One Summer In Paris

By Sarah Morgan

Pre-order your copy of Sarah Morgan’s new novel The Summer Swap now – coming May 2024!

‘Sarah has woven a beautiful story into the tapestry of Paris, and the little book shop…A very worthwhile read’ Reader review, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A story for all ages as everyone will relate to at least one of the main characters. I shall be recommending it to all my friends’ Reader review, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Just when I think Sarah's books can't get any better along comes this absolute gem of a book . . . Sarah really makes you feel part of the story, felt that I was there with the characters experiencing the story with them’ Reader review, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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One charming bookshop, two unlikely friends, and a summer in Paris that will change their lives forever…

Grace can’t believe it when her husband of twenty-five years announces he doesn’t want to join her on their anniversary trip to Paris – instead, he wants a divorce. Reeling from the shock, Grace makes the bold decision to go on this holiday of a lifetime alone.

Audrey leaves behind heartache of her own when she arrives in Paris. A job in a bookshop is her ticket to freedom, but with no knowledge of the French language, her summer adventure seems doomed to fail. Until she meets Grace, and everything changes…

Living in neighbouring apartments above the bookshop, Grace and Audrey form an unlikely friendship. They came to Paris to find themselves, but finding each other might be the best thing that's ever happened to them.

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Praise for Sarah Morgan

‘A complete joy. It’s a glorious, summery read full of warmth, humour and poignancy, against the perfect romantic backdrop’ Cressida McLaughlin, author of The Cornish Cream Tea Bus

‘An uplifting tale of courage, strength and above all friendship, with a sprinkling of romance and an adorable Parisian backdrop – what's not to love? Be prepared to be hooked’ Anna Bell, author of We Just Clicked

‘The perfect summer holiday read . . . a touching and emotional story about friendship, independence and opening yourself up to new experiences’ Heat

‘The perfect blend of light-hearted and poignant . . . A triumph for sisterhood and the perfect read for a warm day’ Woman

‘Another charming read’ HELLO!

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins UK
• Release date: Apr 4, 2019
• ISBN: 9781474070713

Sarah Morgan

USA Today bestselling author Sarah Morgan writes lively, sexy contemporary stories for Harlequin. Romantic Times has described her as 'a magician with words' and nominated her books for their Reviewer's Choice Awards and their 'Top Pick' slot. In 2012 Sarah received the prestigious RITA® Award from the Romance Writers of America. She lives near London with her family. Find out more at www.sararahmorgan.co

Reviews for One Summer In Paris

[.l.p · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One Summer in Paris was such a lovely surprise, it was heartwarming, funny, uplifting and a joy to read! Sarah Morgan did such a wonderful job of transporting me back to one of my favourite cities - beautiful and romantic Paris that I felt like I was walking down the cobbled side streets and that I could almost smell the freshly baked baguettes! I loved seeing how much the two main characters, Grace and Audrey develop over the course of the story, particularly Audrey and the friendship they form is just beautiful.I found both Grace and Audrey to be very endearing. Whilst these two women are at very different stages in their lives and have quite different personalities they end up forming a deep bond that seems so natural and they provide wonderful support for each other. The secondary characters are all just as well developed and I enjoyed how their stories intersected with Grace and Audrey.Sarah Morgan tackles some serious issues in One Summer In Paris including alcoholism, dyslexia, and infidelity but does so with such care and she successfully weaves these topics seamlessly into the story that it got me thinking what I would do in the same circumstances. I do feel that the ending was a little rushed and could have done with another chapter or two but overall One Summer In Paris was beautifully written and so enjoyable and I didn’t want to say goodbye to these wonderful and fascinating characters just yet.Thank you to Beauty and Lace and Harlequin Australia for providing me with a copy for review.

[cherylk_44 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Grace and Audrey may come from different lifestyles and there is a big age gap but this does not mean that friendship discriminates. I enjoyed both women and their stories. Both women really did need one another. It was through their friendship that they both grew more confident and found their happy endings.The way that Grace did not dwell on her divorce was refreshing. It helped to make the story not be a downer. Then there is Audrey. She did not let her dyslexia define her. The way that Grace approached teaching Audrey French with her disability was sweet. I loved their adventures they took. While, this was about friendship between Grace and Audrey. There was some romance as well. They were in Paris, the city of love. One Summer in Paris is a sweeet and charming read.

[sjgirl-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I mostly enjoyed the middle, not so much the beginning and end.American, Grace, decides to take her twenty-fifth anniversary trip to Paris alone after her husband asks for a divorce. Meanwhile, eighteen year old Brit, Audrey, also heads to Paris, her first ever getaway from the burden of her mother’s excessive drinking. Though an unlikely pair, the two women develop a friendship that just might prove life changing. So, the beginning. I don’t know if there was a way to write the opening chapters of this book where they wouldn’t feel riddled with cliches given that it’s a guy cheating on his wife with a younger woman, then there’s the when and how he announces it, and what happens immediately after that, and the nerve he has after that, it’s so much, and it gave the opening such an over the top feel.Fortunately the middle section proved a much happier place for me. As soon as the women arrive in Paris I was much more engaged, the awkwardness Grace feels at traveling alone, the anxiety Audrey feels over her dyslexia and money problems, it allowed the book to feel much more grounded, and I thought the author came up with such a smart way for them to meet, it made it plausible that Grace would reach out to thank Audrey, and from there their relationship grew at a believable, page-turning pace. I didn’t love Grace correcting Audrey’s behavior (swearing, what she eats), that kind of felt stereotypical, like, oh, of course the wealthy woman (or at least Grace sending her daughter to Europe, college in California, and Grace her own month long luxury vacation gave off the impression of wealth even if her job as a middle-school French teacher and her husband’s position as a small town newspaper editor don’t seem like they would be that lucrative), Grace, is this highly polished person, while Audrey, who has more lint than money in her pockets is depicted as crass. I get that there are plenty of people who do fit those molds, so it isn’t unrealistic, I guess I just feel like it would have been a bit less expected, a bit more refreshing to mix it up a little, if, for example, Grace were the one with the penchant for swearing, or if Audrey, after years of attempting to be a sort of caregiver for her mom, were the one more attuned to healthy eating (even if she hasn’t really had the luxury of affording it). That said, I did enjoy my time with both characters, I very much liked that aside from the cursing/food lectures, there really wasn’t any judgment going on between these two women, they come at the world from quite different points of view at times, but they were more interested in listening to each other than in arguing, they genuinely respect and support each other and that deep friendship, as well as seeing them pursue their independence, is for me, the star attraction of this book. I very much liked Audrey’s ending, perhaps it was a touch too good to be true for the real world, but it was the ending she deserved. I can’t say the same for Grace, I don’t think that was the ending she deserved, I won’t delve into it too much for fear of spoiling it for anyone, I’ll just say that I don’t think this book would be classified as a romance so to have a romance be the end game for Grace after seeing her bloom all on her own in her time in Paris, I just found it disappointing. I received this book through a giveaway.

[janjanfreeman · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

As the old saying goes: "Secrets, secrets, are no fun. Secrets, secrets, hurt everyone". But everyone has secrets, don't they? Some secrets hurt more than others. Like Grace, whose husband decides to tell her his secret. That he's cheating with a friend. Their daughter's friend who is more than half their age. And he decides to tell her this at dinner for their 25th Anniversary. Other secrets we keep so we don't get hurt or judged by others. Like young Audrey, who is dyslexic and just trying to get through high school. But it is hard to do when she has an erratic and constantly drunk mother. Both Grace and Audrey meet by chance while each are escaping from their respective chaos in Paris. Both had more in common than they could have possibly expected and develop a strong friendship where they teach each other what it means to be completely honest and to bring out the best in each other. I loved that this book explored friendship love, parental love, love lost, and romantic love all in one story based in the city of love. This is yet another wonderful book by Sarah Morgan! It is an emotional rollercoaster full of secrets: heartwarming yet tense, funny yet serious, hopeful yet grieving. The amount of character development among multiple characters was astounding. There was one character in particular that I absolutely had feelings of rage whenever they were involved in the plot but towards the end I found myself (begrudgingly) rooting for. It also is a great book that highlights the important benefits of traveling, particularly internationally, as well as the importance of a strong relationship with grandparents. As someone who simply adores my grandmother, Mimi is my favorite character of the book. She is one of the main character's grandmother who is sassy, independent, unconventional, and just plain fun! She also has a secret that she has been hiding for decades that is later revealed. I have read many other books by Sarah Morgan but, out of all of them, this was the hardest. This was simply not a book that I could finish in one sitting. Hear me out, it does get easier to read as the plot develops but, for me it was hard because, both main characters also had complicated relationships with their respective mothers. In particular, they both had difficult and unstable childhoods due to their mothers' addictions. I could relate to each of the main characters as this was something I had also experienced. This made reading the book difficult as it brought up a lot of things that I had spent a lot of time repressing. Which also made this book cathartic in that it helped me work through some of it rather than repressing it. (Ms. Morgan, you can bill me later for the therapy ;) ).Therefore, if you are one who has also had to deal with a difficult childhood with a parent battling addiction, this book may be heavier than expected. However, I do still recommend it as it can also be healing. I would also recommend this book for readers who enjoy stories about friendship, traveling, and romance. I would recommend this book for adult readers as it does have foul language, heavy topics, and sexually suggestive scenarios. Please note: an electronic ARC of this book was generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review (Thank you!).

[simplykelina · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This story started off from two perspectives: Grace and Audrey. Our characters will not actually meet one another until almost 130 pages into the story. However; I loved their individual stories. I flew through the first half of this story. This does deal with some series issues including cheating, alcoholism, and dyslexia. I could not get enough of either story and could not wait to see what would happen when they finally did meet.The story itself did slow down a little for me once both Grace and Audrey get to Paris. This went from the individual stories to an unlikely friendship. I loved how they both took on a role in the others life in just the way they needed. Both were missing something, and their friendship began to repair these missing pieces. A few things to mention that I am not sure where to throw into my thoughts. I loved Mimi! She was so funny. I would love to see a book around her life. I also wish there was more information around Grace and her childhood as there was a mystery around what happened to her. I would have liked to know more about that.Overall, I really enjoyed this. I have already went out and bought another book by the author to explore more of her work.

[ladyofthelodge · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

"One Summer in Paris" tells the story of two women who meet unexpectedly in Paris. Both are dealing with large life issues, and seeking to start over again. They help each other through their crises, and both women emerge as stronger women in the end. This novel included humorous moments, but also dealt with some serious issues, such as alcoholism, risky behavior, midlife crises, dyslexia, and infidelity. The characters all experienced growth by the end of the book. The author left the reader with the impression that the characters would be better equipped to deal with their individual challenges, but there was still a road to follow on the journey to an improved life.Readers are warned: this book includes use of the "f-bomb" and other swearing, and sexual scenes. Some themes may be distasteful to readers as well.The scenes and descriptions of Paris were well done and evoked a feeling of being there. The author also used alternating viewpoints of the characters to good effect. I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

[grgenius_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

While Grace and Audrey are separate in many ways...age, life stage, experience, and whatnot...they are close at heart, reminding us that friendship is not restricted to those in our own generation. There is much to be learned from those older AND younger (as they both discover), much room to grow no matter your current age, and so much potential for things to still come out all right in the end. What happened to both Grace and Audrey was not ideal in any fashion, and yet somehow they not only found each other, but themselves along their crooked paths towards their unknown futures. The high hopes they initially held were thwarted time and again, but they never gave up...not truly...and in trudging through it, they were better for it in the end.

Honestly, I loved the progress/growth both characters showed along their journey, the connection they made with each other as well as those they met, the times and experiences they shared, the bookstore that gave them more than wordy wonders but a piece of themselves they didn't even realize they were missing. It truly enchanted me, heart and soul. I will admit, I was worried for a bit for both our leading ladies. Grace had such a kicker of a moment coming up at book's end, I really couldn't fathom it going one way, hoped it went another, and yet how it ended up was a beautiful blend of give and take that really worked. Audrey had my heart in a bind as well because she was finally showing her true colors and despite her can-do attitude, walls kept being thrown up in her face. Even the sweetness she found in the city was causing her heartache, and yet the author makes it work in her favor while still giving us a satisfying end.

All in all, it was wonderful, magical, realistic, and even at times infuriating, but I adored every moment! Whether I was swooning, having a bookish moment, nodding in agreement, or gasping at a turn of events, it's a definite MUST READ this Spring/Summer and one I highly suggest making room on your wish list for!


**ARC received for review; opinions are my own

[vanessacw · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An uplifting and enjoyable story about two troubled women, both running away from a family issue, who meet up accidentally in Paris and form an unusual friendship whilst staying above a bookshop. Paris and a bookshop! What is there not to like? Although it’s lighthearted, there is also quite a serious thread flowing through it. It covers such subjects as alcoholism, adultery, dyslexia, dysfunctional families and the odd secret! I thought it was a lovely, heartwarming tale. The characters are well rounded but also flawed as we all are, maybe a little stereotypical if I’m picky. There are some quite convenient and predictable moments in the story, but all in all it’s just a darn good, entertaining read. I can just imagine reading this book on the Champs Élysées whilst sipping a glass of wine.??