ARC Audiobook Review: French Holiday by Sarah Ready

French Holiday
Author: Sarah Ready

Narrator: Kelsey Navarro  
To Be Published: April 26, 2023
Audiobook: 12 hours 3 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: April 5-13, 2023
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars     

Book Description:

One (crumbling) French castle. Two enemies-at-first-sight. The holiday of a lifetime.

Merry DeLuca has a problem—a big problem. Her sister just married her best friend and the only man she’s ever loved. Her life is rapidly spiraling down the drain and she doesn’t have an escape plan.

So when Merry is offered a three-month holiday living in a romantic castle in the French countryside she leaps at the chance. Merry knows her French holiday will fix everything—there will be mouthwatering pastries, delicious (meaningless) flirtations, and languid strolls through vineyards at sunset. Her holiday will be perfect.

At least, Merry believes that until she arrives and finds Noah Wright—the best man at her sister’s wedding and the worst man she’s ever known—staying in her castle.

Famous travel documentarian by day and arrogant devil by night, Noah refuses to leave the castle. Which means that Merry and Noah are stuck together in France, in a crumbling castle, in a holiday where nothing goes right. Not for Merry and not for Noah.

So they strike a truce—they’ll live as cohabitating friends for three-months, and then they’ll amicably part ways, never to see each other again.

But the thing about friendship? Sometimes secrets are uncovered. Mysteries revealed. Hearts laid bare. And friendship can start to feel a lot like caring. A lot like love. It can even make you wish that the holiday never has to end.

Jessica’s Review:

Look at this: Jessica listened to a romance book! Well chick-lit at least.  And it was an entertaining listen! It was a fun/fluffy book to listen to, and had several cliché tropes to it: unrequited love, best friend marries sister, and enemies to lovers. Of course, there are more that I am not giving away! Like all chick lit reads, you are in it for the light heartedness and a fun beach read type book. And you get that with French Holiday.

We experience the wedding of Merry’s sister to Leo and meet Noah, the guy she instantly hates. And he keeps popping back up in Merry’s life when she would rather never see him again! And one of those places is a French castle that she is staying at for three months!

Of course, you know where the story will end and we have a journey to get there. Some parts were a bit much for me- there is an over-the-top extended scene starring a lobster that was very similar to the scene from the Little Mermaid. It just went on way to long for me! But that lobster was entertaining to say the least! 

For most of the novel it was a three-star read for me, until we find out something about Noah, and then I was ready for the rest of the story! It picked up for me after that.  We also had a bit of a mystery involving a painting that pulls things together and gives some intrigue to the story.

This was a first novel for me from the author and narrator. I did enjoy the story and narration. If you enjoy romcom/ chick lit/ romance you should give it a try! Many thanks to the publisher for granting me an audio-arc to listen to.

Pre-order Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK