This is a rather beautiful book with magical and allegorical aspects to a story that’s even pertinent than when I should have read this two years ago. Sometimes it’s just not the right time for a book and this was one of those times. Even though I knew there were magical aspects I didn’t want to get into the harder aspects of living in a city as a refugee som it has taken me this long to pick it up again. Here we meet a group of family and friends who are refugees living in Paris, one of which is a musician from the South of France called Isabella. Isabella is asked by a cafe owner she has played for, to take a little girl to the police station for him. He has found her scavenging for food in the bins and kitchens Instead she takes Arina back to her home, in an old tenement building with several generations of her family. This includes her rather magical grandmother who his growing a garden on the roof of their building, which appears to include a small lake, but surely it can’t? Displaced from their small country as Russia took over, their grandmother saved a special book called Nocturne to follow their people’s old ways - including the creation of some beautiful illuminated flowers that blossom at night. Despite these new touches to the city being enhancements there are still those who want Paris to remain exactly as it was. This leaves the family at odds with other residents, something I found very uncomfortable but also incredibly clever as an allegory and terribly apt to my surrounding area where the government are placing an asylum centre on our RAF base. It’s difficult reading in parts, but rather enchanting too. Not just because of the magical elements, but because of their lovely family.

This review contains major spoilers, especially for the ending of the book.

Paris by Starlight has an intriguing premise; Isabelle, a Parisian, finds a group of refugees from a distant land, falls in love with one of them, and as their relationship develops, and more refugees start to gather together in the same place, Paris changes. Silver flowers blossom, water gathers, and a huge underground cavern - the Khanate Beneath - opens up. Lights sparkle by night, and eventually, the geography of the city changes substantially. There's a sub-story about both Isabelle and her lover Levon finding their fathers (and mother, in Isabelle's case) as well.

So far so good, right?

The problems - it's incredibly slow. There's a girl in the introduction who does reappear later, but doesn't seem to play any part in the book. The plausibility of the book is questionable - and I don't mean the silver flowers appearing all over the city, new species of animals etc. It's more that other than a very slow-burning resentment amongst a few people, and one incident where Paris is like 'no problem, all good', no-one really seems to notice or react to the major changes in the city. It's set in reasonably modern times, but there's no civic reaction to any of it. Similarly, although the refugees gather, no-one really seems to spend any time in the Khanate Beneath; we don't really explore it much, and other than the markets that spring up at night in Paris above, nothing really changes socially. Levon is almost entirely passive throughout the book - he's sort of nominated as leader, but doesn't do any leading, and no-one else seems to do anything either.

Right at the end, there's a major protest and riot against the refugees, but it seems to dissipate after a scuffle between about six people on a rooftop, which just doesn't feel plausible.

And the ending. What an ending for a fantasy book: the refugees dissipate, the magic disappears and Isabelle and Levon decide to have a family somewhere else and that's enough. So - the book seems to be telling us - don't worry about magic, the real world's enough. And if that's true, why do we have books at all?

My first read by Robert Dinsdale and I fell in love with it, charming, beautifully crafted it was a delight to read.

Told mostly at night in Paris, it weaves a tale of magic, home, belonging and hope. It follows Isabelle a young woman who becomes involved with some refugees who had escaped to Paris. One set had brought a book called the Nocturne supposedly containing stories and legends but soon Paris has some magic weaving of it’s own…

A beautifully crafted story interwoven with magic to delight, but with important undertones that resonate. Following the plight of refugees escaping to Paris, the book builds the relationship between the two main characters with delicacy and finesse, without rushing to establish the romantic aspect. The way in which the cultural shift is developed is also well done, although definitely has political undertones - whether this is intentional or not, the shift in perception, visible but distinct to the societal norm, that is then somewhat embraced and somewhat rebelled against is definitely readable as an allegory to modern times, somewhat grounding the book and removing some of the mysticism. A fantastic read that I would definitely recommend.

I adored this, it was beautifully written with an equally beautiful premise and message. The setting was atmospheric and I found it to be a feel good and uplifting read

It begins with a litle girl esme waiting for a bedtime story she's been told not to lirt blackout on the window but the temptation is too great.

Then we cut to Isabella hunting for her father. This is a beautiful book, so immersive my own words can't do it justice The description puts you right there, feeling the rain and tasting the food.
Reminds me of joanne harris because of the place and the rich writing .
Beautiful story, about family, hope. Isabella finds something else in Paris , she finds the people who live by night, the flowers that come awake. It truly is spectacular and I'd love to read The Nocturne but things change when hatred and fear begins and the tone becomes dark, it lessened the magic for me. But only because
I read this book at a time I really needed an uplifting read and I should have known where the narrative was going.
What an original idea with a thought that resonates in our world today. In the end it's a good character led story with people with flaws, who make choices based on their reactions to their experiences and the world around them. An original intriguing story. I'd love to read more set in this world.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book, unfortunately I wasn’t able to get to it before it was archived but will review in full when I do.

I've loved Robert Dinsdale in the past but this one just didn't do it for me. I'm not sure if it's because I went for audio or what. It just dragged. And the magic I've loved from Dinsdale before just wasn't there. The social commentary this was attempting was interesting but it just felt like it was skimming the surface, and overall I just didn't care.

Nice chilled read, this is what I call fluffy romance, it’s enjoyable and the story pulls together nicely, love the characters and how they progress, very enjoyable

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Del Rey for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored Dinsdale's Toymakers, so much so I have now read it twice, and I was excited to get my hands on what he had written next. Peppered throughout with the same magical realism, and written with the same beautiful prose, this was set to be another winner, but for me something was missing. I enjoyed the plot, but the pacing felt a little off. The first half felt slow, laboured, as though it wasn't quite reaching its potential; the second half, darker in tone, and with a quicker pace had much more impact. It was a book of two halves for me. I think this definitely has an audience that will feel the same love for it as I have for Toymakers, but perhaps readers that loved Toymakers will come to this looking for something that isn't quite here. A good read all the same and I'll happily pick up whatever Dinsdale writes next.

2.5 stars

Unfortunately I haven't finished the book, because it couldn't catch me. I wasn't able to find a connection to the characters and the story. It took quiet long (for my taste) to reveal the fantasy themes and the female protagonist felt a little cold to me. The writing style though was unique and quiet good. Nevertheless the book unfortunately wasn't able to convince and catch me.

My first book by this author and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I want to read more from this author now.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

Fans of the magical realism in THE TOYMAKERS won't be disappointed by the author's latest offering. The lyrical prose and enchanting plot combine to create an evocative and memorable story.

*I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review*

Such a beautifully written book, full of hope and growth and family. As well as having the ability to move forward while still being able to hold on to who you are and where you come from. It follows Isabelle who becomes involved with a family of refugees from another land. This family has traveled a very long way with nothing more than a book of fairytales from their home and over time come to realise that maybe these fairytales aren’t just stories after all.

I will say that the pacing if this is very slow which I make it difficult to get through at times and felt longer than it needed to be. However it is a very magical read and I gave it 3 out of 5 stars.

I honestly feel very apathetic towards this book??? I read it a while ago and it wasn't really memorable. The magical realism was phenomenal really and that part was intriguing but pretty much everything else dragged on and I had a hard time enjoying it.

I found this book to be hard going and put it down for 2 days without a second thought. I thought of dnf'ing it but forced myself to pick it up again, my love of The Toymakers spurring me on. I quite enjoyed the second half of the book but, overall, it was a bit of a struggle, depressing and the magical realism/fabulism verged on parody.

Due to Robert Dinsdale’s unique style and my utter love for his previous book, The Toymakers, I couldn’t’ escape referring to it while reviewing Paris By Starlight, so kindly provided to me by the Netgalley and Del Rey.

Both books are truly enchanting; the magic is subtly interwoven into the narrative. The writing is always elegant – at times lyrical, yet acutely to-the-point if a strong massage needs to be delivered.
While the setting for The Toymakers was intimate, the whole story enclosed within the walls of a toy shop, in Paris By Starlight the plot spins around the vast and vibrant city. The Toymakers’ magic was also more subtle, not obvious to every character, while everyone in Paris acknowledged the supernatural.
Both books share motifs of a family saga and Romeo and Juliet-styled romance, collide the magical and the non-magical, and raise deep moral questions. Yet, the contemplations of the Toymakers were lighter and more personal, thus the story felt like a soothing bed-time story, above all. Meanwhile, in his latest novel, Dinsdale debates the challenges of the society at large, portraying the brutal reality of the immigrants in the western civilisation. This subject is so close to our current affairs that, instead of offering you an evening escape into the faraway worlds, it inevitably forces you to ponder over the issues you keep hearing about during the daytime. It also raises your awareness to the difficulties of preserving the cultural heritage of both, the new and the old members of an ever-growing society.

The Toymakers will remain my personal favourite because, let’s face it, it’s much more approachable and comforting, and thus easier to love. It has all the elements a good fairy tale needs – magic, toys, a bit of adventure. On the other hand, Paris By Starlight is more of a dystopian novel wrapped up in a veil of a magic tale. Just like George Orwell’s Animal Farm, it uses naivete as the disguise for serious political and moral concerns, thus making it more difficult to relax over, but also much more important to read.
I’d say, when looking for comfort – reach for The Toymakers, but if you want to wake up your mind – try Paris By Starlight.

I really wanted to love this book as much as I loved The Toymakers.

Unfortunately, it wasn't the case. Yes, the writing is superb, the author definitely has a way with words which is something I really look for in a book. It felt magical. The concept of the book is really good. He did a great job writing real-life issues and turn them into magical realism. It is not set in a specific timeline but it looks like it is in the modern-day.

However, at times it felt like a chore. It is a very slow burner. I didn't really enjoy the political aspect of it. I didn't like the relationship between Levon and Isabelle; it felt too rushed and no chemistry.

I did enjoy it but it didn't meet my expectations.

This book really is a modern fairytale. This is a really beautifully written story told with such flair and magic but at the same time like all good fairytales it has a very difficult message to tell, that often doesn’t make comfortable reading, but it is told in the most memorable and magical of ways. This story explores the meaning of love, family, home and second chances.

I read this one as part of our book club and just couldn’t get into it, it was faaaaar too slow for me... the descriptions started off very beautiful and aided some great scene setting and then it just got very boring, very quickly!

I didn’t like the characters at all and this made it difficult to follow the story, I struggled to stay interested... if it wasn’t a book club book I probably would have DNFd it!