Paris Is Always A Good Idea

I wholeheartedly agree with statement: Paris is always a good idea (I hope to visit one day!). But after that, this book and I part ways. This lighter read has an obvious 'Eat, Pray, Love meets Hallmark movie of the week' vibe as Chelsea, a 20-something professional from Boston, decides to retrace her post-college European vacation and reconnect with the three love interests she met on that trip, to find herself.

And therein lies one of my big issues with this book. I know it's fiction, but I hate when female characters need a man to find themselves. Can we just stop this? Chelsea is a professional fundraiser, but she was dull and hard to like with her selfish and immature behaviour.

The story requires readers to check their disbelief at the door. The premise relies heavily on the 'enemies to lovers' trope but Chelsea and Jason aren't enemies, they're coworkers so her animosity felt over-the-top. There's a Hail Mary cringey love scene at the end and the very last word of the book (which was super cheesy), sealed this 2-star rating. 

This was a trite and predictable story with an ending you can see a mile away. I took turns reading a print copy and listening to the digital audiobook and I thought the narrator did a good job, particularly with the different accents. While this wasn't a good fit for me, please know that this book has received an overwhelming number of positive reviews. This just wasn't my cuppa tea.

My Rating: 2 stars

Author: Jenn McKinlay

Genre: Romance

Type and Source: eAudiobook and Trade Paperback from public library

Run Time: 11 hours, 34 minutes

Narrator: Brittany Pressley

Publisher: Berkley Books

First Published: July 21, 2020

Opening Line: "I'm getting married."

Book Description from GoodReads: It's been seven years since Chelsea Martin embarked on her yearlong post-college European adventure. Since then, she's lost her mother to cancer and watched her sister marry twice, while Chelsea's thrown herself into work, becoming one of the most talented fundraisers for the American Cancer Coalition, and with the exception of one annoyingly competent coworker, Jason Knightley, her status as most talented fundraiser is unquestioned.

When her introverted mathematician father announces he's getting remarried, Chelsea is forced to acknowledge that her life stopped after her mother died, and that the last time she can remember being happy, in love, or enjoying her life was on her gap year. Inspired to retrace her steps--to find Colin in Ireland, Jean Claude in France, and Marcelino in Italy--Chelsea hopes that one of these three men who stole her heart so many years ago, can help her find it again.

From the start of her journey nothing goes as planned, but as Chelsea reconnects with her old self, she also finds love in the very last place she expected.