This is a great read for literary fiction fans, anyone looking for a quieter summer read that still has setting, romance, and self-discovery but in ways different from a typical bead read.
Thank you Random House and PRH audio for the free review copies of A Northern Light in Provence. This is a quietly elegant, moving story of a woman examining who she is, where she is in life, and what comes next. I love a subtle character study that honors a character as well as setting and Birkelund does a great job developing Ilse and her story. A job in translation seems symbolic to me here as Ilse herself seems at to be translating herself and her desires as well.

Ilse lives in a coastal Greenland village where she works as a translator. She’s tired of the wind and the cold and yearns for more. When she gets an assignment to translate the poems of a French poet, she requests that her publisher send her to France for a short time. She gets her wish and meets Geoffrey Labaye, the man dubbed “the last living troubadour of Provence.” They hit it off immediately and spend their days working on the poems. Ilse loves the beauty of the countryside and the wonderful weather. She meets a few of the residents of the nearby town as well as Geoffrey’s sister. A dream come true for Ilse. The town isn’t all she falls in love with.

Geoffrey’s son, Frey, unexpectedly arrives and Ilse senses he resents her being there and questions her motives. He has a fiancée in Paris who has vowed never to live in Beau Rivière, so she didn’t make the trip. When Geoffrey falls ill, Ilse ends up spending more time with Frey than working his father on the poems. They develop feelings for each other, but she knows he’s engaged. When she finds out the secret Frey has been keeping, she decides to return home.

Be careful what you wish for because you just might get it. It might also make you realize that what you really needed and wanted was right in front of you all along.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was a mixed bag. There were parts of it I really liked, and parts I did not.

Let's start with what I didn't like. I found the pacing to be strange for Part 2 (in France). Even though Ilse is only there a month, she's apparently formed deep love connections in that short time, which I did not find believable. I particularly did not find her interactions with Frey believable at all, and honestly all of that could have been cut and it wouldn't have affected the story. I was getting a little weirded out with Ilse and Po's interactions, but what happens during her time in Provence tries to shed some light on that. (I don't want to say much more because of a spoiler, but I do include my thoughts on the spoiler on Goodreads.) Something else I didn't like was character names. So many starting with the letter M! I started to lose track of who was who. Same with I names, such as Ines and Ilse, or names with similar sounds like Ines and Agnes. Unless it's a plot point, which in this book it didn't seem to be, give us some varying names.

I did quite like the parts in Greenland, and the characters there. I felt those people were far more fully fleshed characters, I really got the sense of place. I liked the discussions of her work as a translator, this was for me the heart of the book. It just felt the middle, in France, really got in the way of the better part of the story, which was her life and the people in her life in Greenland. That was interesting to read, and why I kept with the book at the end. The title of book seems misleading to me in the end, because while sure, it's about her time in Provence, really, it's about her finding her way in Greenland. And that is what I enjoyed most about the book.

A Northern Light in Provence by Elizabeth Birkelund is a captivating and exquisitely crafted novel that delves into themes of self-discovery, the transformative nature of language, and the complexities of love. Set against the picturesque backdrop of Provence, this book offers a compelling exploration of the human experience. A wonderful summer read!

The book was lovely. I visited Provence in 1994 for my first time. The book brought back wonderful memories of that trip and the beauty of Provence. It also made me crave a visit to Greenland! The author does a great job of bringing both locations to life along with characters who you grow to love. I may have even gotten a little teary! Will definitely recommend this one! Thanks for the advance copy!

I think this is the first book set in Greenland I have ever read. I loved the landscape descriptions and place setting Birkelund does, but I found myself antsy to get to the Provenance and for the action to start in the book. The use of language was incredible, but it took too long for things to happen and I didn't love the third person narration. If you are looking for a slower read focused on place and language this might be for you.

Thank you to Netgalley & Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books for the advanced ready copy.

A translator is invited to France from Greenland to help an aging poet's work get translated. She discovers so much more.

Great book, really enjoyed the twists and turns that this took me on and I would definitely recommend to a friend.

This book was not for me. It took the book's first quarter for something other than exposition to happen. Once Ilse was in Provence, she was absolutely charmed and loved it. And then, it fell apart for me. The hint that the 74-year-old poet had romantic feelings for her after spending, at most, two days in her company was implausible to me. She described him as looking healthy and handsome. Within roughly a week, he is now haggard, racked with coughs, and wasting away. When Po's son comes, he seems to hate Ilse absolutely. Again, within two days, he is now enamored of her and cheating on his pregnant fiancee with her. That's a pretty quick turnaround.
Ilse herself is problematic for me. She didn't want Beluga until Val had him. Then, she went to bed with Frey. She was able to pick up her life in Greenland pretty well after that breakup. Well, now she's going back to France for Frey. Oh. All of a sudden, she realizes he's possessive and immature. Now, she's decided that Beluga is the one for her, after all, and France was a pipe dream. This woman doesn't seem invested in anything but what is right in front of her. The writing was well done, and the idea of the story is charming. But the relationships in the book just fell flat for me.

What a book! How quickly can I get to Provence to experience what Ilse did, lol. This book would have received 5 stars except that I wasn't sure I was going to finish it while reading the first few chapters. The beginning was a bit slow & cumbersome while learning some Greenlandic terms, but once you get past the first few chapters the story starts unfolding. It pulls you to Provence and Ilse's journey back to finding her true self while translating poems. Overall, a beautifully written story about finding yourself after grief and figuring out what dreams you want to follow.

Isle Lund has lived in frozen Greenland her whole life. While fluent in many languages she has never visited the places of languages she speaks. She’s given the opportunity to finally visit France and travels to Provence to translate the work of a famous poet. The descriptions of both Provence and Greenland are beautiful and exquisite. The love story is equally superb. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to both Ballantine Books and NetGalley for an early read in exchange for a fair review.

I can't put my finger on why this book wasn't for me, but it wasn't. I didn't look forward to reading this, even though it was well-written, and I was only semi-invested in the characters.

Thanks to the publisher for this ARC. It starts a bit slow but hang in there it’s soooo worth it. The descriptions and events in Provence are magical and heart warming and heart wrenching. The French language makes it so much better and I loved it. It ended fantastic. I really loved this book-will go back and read other books by this author. Highly highly recommended!

Very interesting read. Loved learning about Iceland and then the contrast of France. Characters and storyline are spot on. Ilse and Po’s love story is enduring. Highly recommend this well written book. I was given an advanced reader copy of this book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review.

To be honest, I've never read a book with the setting of Greenland. I loved the author's detailed descriptions of the landscape and the experience as a native Greenland resident. This captivated me from the start.

But the real meat of the story was the arrival in Provence. I absolutely loved the lush details, where I could feel the land, see the views and taste all of the elements. The characters felt real and relatable - and experienced natural flows of life.

I loved the inclusion of poetry and song. I could imagine the melodies and hear the recitations. This was a welcome addition!

I ended up loving this book far more than I expected to - and would definitely recommend! Thanks to #NetGalley and #RandomHouse for the ARC!

I loved this gentle, poetic, luminous story about a woman who finds her true self by leaving her ordinary life. The author made the settings, a remote island off Greenland, and the south of France in Provence, live and breathe and impact the action of and the characters of the novel. The relationships of the main character, Ilse, with her family, her former lover, and friends in Greenland, and the aging poet and his family in Provence, are so believably and tenderly developed. The exploration of finding one's true self, and navigating love, grief, and loss, is wonderfully done. The fact that the novel deals with characters who love language and words is a bonus for me, since that has always been my obsession also. This one will stay with me--it's the sort of novel to reread from time to time. If you prefer tense action and an intricate plot, this may not be the book for you, but for readers who love a character-driven storyline, this is a great one.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a very comforting, emotional book.
Ilse is born and raised in the very hostile environment of Greenland. Living a good, but somewhat complacent life. Translating French words to English and Greenlandish. She has good friends and family, a good life, but dreams of her time to come to visit her beloved France. When the opportunity arises, she jumps on it, which begins the story of a love of place and people, that the author does such a great job making you feel those connections.
This book completely transports you to the icy, dangerous shores of Greenland to the warm, sunny skies of Provence. When the author was describing each place, I could feel the cold or the warmth, it was described so well. I have not read a book that is focused on a translator, and I really found that aspect of it very intriguing.
At times it felt a bit rushed to me in regards to the romance, and Po’s condition. But it wasn’t enough to make me dislike the book at all.
I thought that the ending was really well done, and I would absolutely recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing- Ballentine Books for this e-ARC.

A Northern Light in Provence follows a translator, Ilse. Ilse's specialty is translating French into Danish and English. The first interesting, unexpected plot twist is that she is based in Greenland and has never set foot in France. Her employer asks her to translate a book of poetry in a very rare, uncommon French dialect, Provencal. The story proceeds from that basis. But the unique attribute of this book are the unending, interesting plot twists that captures the reader and won't allow the reader to let go - even at the very end. I loved A Northern Light in Provence and I know you will too.

A Northern Light in Provence is about a translator from Greenland who has always dreamed of traveling to France. She is chosen to translate the works of a Provençal poet and negotiates a deal to travel there to work with him personally. The writing swept me off to Provence and the romance, scenery, and food had me wanting to spend a month in the South of France myself. Thank you to @netgalley for the arc! This novel publishes May 21st!

Thank you @randomhouse and @netgalley for the eARC of A Northern Light In Provence by @elizabethbirkelund in expxhange for an honest review.

📖📖 Book Review 📖📖 There is energy all around us, from the land to the people living on it, energy that can both energize and drain individuals. Ilse has been raised in the Inuit culture in Greenland, where this energy is woven through daily life. In a community that is energized and sustained by the bonds of its people, Isle yearns to escape the arctic tundra. A Northern Light in Provence is a beautiful tale of manifesting a dream into reality through hope and hard work. When Isle finally has the chance to leave Greenland to travel to France, she has to follow her heart and reconcile her personal hopes with cultural norms. Elizabeth Birkelund blends these two worlds into an absolutely stunning story, a culturally rich and immersive coming of age journey.

5/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Review is posted on Goodreads and will be on Instagram ahead of the publication date.