Apologies for my lateness, BUT, I am super honoured to be kicking off Rebecca Raisin’s blog tour today for her fragrant, upcoming novel, ‘The Little Perfume Shop off the Champs-Elysees’. Big thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Here is my review:
What is French for falling in love?
When Del leaves small town America to compete in a perfume competition in Paris, she thinks it is just the next step on her five-year-plan. It’s an exciting opportunity. What started out as just a dream for Del and her twin sister is nearly in her grasp. If she wins this competition, they are on their way to opening their very own perfume boutique!
Arriving in Paris, watching the sun glinting off the Seine and wandering the Champs-Elysees, Del discovers the most perfect perfumery she’s ever seen. Yet, as the competition dawns Del realises that whilst she might have had the best nose in her small village, her competitors seem to know more than she could ever have dreamed. This competition isn’t going to be easy…
Del has the romance of Paris to sweep her away from her worries, but as the competition heats up, so does her desire for that which she cannot have! If only the dashing owner Sébastien didn’t smell so seductive, look so handsome and make her heart flutter like it never has before. They say love smells as sweet as a red rose in bloom, but Del would tell anyone that true love can’t be bottled – it’s beautiful and unique to everyone…even herself. With everything on the line for her future, can Del really let a little attraction get in the way of securing her dreams?
What does TWG think?
What a book!
I’m sorry to say that it did take me a chapter or two to get into the swing of things, but once I did, I felt like I was walking on air! The vivid imagery the author put into my mind with her outstanding descriptions was jut beautiful. I truly felt as though I was in Paris, soaking up the atmosphere and being surrounded by such mind blowing fragrances.
Del is taking part in a perfume competition, but is the competition all what it seems or did someone put a dash too much lavender in a recipe? Dell has wanted to turn her dream into a reality for years, keeping the memory of her grandmother alive as she went. But, the more she thought about the competition, the more she over thought the tasks she had to partake in. Can being in a bad mood really make a perfume go wrong? And can feeling loved create the most wonderful perfume? Del is determined to find out…
I could tell that Del had the hots for Sébastien almost right away!! For a woman who was so adamant that love wasn’t going to feature in her perfumes due to never truly feeling what romance actually is, she soon changed her mind the moment her mentor came into view. She was like a love sick puppy, no wonder she couldn’t concentrate!!
This book was such a pleasure to read, keeping me entertained until the very last page. I really didn’t want it to end and I felt that the book concluded rather abruptly. It was as though the last chapter was on fast forward. I wanted to stay with Del a bit longer – there is so much more to find out about that character, as well as Sébastien’s, I am hoping that Rebecca Raisin will take them on another journey in another novel!
Such a fun, warm, laugh out loud novel, Rebecca Raisin certainly knows how to paint a picture in her readers minds, whilst also keeping their hearts warm like a little hot water bottle!
‘The Little Perfume Shop off the Champs-Elysees’ will be published on the 30th March but can be pre-order now from Amazon
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