Not recommending to students, but I will to adult friends.
I am torn about a rating. I’d say it started out as a 4 and then ended up closer to a 3. While I don’t mind a happy ending, I could have lived with just ONE of the plot lines staying un-tied-up. I get so sick of the gorgeous man and the unassuming girl with whom he falls unprecedentedly quickly heads over heels for! And this story was better than others at making her a real person...maybe at the expense of his development.
However, I loved the setting, obviously. And I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptions of people and places and even weather. That’s probably my favorite part of the book.
And, it’s probably just a quirk if the electronic ARC, but the lack of obvious endings of and beginnings to sections or chapters bugged! Hope that’s fixed for publication. 🤓💜📚

Serviceable romance. Protagonist's internal monologue was a little wearing after a while. Would have liked a section on the other store owner's experiences but the author is too caught up in the alleged allure of Paris.

When a small-town bookshop owner agrees to a short-term bookshop swap with a Parisian friend the result is nothing like the romantic ideal she imagines. This tribute to bookshops and Paris is a light, quick read with a bit of romance. Readers will enjoy the glimpse behind the scenes of running a bookstore and the descriptions of Paris. Recommended for fans of Jenny Colgan.

This was an entertaining light read. Although the ending was predictable, the idea of changing lives with a friend in Paris is intriguing. Sarah's persistence paid off.

What would your answer be if a friend called from out of the blue asking you to swap lives/jobs for a while? Would you say yes without asking many questions? Would you jump at the chance to live in Paris for a while, running a wonderful bookstore or would you cling to your small, safe life in a small town?

I could see myself saying yes if given a similar situation - friendships, taking chances, and becoming a better version of oneself is not always safe but almost always rewarding.

This book was received as an ARC from HARLEQUIN - Romance - HQN in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I have always loved book involving small towns and little bookshops because of the genuine plot and the real characteristics each main character possesses. This time it involved the bookshop owner Sarah getting an opportunity to exchange locations with her friend Sophie who owns the bookshop in Paris. In for what she thought was going to be an experience of a lifetime turned borderline nightmare, when she engages with rude customers and risks her relationship with her boyfriend Ridge even more. That still does not stop her and she is determined to get the shop and her relationship back on track and have the experience of a lifetime. I loved how Rebecca Raisin used the most appropriate vocabulary to transport the reader to Paris and in the bookshop to take this ride along with Sarah. This book was perfect for a little cheer and pick me up and counting our blessings for the lifestyle we have.

We will consider adding this title to our Romance collection at the library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

This book was ok - cute quick read love story with predictable ending. Was hoping it was more like the book The Music Shop.

Sarah Smith is a small-town girl. Opening her own bookshop at 19, she lives between the pages of romance books. She has great friends, and a hot journalist boyfriend as well.

One day out of the blue, her friend Sophie from Paris, calls to suggest they swap places for six months! Running each other's shops and taking a break from their own lives to experience what the other is lacking. It doesn't take long for Sarah to hop on a plane for Paris and diving into Sophie's shop, Once Upon A Time.

Upon arrival, her bag, luggage, and passport are lifted. The shop is in disarray and one girl, in particular, is out to get her. The shop is doing awful financially and Beatrice is not helping the situation at all. No one has a schedule, books are taken at will, and her hot boyfriend is on assignment and nowhere near Paris!

So far she feels out of her comfort zone and hated by the entire staff. But with help from a couple of good guys and gals, she just may pull off making a go of the shop and a go of her relationship. 

Paris, the city of lights, love, and possibilities! Are there struggles? Oh, yes. But in the end, I think it may work out just fine.

A pleasure to read.

NetGalley/ January 07, 2020 Harlequin

The Little Bookshop on the Seine by Rebecca Raisin


Sarah Smith's life is fine. She runs a bookshop in a small town in America.she has a boyfriend called Ridge who is a journalist and never home, a few good friends and her books who she loves. Her life is fine but not great, not exciting.


When her online friend, Sophie, who owns a bookshop in Paris by the Seine asks her to do a swap for a while, as Sophie needs to get away from a cheating boyfriend, Sarah quickly agrees.


Sarah has dreams of sitting in Paris reading more books, and exploring the home of great art and literature, and the capital of love, but will the reality be the same as the Paris of her imagination?


I enjoyed it, and read it very quickly. I didn't give it 5 stars because it didn't feel at all real or plausible, but a very sweet story.

I liked Sarah and I felt for her, being thrown into running this shop in Paris and no one treating her with respect. I didn't like how Sophie treated her so horribly after it was she who asked to switch places. Sophie knew things were going on besides just her heartache and she could have given Sarah more warning. I loved the bookshop and the lovely descriptions of Paris. This was a cute and cozy read.

There is always something wonderful about reading a Rebecca Raisin book, even though you’re meeting the characters for the first time you always feel like you’ve known them for years. This new novel, The Little Bookshop on the Seine is just as wonderful as all Rebecca’s books and I read this in 2 days it was so compelling. If you’ve read The Gingerbread Cafe series you will be very happy to meet up with some old familiar faces.
Sarah Smith owns a little bookshop in Ashford Conneticut and has always been quite shy with really only having her beloved books as companions. But with the help of her friends from the Cafe across the street, she has a fun filled life and a wonderful boyfriend called Ridge, a hunk of a man who’s a freelance journalist, madly in love but always rushing off to investigate the next big story. It’s in one of these moments when Sarah is feeling in a rut, lonely because Ridge has hardly been around that her friend Sophie skype’s her from Paris. Sophie is equally downhearted and in desperate need of a change and suggests the two women swap bookshops for 6 months. Sarah will go to Paris and work in Once Upon A Time, the bookshop on the banks of the Seine and Sophie will take over Sarah’s shop in Ashford. This amazing plan sounds simple enough in discussion, but when Sarah arrives at Once Upon A Time things don’t exactly go to plan and Ridge seems incommunicado, so quiet, softly spoken Sarah has to deal with mutinous staff, missing money and a whole host of other issues, all by herself.
Once again a wonderful read by Rebecca Raisin.

A lighthearted read about a young woman who, for six months, exchanges working in her own bookshop in Ashford in Connecticut for the ‘Once Upon a Time’ bookshop situated near the River Seine in Paris. She finds that she has taken on more than she bargained for, plus her long time journalist boyfriend seems to be very Illusive and can barely spend any time to chat to her on the phone.

This story was just a little too fluffy for me, although that doesn’t mean to say I didn’t enjoy it. I enjoyed reading about the bookshop itself. The title initially drew me to the book. I loved the descriptions of the shop itself, the different floors and the literary references. I also enjoyed reading about Paris and taking a tour along the many streets surrounding the shop. It’s nicely written and the imagery was excellent. Paris is one of my favourite cities, it definitely has its own aura. However, I found the characters a little two dimensional, somewhat cliched. The plot was quite predictable and the ending was too neatly tied up for me, too convenient.

I think this book would make a great beach read, accompanied by a cocktail of course! Mine’s a Mojita - cheers! It’s a pleasant, well paced and easy to absorb story, just right for a bit of escapism.

I am not usually a romance reader but like all book lovers, I can't resist a book about a Bookshop. The Little Bookshop on the Seine was like a fairytale, exactly how all book lovers would imagine their home away from home. Sarah as our main damsel was sweet and likable, with a cast of delectable side kicks to keep her grounded and help her on her story arc. I was hoping true love would have a different outcome but everyone got their HEA.
This was a lovely, gentle read with a healthy dose of Paris and a wonderful way to dally the day away and forget about the trials of real life.

This was a magical story about stepping outside your “bubble” and experiencing new horizons. The book is very atmospheric and descriptive of Paris. I didn’t want it to end! This is the first book I have read by this author, and I will be seeking more.
Many thanks to Harlequin and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my opinion.

Sarah owns a little bookshop that is struggling – but she’s happy to spend her days reading and chatting with her friends from the café across the street, dreaming of her ‘not seen frequently enough’ boyfriend Ridge and her worries about keeping her shop viable. She’s a bookworm in all the best senses of the word – loves her books like people, makes friends with them, would rather read in than go out, and has her favorites that cause her a physical ache when she can’t lay her hands on them. But, things aren’t all good, especially not when she hears from her friend Sophie in Paris. She and Sophie have bonded over reading and the love of books, feeling that the written word is one to be cherished and honored – no matter what others may think. But Sophie’s relationship has dissolved in spectacular fashion, with her man moving on to antoehr woman in the shop next door, and announcing their relationship to the world. Sophie needs out – but cant leave her shop without a manager – and Sarah has always talked about the romance of Paris and her desire to visit. Simple solution – pack up and trade spaces – leaving Sarah in charge of Sophie’s store in Paris – with all of the associated glamor and tourist opportunities, while Sophie comes to her little town and works in Sarah’s shop.

Arriving in Paris, totally befuddled and unused to the hustle and bustle of the city, not to mention her first real trip away from home, Sarah is stunned to find a less than welcoming atmosphere in the shop, with crowds, lines and a very ‘unique’ organization of employees, part timers, hangers on and more than a bit of “French” brusqueness. The staff don’t listen to her apologetic suggestions of what needs to change, they openly challenge or ignore her, and where she hoped for time to be a tourist and wander the city are shelved for spreadsheets, balancing the books and reporting on the operations of the shop to Sophie on a regular basis. It’s going to take some doing for Sarah to find her feet and make the adjustments needed, all while sales are flagging and money is missing from the till. It doesn’t help that Ridge, who was supposed to be there keeps putting off his visits all while his phone goes ignored, or worse, answered by some woman.

From the struggles both with organization and against the “French Way” of doing things, to battles with staff and worries about sales, it will take some serious determination on Sarah’s part, along with some growth, to make a real go of her time in Paris, and when she finally finds that balance between “boss’ and “operations’ with the actual people and the chaos the ‘workers’ create with doing what she came to do, without apologizing, and a famous named author being a regular in a small upstairs room who has a sympathetic ear and a solid sense of humor – the story moves forward without dwelling too much on the struggles of small indie stores and the challenges of changing countries on almost a whim with a readable tale with a heroine that is easy to enjoy, as she muddles through trying to keep her head up and moving forward. This was a fun story that provided an escape to Paris, with it’s unique draw, and the connection to a character that will be a favorite for many booklovers out there.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

This was just a lovely book, a lovely cosy read that I thoroughly enjoyed. This book made me wish I was in Paris exploring the little streets and trying some of the delicious food (though maybe not the steak tartare). I also think I may now want to work in a book shop - haha. I look forward to reading more in the series - which it looks like there will be more!

Sarah (an American) and Sophie (a Frenchwoman) both own bookshops and they agree to swap for 6 months, something Sophie begged Sarah to do.

So Sarah, from a slow-paced town, comes to Paris, to a bookshop that is frantically busy and doesn't seem to have much of a rhyme or reason, especially when it comes to staffing. Poor Sarah has to sort out so many issues in this shop!! Things are not all bad though, there is Paris, after all, with its secret goods and secret cafe's that you won't know about unless a local tells you etc, I felt like I was there. Luckily, I have actually been to Paris, I could picture the different scenarios so well. I loved the orphans Christmas party.

There is a lot happening in this book and some of it wasn't so great. I felt very sorry for Sarah for most of it, between staffing issues, being homesick, not seeing much of her boyfriend Ridge, Sophie not listening to her and being very angry, it wasn't exactly roses and kittens. I didn't like Sophie one little bit, I am sorry to say. I can't believe she would BEG Sarah to come and take over her shop and then would be so horrible to her. I didn't like Beatrice all that much either and even though she changed, it wasn't enough to wipe out how horrible she had been earlier.

So, because I thought this was going to be a feel-good kind of book and there was just a little too much shade for me, I am rating this at 4 stars.

A wonderful read, a slow start but it leads to a wonderful holiday romance. I enjoyed learning about all the characters and their relationships with each other. Paris is definitely front and center and adds to the wonder of the novel and it becomes such a vital part of the story. It feels like you are there in Paris and truly experiencing it with the characters are in the story.

A total escape into life in Paris,working at a bookshop, what a dream. Sarah Smith trades places from her little bookshop in a small town in the U.S. with her friend Sophie’s bookshop in Paris. As Sarah gets to know all of the employees, and the mysterious author, she questions her relationship with Ridge. A sweet little romance. Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy

Maybe this book needs to be read around Christmas, or maybe you need to have read the first book in the Bookstore series. Any way you cut it, this book was bad.

Our protagonist is Sara Smith. She is unlikable, and not meant to be. Her fears, introversion, and unending displays of immaturity ostensibly stem from an episode when she was 5, when she wandered off into the woods and was lost for like 2 hours. Seriously.

I can’t find many redeeming qualities. It was too hard to get past this annoyingly inept character (like a super helpless female trope) to find many good things. The writing style is more juvenile than I’m used to, and I thought it must be a YA novel. It’s not

Paris is still beautiful though. So there’s that.