Review: One Paris Summer By Denise Grover Swank

My Rating: 5 Stars
Date Read: July 2016



Publication Date: June 7th, 2016
Paperback, 272 pages



Summary From Goodreads

Most teens dream of visiting the City of Lights, but it feels more like a nightmare for Sophie Brooks. She and her brother are sent to Paris to spend the summer with their father, who left home a year ago without any explanation. As if his sudden abandonment weren't betrayal enough, he's about to remarry, and they’re expected to play nice with his soon-to-be wife and stepdaughter. The stepdaughter, Camille, agrees to show them around the city, but she makes it clear that she will do everything in her power to make Sophie miserable.

 

Sophie could deal with all the pain and humiliation if only she could practice piano. Her dream is to become a pianist, and she was supposed to spend the summer preparing for a scholarship competition. Even though her father moved to Paris to pursue his own dream, he clearly doesn't support hers. His promise to provide her with a piano goes unfulfilled.

Still, no one is immune to Paris’s charm. After a few encounters with a gorgeous French boy, Sophie finds herself warming to the city, particularly when she discovers that he can help her practice piano. There’s just one hitch—he’s a friend of Camille’s, and Camille hates Sophie. While the summer Sophie dreaded promises to become best summer of her life, one person could ruin it all.

 My Review: 

*I received a free copy of this book from book look bloggers in exchange for an honest review*

I really enjoyed this book. It was like Anna and the French Kiss meets Cinderella {minus the wicked step mother bit} but it still manages to be a unique and fun story. Just like with Anna and the French Kiss, I was scolding Sophie for not wanting to be in Paris. {I mean, yeah, I know that the circumstances were not ideal for her, but come on. It's Paris for crying out loud... But that aside...

I loved that in this story there was a good relationship between Sophie and her step mom {instead of the hate/hate relationship that can sometimes happen with step-parents. I really disliked Dale and Camille. Camille was petty and mean spirited. And Dale was a dou--- jerk. Dale was a jerk.

Sophie was such a relatable character. She can be awkward and she's definitely unsure of herself at times, which can make her come off as immature. But I think she does the best that she can in the situation that she'd been put in.

I liked Matthieu, he was tres swoony and mysterious... Although I was a bit skeptical of him and his reasons for keeping their relationship hush hush... I think that Sophie had waaaay more patience with him than I would have.

All in all, this was a sweet, summertime read that is perfect if you are looking a good contemporary novel.