of weeks the setting of this novel appealed to me to get me in the mood.

Alexandra is a 40 year old woman who has suffered tragedies in her past which continue to impact her present. When her visiting mother suggests her husband Phillippe is having an affair, it is a niggling thought which begins to preoccupy her. Bowled over by the appearance of Jean-Luc, a troubled and beautiful young man, Alexandra is soon embroiled in her own passionate affair.

This is a well written book, if one which grated with me slightly in its use of expletives. I don't mean to sound prudish as, in general, it doesn't bother me, but I didn't really feel it was in tone with the voice of Alexandra and it just stuck out as an attempt to be 'edgy' in a novel which didn't need that. The story itself is quite compelling, and the reader is witness to a situation which becomes less and less tenable.

Though I would have preferred a greater exploration of Jean-Luc's troubles, Alexandra's journey though, is one of discovery, of self-understanding and realisation of what she is capable of. I imagine the thrill of an illicit affair is pretty good escapism for many of us right now. Overall, a convincing and enjoyable read.

Thanks to the publishers for providing a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

More reviews: www.katejwilson.com

[Grass monster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paris Mon Amour is a story of love, lies and deceit. We meet Alexandra, a British American living in Paris who is married to Philippe. When Alexandra's mum tells her she knows Phillippe is having an affair, Alexandra embarks on an affair of her own with Jean-Luc. Jean-Luc is a sexy 23 year old and just happens to be the is son of Philippe’s best friend. Revenge is sweet or is it?.
We also meet Vanessa, who is Phillipe's teenage daughter. She comes to live with him after being thrown out by her mum. She is difficult and comes across as not a nice person but as the story developes we learn she just needs a bit of love and attention. Alexandra trys hard to give her that.
This is a beautifully written story, which captures the esscence of Paris and love. As we go on a journey with Alexandra, i have full empathy with her and could easily relate to how she was feeling at times and what she was doing. Weather her decsions were right or wrong. She is an easy character to like. Alexandra doesnt expect to fall for Jean-Luc, but he gives her everything her husband isnt. The sex is out of this world, he listens to her and gives her these tingling feelings that no one has ever managed before. Jean-Luc ignites that spark and Alexandra finds is hard to walk away.
This story is one which makes you wonder how it will all end?. Can there be a perfect ending?. This will keep you on your toes right until the last page. Looking forward to more from Isabel Costello.

[Magdalena Szotek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today, I spent most of my day reading. This hardly ever happens these days; let's just say combination of My Little Pony, Bubble Guppies, and the the Paw Patrol contributed largely.

It appears you can carry on household duties, including cleaning the floors and cooking, while being glued to a book. But any book won't do. It needs to be the one you find lots of connections with. The one clicks with you in an instant. The one you find lots in common.

Like this one. 'Paris Mon Amour' by Isabel Costello.

It talks about love. About solitude. About relationships we have with our mothers. About choices we make, and how they influence us even if we avoid them as much as we can. About life.

It is astonishingly profound. At first I was expecting 'just' a love story. But it goes deeper.

'so much of who we are is an infinite mystery.'

Just when I was about to write this post, I found out about Christina Grimmie, a 22-year old singer who I happened to listen to, and was amazed with her beautiful edgy voice. She was killed yesterday by a guy few years her senior. Why? We won't fond out since he shot himself shortly afterwards. That incredibly sad story shades yet another light onto the book I wholeheartedly recommend reading.
'An infinite mystery'
...

(I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley.)

[Jaffareadstoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started to read Paris Mon Amour. Initially, I was sold on the idea that it was going to be a Mrs Robinsonesque scenario, that is, older woman attracted to a younger man who takes revenge in the sweetest sort of way. But overall, it was a more exacting look at the pitfalls that life throws at us, and that by being drawn into situations which are beyond our control, we can very soon lose sight of what's important.

I was quickly drawn into the story and felt a certain amount of sympathy for Alexandra who is an interesting character. Angst ridden and filled with self doubt she embarks on a journey which , you sense from the beginning is not going to end well, however, how it all ends is for you to find out by reading the story for yourself.

I enjoyed the way in which the author immerses the reader into the story and makes the developing situation seem very realistic without being too emotional or demonstrative. Time and place is created very well and France, and perhaps more importantly, Paris, really comes alive in the reader's imagination. There is much to take in and parts of it get emotional but the ending when it comes is entirely appropriate and well thought out.

So all in all a good story..

[Susan Foulkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A simply beautiful and poignant story.

The characters are easy to identify (and to empathise) with, they are all too human with their foibles and faults.

In Alexandra and Philippe we have what appears to be the perfect couple but the facade is cracking and Philippe lost some of my sympathy when he explained why he'd had an affair.

Jean-Luc, who becomes Alexandra's lover, is a sensitive, sensual and troubled young man. He is also the son of Philippe's best friend.

We know that things are not going to end well but I didn't anticipate quite how shocking and upsetting the end of the affair would be. Yes, I cried.

And I have to mention the setting....the tangled lives and affairs are played out against the backdrop of my favourite city...Paris. Isabel Costello describes the city perfectly...she has a real sense of place.

I loved this book and look forward to reading more by this author.

I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley.