While talking with her friend Sophie, who owns a famous bookshop in Paris, Sarah agrees to swap stores for six months. For Sarah, it’s a no brainer, she’s never been to France and now she’ll be able to explore the famed streets while still doing what she loves.
The day Sarah gets there, she realizes that she might be in over her head. With a huge customer base, the store’s almost always busy. The moment she walks in the door, she’s inundated. Not even stopping to rest, she jumps right in. But, it’s not just the number of customers that has Sarah constantly on the go. She’s dealing with employees who basically come and go as they please and refuse to work a set schedule, Sophie’s bookkeeping is a confusing mess for her, and the sheer amount of work that goes into running a shop as big as the Paris one. 
While dealing with the day to day business of an extremely busy shop, Sarah’s missing her boyfriend. Ridge is a freelance reporter who travels the world, wherever the next breaking story is. She’s not been able to spend a lot of time with him and most of the time it’s replying to his voicemail with one of her own, or it’s replying to emails. 
When money repeatedly comes up missing from the till, and sales that are plummeting, Sarah needs to figure out who’s stealing, and how to make the store profitable again before her time in Paris comes to an end. 
I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I will admit that the beginning didn’t pull me in right away, but I pushed through and am so glad I did. I fell in love with the way the author described Paris, the bookstore, and especially Sarah’s encounter with Vincent Van Gogh. The writing is compelling, and the characters are wonderful, and a story that eventually pulls you in and keeps you in until the end. I can’t wait for the next story in this series. 
**I received an ARC from Netgalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

The story itself is fun and interesting with lots of great characters but this book tends to drag on. There was a lot that happened but at the same time it was also repetitive in a lot of areas. I think if the story had been cut down it would have flowed a lot better and kept everything moving forward. I did really enjoy not only Sarah’s character but the other people at the Paris bookstore. The journey of the bookstore was my favorite part of the book and I loved how it started and how everything ended up.

As I mentioned above this book does have a romance element in it but I classified it as a contemporary since the romance takes a back burner to Sarah’s journey of finding herself and of course the bookstore. I also didn’t care for the bit of romance that we did have. I don’t have anything against long distance relationships and while I have never been in one I don’t think this was the healthiest representation of one. I would have rated this book higher if Sarah’s romance hadn’t been a part of her story.

My Thoughts
I was invited to participate in the Blog Tour for this charming little book and I was happy to accept. Here are my pros and cons for The Little Bookshop on the Seine:

Pros

1. I love books about books and book readers and book lovers and book stores! This book has all of that!! Plus, part of the story takes place over Christmas… in Paris! I’m not a huge romance reader, but this book ticked so many boxes for me that I enjoyed it!
2. If you are an introvert and a book lover you will probably easily connect with the characters in this story… and particularly with Sarah. Sarah almost could have been based off of me! Some of the things she says about what reading and books mean to her really struck home for me and definitely made me connect to Sarah. I might have been a little more “take action” than she was in the book, but I really felt like I could understand her situation and how she responded to the things going on in her life.
3. The descriptions of Paris were sublime! I’ve been to Paris once – way back in 2005 – and I loved it there. Reading this book brought back my own memories of Paris and now I really want to go back!
4. I also loved the descriptions of the bookshop! The store just came to life for me and I could imagine myself spending hours and hours there!
5. Honestly, if you are a fan of the romantic Christmas movies that come out each year, then you will definitely like this book.

Cons

1. Considering the length of the book, I felt like there was a little bit of a stall in the middle of the story. We kept getting the same storyline repeated – Ridge isn’t calling, the store is losing money, what am I doing here, the employees won’t listen to me – and it got a little boring.
2. The ending felt a bit rushed, particularly considering the stall I mentioned above, and it wasn’t what I was personally hoping for, but it guess you could still say it was a happy ending.
3. There were a few plot points I didn’t like, mostly involving making Sarah seem like she was stupid. I won’t go into details because I don’t want to give anything away, but I didn’t think the situations were even pertinent to the overall story, so I’m not sure why they had to be included.
4. I thought the whole plot line with the found letters from the unknown “Pierre” was pure filler and added nothing to the story overall.

Summary
Yes, This book is cheesy and romantic. No, it is not going to be considered a classic someday. But it was a cute story, a nice distraction, and it entertained me for a few hours while I was reading it. It is a cute romance with the typical and expected complications that must be overcome, but in general it worked and was a pleasant read. Plus, it had a Happily Ever After! Like I said earlier, if you are a fan of Hallmark Christmas movies, you will very likely enjoy this book.

This book is the first in the Little Paris Collection by the author and it was originally published in 2015. The other books in the trilogy are The Little Antique Shop Under the Eiffel Tower and The Little Perfume Shop Off the Champs-Élysées.

Thank you to NetGalley and HARLEQUIN – Romance (U.S. & Canada) for a free electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a delightfully little book that I thoroughly enjoyed! 
I'm not usually a massive fan of romance novels (I find them too predictable) but I couldn't say no to a book that featured two of my favourite things: Paris and bookshops! I was pleasantly surprised by 'The Little Bookshop On The Seine', because it wasn't too horrendously gushy; it was a perfect amount of romance, and I liked the fact that budding friendships played such a big role in the book. 
Most of all, though, I loved the setting. The bookshop sounded like the most dreamy, perfect place; it made me want to pack my bags and run off to Paris to open my own bookshop! I loved the beautiful descriptions, and how the bookshop seemed like its own magical little corner of the world. 
I strongly recommend this if your in the mood for some light reading- although, be warned, you will want to run away to Paris!

A light story.  Not my normal type of read.  I like that there was romance, but not heavy.  The Paris is setting is always lovely.

Sarah Smith doesn't realize she needs a change in her life, something that will shake things up and maybe give her a different view.  She runs a bookshops she loves and has always dreamed of owning.  There's the great boyfriend, although she doesn't get to see him as much as she would like.  She has friends that are always there ready to bring some sushi e to her day.  What could be better?  When an unexpected call from a Parisian friend gives her the opportunity to make another dream come true she immediately says yes!  Who wouldn't want to live in Paris for a few months and run a business there, one just like her own.  Sarah jumped at the chance but soon begins to wonder if she made her decision in haste.  She decides not to let fear over take her and change wait to experience all Paris has to offer.  The excitement and her expectations take a dive when she gets lost after being in Paris a short time.  Things don't seem to be any better when she starts working at the bookshop and realizes that the staff is rude, show up when they want, and don't seem to take her seriously.  She soon believes that this trip was a mistake and can't wait to get back to her world and business.  She decides to stick it out and with the holiday approaching looks forward to putting up her own touches and hopefully bringing forth the Christmas spirit in her staff.  Will she be able to turn things around and make her dream of a lovely Christmas in Paris come true?  This was a great read showing that when things get hard and don't go your way you should never give up.  Dreams are what we make of them, when they veer in a different direction.that doesn't mean we should give up on them, just change how we see that dream.

The Little Bookshop on the Seine was a charming, delightful and heartwarming story that allowed us to not only learn all about Paris, but also seeing the wonderful friendships in both Ashford and Paris, as well as a nice romance that has a happy ending.

3.25 stars. The Little Bookshop on the Seine is a sweet story about friendship, pushing beyond comfort zones, and making dreams come true. I had every intention of reading this one over the Christmas holidays, but I wasn't able to get to it. I also began this book unaware that the characters, Sarah Smith, the owner of a bookshop in a small town in Connecticut, and her beau, Ridge Warner, were introduced in another book by Rebecca Raisin, The Bookshop on the Corner, a book that covered their meeting and romance. I liked Sarah from the beginning. What book lover wouldn't? She loves her bookshop, her books, her friends, and Ridge. Maybe in that order. But I couldn't help feeling that I was missing so much about her story having not read the first book. For instance, I didn't really like Ridge. He seemed schmaltzy and too good to be true, but this story really isn't about romance and it took me a few chapters to figure that out.

Once Sarah switches bookshops with her Parisian friend, the story takes off. The reader gets to experience Paris for the first time through Sarah's eyes, and it is just how it should be, beautiful and overwhelming. I enjoyed that things didn't go smoothly for Sarah and she struggled with the Parisian bookshop, Once Upon a Time, which was very different from her small, quiet bookshop in America. I appreciated that she had to grow, rely on herself, and trust her instincts. Romance is actually not the focus of this book, which was at first confusing, but then refreshing.

While I did enjoy Sarah and her story, there were side characters that were flat and inconsistent. It felt a bit like the book had been rushed and still needed a good editing. But it did make me want to visit Paris immediately. And pick up The Bookshop on the Corner to see if my opinion of Ridge would change. I would recommend this quick read if you're looking for something light on romance and heavy on the Parisian atmosphere, which makes it a perfect read for the holidays, too. 

Thank you to the publisher, Harlequin, for providing me an advance copy through Netgalley.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the first book in the Little Paris collection, but the original story – where Sarah meets and falls for Ridge – is actually at the end of the book, so you might want to start there. I didn't and still enjoyed the book. It might have helped me understand why she was so considerate of his (in my opinion) less than stellar behaviour towards her.

I enjoyed the idea of a bookshop owner from sleepy USA doing a shop swap to a busy Parisian English bookshop. She certainly wasn't really prepared for the business side of things, and I did question how much help she had been given to make things better – the owner may have had a broken heart and wanted a change, but her cruel attitude to Sarah was a little odd. In fact, all the way through, it was like Sarah was the brunt of many people's issues, and yet she muddled along regardless. It was a little disconcerting, although I happily read on, as superficially it was fun to experience some of Paris alongside her and see it from her viewpoint.

Overall it is a sweet read, and it does have a satisfying conclusion, but I am not sure I could have kept my cool like she did when faced with so much dismissive behaviour. My favourite part was the story inside the story with her and the author. I may well look out for the next one, as I am curious to see how the bookshop fares in the future.

I enjoy a good Christmas story, throw in romance and a bookshop and I am all over it. The setting of this story also drew my attention, I mean Christmas in Paris. Having said all that, the story didn't wow me. I found the main character, Sarah Smith to be very weak. She let her boyfriend, the handsome, book-boyfriend come alive, walk all over her. She went to Paris to run the bookstore with the hope that she and Ridge would spend some romantic time together. He showed up for one 24 hour period only. She took most of the book to finally assert herself at the bookstore and get things sorted out. I was not happy with her at all. Some of the other characters, such as Oceane, TJ and Luiz were more to my liking. They were stronger, stood up for what they wanted and were very likable. They took Sarah under their wings and were the ones that finally got her to stand up to the staff. There was more than one happily ever after in this story, but I do not want to give anything away. One of the best things about this book were the descriptions of Paris and all the little places Sarah visited. I loved learning about the personalities and quirks of the Parisian business owners. Overall, it was an enjoyable read and there will be many that will love this story. I liked Rebecca Raisin's writing style and the story flowed well, it was just a bit too perfect of an ending for me.

***Actual Rating: 3.5/5 Swoony Christmas Stars***

To begin with, The Little Bookshop on the Seine has everything I’m looking for when it comes to chick-lit, women fiction, contemporary romance. Simply imagine strolling down the beautiful streets during Christmas time in the city of Love…and French kiss, a.k.a. Paris, with your significant other, mmm, how romantic is that!? The pure imagination already gets me all swoon-worthy, let alone having an old-fashioned bookshop in the same picture. That’s literally paradise for a romantic booklover like me!

What I love most about this book is definitely the characters’ tones and charisma. It’s so easy to fall in love with both the people and the world-building in this book because the author manages to present us with beautiful descriptions and vivid images. In other words, this book is pretty much my dream-come-true, considering that I’ve always wanted to experience a real lovely Parisian life.

To my slight disappointment, this story doesn’t quite strike me as an unforgettable reading material. There’s no denying that this book is an incredibly cute read that can undoubtedly lift all the readers’ mood and brighten their days, but its lack of “ummph” and sparks between our sweet couple, I find it hard to stay with me forever. Thus, The Bookshop on the Seine is indeed a delightful Christmas read (or New York read!) for me, and I’d like you guys to experience the hard-earned happiness in this book, too. 🙂

***Thanks to Harlequin Books and the author for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.***

This book was so cute. I absolutely loved Sarah. I found this book to be perfect to cuddle up with during this winter weather. It was a cute and quick read that I definitely recommend!

When bookshop owner Sarah Smith is offered the opportunity for a job exchange with her Parisian friend Sophie, saying yes is a no-brainer—after all, what kind of romantic would turn down six months in Paris? Sarah is sure she’s in for the experience of a lifetime—days spent surrounded by literature in a gorgeous bookshop, and the chance to watch the snow fall on the Eiffel Tower. Plus, now she can meet up with her journalist boyfriend, Ridge, when his job takes him around the globe.

But her expectations cool faster than her café au lait soon after she lands in the City of Light—she’s a fish out of water in Paris. The customers are rude, her new coworkers suspicious and her relationship with Ridge has been reduced to a long-distance game of phone tag, leaving Sarah to wonder if he’ll ever put her first over his busy career. As Christmas approaches, Sarah is determined to get the shop—and her life—back in order…and make her dreams of a Parisian happily-ever-after come true.
 
Oh my gosh you guys.. I would for sure recommend this to all the book lovers out there! I mean.. talk about a dream come true! I loved everything about this! I have never been to Paris but it has always been on my list. Although Sara didn't have the best experience at first everything pulled together in the end!! 
 
This title is available now so go get it!!

I truly enjoyed the simplicity and the setting of this novel. It was a great way for me to end my winter break before heading back to work. I was able to enjoy it for a night with a cup of tea and my favorite blanket. It's a must read for when you're looking for a quick, gentle read that will keep you engaged.

Since The Holiday is by far one of my all time favorite Christmas movies, I couldn’t wait to read a book that had a very similar premise EXCEPT that bookstores were swapped instead of houses. Oh, and it takes place in Paris!

Sarah Smith lives in a small-town in Connecticut. Her bookstore is struggling to say the least, and even the 50% off sales aren’t going to be enough to salvage her beloved store. With her boyfriend constantly traveling, Sarah realizes she wants more. One day, her friend Sophie calls desperate to get out of Paris following a scandalous break up. Sophie suggests that her and Sarah temporarily swap bookshops to help each other out. Sarah quickly agrees because who wouldn’t want to spend the holidays in Paris?!

Once Sarah gets to Paris, she fully embraces everything that the culture has to offer. However, she quickly realizes what culture shock truly means. Not to mention, Sophie’s shop is much busier than she could have fathomed. Even though things don’t start off as planned, Sophie refuses to give up and is determined to succeed in Paris…a city from her dreams.

This was such an incredible feel good read that was perfect for the holiday season. When Sarah was exploring Paris, I couldn’t help but be swept away from the incredible scenes that Rebecca Raisin described. It was refreshing watching Sarah break out of her small town shell in order to embrace what the world could truly offer her.

This was my first read by Rebecca Raisin, and it most certainly won’t be my last. I can’t wait to immerse myself into her beautiful writing again!

Thank you to Harlequin Publicity Team for my review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.

From the synopsis of The Little Bookshop on the Seine by Rebecca Raisin, I was sold. It sounds a lot like The Holiday (one of my favourite Christmas movies with Kate Winslet and Cameron Dias), but with bookstores, which is so much more interesting! Who wouldn't want to run off to Paris to run a bookstore for a few months? I'd go right now if the opportunity presented itself. So here I was, trying to escape into an alternate reality, where Rebecca Raisin had the pressure put on her to make my dreams come true.

I am very fortunate in that I have travelled to Paris a few times in my life… and I didn’t care for the city at all. But the way Raisin describes Sarah’s journey makes me think I should give it another try. It is really quite a magical setting for a holiday romance, which is basically what this story is. The cast of characters that work at the bookshop are delightfully strange in their own special way, which made being part of their world intriguing. Every person who worked at the store at their own story, and in many ways I didn’t see any of the endgame coming. From Beatrice being a bitchy and shady, and Oceane being unlucky in love, I was happy the way their storylines turned out.

Even Sophie, who you didn’t get to know much in the story because she was in the US running Sarah’s bookstore got a delightful ending that I didn’t see coming.

And then there’s Sarah. Her long-distance relationship was a mess, and I saw it going about a million different ways… and yet it ended the one way I never thought would happen in a million years. I’m not sure if it’s because I read so many romance novels, but I just don’t see how her relationship with Ridge went the way it did…call me a cynic! But the rest of her journey was beautifully depicted, and I truly felt like I was an outsider, like she was, who slowly learned to fit in as the story went on, which was really cool.

I was reading this on my Kindle, and the story was wrapping up around 70% of the way through, and I was very confused. I then noticed that there was an accompanying story afterward that goes back to show how Sarah and Ridge met and how their relationship started. I will admit that I didn’t read it, because I just didn’t care. Their relationship was definitely not the most exciting part of the book for me.

If you love Paris, or bookstores, or stories where there are little happily-ever-afters everywhere, you will definitely like this book. It was a great way to spend a few days, merci beaucoup!

3.5 STARS

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A charming contemporary romance that sparkles with warmth, wit and magic, The Little Bookshop on the Seine is the latest irresistible page-turner from the fabulous Rebecca Raisin!

Bookshop owner Sarah Smith has spent most of her life hiding from the world and seeking refuge in her favourite romance novels. When she met dashing journalist Ridge Warner, Sarah had soon realised that real life can be as thrilling and exciting as her favourite sweeping romances, however, the shy book lover has been feeling rather forlorn lately. While all of her friends are getting married, having babies and going on wild adventures, she cannot help but feel that she has been left behind. With her boyfriend on the other side of the world chasing the next big scoop and her business going through a slump, Sarah yearns for some excitement. She is tired of life passing her by and of always being on the outside looking in, so when her friend Sophie asks her whether she’d like to swap places with her and spend a couple of months managing her bookshop, Once Upon a Time, in Paris, she jumps at the chance of leaving her small town behind for the bright lights of the French capital.

When she arrives in Paris, Sarah is immediately overwhelmed by the romance and majesty of Paris, but her fantasy of sitting in a cosy cafe by the Seine, drinking red wine and reading her favourite books are soon dashed when she realises that Once Upon a Time is a thriving concern that is always heaving with book lovers, which requires her constant time and attention. Having given her word to Sophie, Sarah is not about to let her down, so she rolls up her sleeves and throws herself body and soul into managing Once Upon a Time to the best of her abilities.

Sarah might be busy running Paris’ most popular bookshop, but even her crazy work schedule doesn’t stop her from missing her handsome boyfriend. As their professional commitments force Sarah and Ridge to spend even more time apart, will they end up having to pay the ultimate price for their career aspirations? Or will their love manage to triumph over all the obstacles standing in their way?

I devoured The Little Bookshop on the Seine in a single sitting! Rebecca Raisin has got this wonderful ability of drawing you into her captivating stories from the very first sentence and keeping you engrossed and enthralled until the very last page. The Little Bookshop on the Seine is a spellbinding tale of taking chances, having the courage to step out of your comfort zone and living life on your own terms that is sure to strike a chord with readers everywhere.

Sarah is a terrific heroine I just adored. She’s strong, resourceful, believable and the kind of girl you’d love to have as a best friend. Her love of reading and her passion for romantic novels is sure to endear her to every single person who picks up this book.  I also loved all the other supporting characters in The Little Bookshop on the Seine, especially Lil, CeeCee and TJ.

Rebecca Raisin’s books are an absolute joy to read and if you haven’t discovered her magical stories, then what on earth are you waiting for?

I immediately felt connected to the main character Sarah Smith when I found out that she is a huge bibliophile and owns her own bookshop!! It’s always been a dream of mine to either work in Publishing or to own my own Bookshop. Sarah and I are similar in more ways than just books though, we are both from a small town and we withdraw into fiction when we aren’t feeling a social connection in the real world. I absolutely LOVE that Sarah’s boyfriend is HQ material though, as I felt that it proves that any two people can fall in love regardless of their looks or professions.

The bookshop swap made for such a fun story, as a person’s assimilation into a foreign culture is an adventure within itself even without running a friend’s bookshop. The diversity of the characters was fun, quirky and endearing. The description of all the french foods Sarah tried had my mouth watering. I was ready to hop on the next flight to Paris! The ending of the book had my heart warmed and a smile on my face! It really was a very cute story. One that I would recommend to anyone looking for a happy read.

If you'are a francophile, you will love this book! And if you've never been to Paris, you'll want to pack your bags and head to the City of Light  A lovely story that involves romance (mais oui!) and a delightful ending that I won't spoil. When Sarah is offered the chance to visit Paris for six months, she grabs it. It will give her a chance to connect with Ridge, her journalist boyfriend who is always on the move. Sarah finds her expectations don't meet reality when she arrives in Paris. There are hiccups along the way as she tries to navigate one of the most famous cities in the world. You'll enjoy the journey. Highly recommend!

As soon as I saw Bookshop in the title, I knew I had to read this.  Rebecca Raisin managed to write a cozy rom-com with the most romantic backdrop of all, Paris.  Sarah feels like she has run out of gas and needs a change in her life.  In comes her friend Sophie who lives in the city of love.  When Sophie offers her a chance to do a bookshop swap, Sarah jumps at the chance.  As time goes on she begins to question her decision. Paris isn’t what she bargained for.  She feels so out of place and wonders if she made the right decision.  I enjoyed watching Sarah grow and mature over the course of the book.  Her relationship with Ridge was interesting, to say the least.  Overall Little Bookshop on the Seine was an enjoyable cozy read.