Another great novel from Mandy Baggot! I really liked that this wasn't your typical "Christmas novel" and could actually be enjoyed at anytime of the year.  The characters were entertaining and engaging, and the story was so so interesting.  I actually read this over a few days because it was so hard to put it down.  It was such a great escape from all the normal holiday craziness.  The right mixture of romance, comedy and drama.

A really funny, enjoyable novel that could be read at any time of year and enjoyed, not just at Christmas. Set in Paris, the characters are strong, funny and believable. A gem of a book with a wonderful storyline 
Thank you to Netgalley, Aria and Aries and Mandy for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review

An amazing read for any time of year but a perfect Christmas read!
Keeley and her sister were in a terrible car accident, her sister passed away and Keeley had to have a kidney transplant. Keeley is struggling with 'survivor's guilt' and is constantly being told to 'live life to the full' and look after herself. 
When Keeley receives a chance to visit her donor's family in Paris she is apprehensive and takes her best friend along with her. The story of their time in Paris is funny, sad, chaotic and wonderfully descriptive and I connected completely with Keeley as I also have a transplanted kidney. 
This book is so well written and explores the emotions and challenges that come from having a transplant so accurately but sets the story perfectly in festive Paris with wonderful descriptions of the sights, sounds and smells.
Yet again a totally superb book from Mandy Baggot.

Christmas perfection. 
Snow, Paris, friendship, family & love ... what else can one ask for in the perfect book? Ah yes - Christmas. 
This book was a great read during the festive period, I thoroughly enjoyed it. 
Great, fully-formed and believable characters and a storyline that had tears in my eyes at some points and raised chuckles at others. Sensitive issues of bereavement, organ donation and homelessness handled in a really touching way that added to the story rather than brought it down. My only niggle was that this book was obviously written during the COVID-19 pandemic and I’m presuming the author assumed things would be back to normal by Christmas 2020 instead of being sandwiched in between two lockdowns. The brief mentions of social distancing and the effect of the pandemic on tourism really didn’t add anything to the story - I’ve read many books written during 2020 and this is the first to mention the pandemic, even in passing. I feel it risks dating the story and was a distraction from the storyline that simply wasn’t needed. 
Other than that a thoroughly enjoyable book full of Christmas magic. Perfect.

Keeley received a donor kidney after a tragic accident that took the life of her beloved sister Bea. The mother of the donor makes contact with Keeley and wants to fly her to Paris to meet her. Keeley agrees, and takes her annoying friend Rach along for the journey. 

In Paris, Ethan is struggling to manage his hotel business after the loss of his business partner. Her family want to make changes that will see him getting the boot - all he needs is a new idea to make the business work again. 

Mandy's novels aren't whodunnits, so you pretty much know what you're getting from the off, and that's exactly why I love them. I'm particularly fond of her Christmas releases, and this was no different. It was a really lovely rom-com that had wonderfully lovable characters with the exception of Rach, who absolutely did my head in, and Lizzie, who was smothering Keeley (I feel like there is an over abundance of these women in rom-coms but perhaps this is because there genuinely are a lot of them in reality, lord help us all). This book was like a great big warm hug.

Based on the cheesy cover and synopsis, I has super low expectations for the book but it definitely rose to the occasion! This book made me feel wanderlust and actually want to visit Paris. 

Keeley has faced a heartbreaking car accident that has robbed her of her sister and her kidney. She is at the lowest of lows when she is offered an all expenses trip to Paris. Her mentality is that she has been through the wringer and is going to grab life by the horns and make the most of it.  

This book is not only about love and romance but it also has a great story of resilience and grief. 

This is my first time reading a Mandy Baggit novel but it definitely won’t be my last!

A very charming read, sweet, engaging, great characters, and a wonderful story that flowed wonderfully and kept me interested until the very end. 

A really lovely read.

Favorite Quotes:

Your mum hasn’t ever really done “OK”… She generally ranges from “pallbearer” to “Elton John in his heyday” and nothing in between.

The church came in today. They all looked at me like they were sizing me up for my coffin.

… he had other more important things to do. Right now he needed to… drink coffee and… smell other people’s cigarettes and dream about smoking them himself and… eat more sweets. He was a very busy man.

You are still under the tourist illusion that everything in Paris is fragranced like it was manufactured in a perfumery… We learn to live with the scent of pee. No one knows where it comes from. We clean. We sanitise. After that, no one wants to know where it still comes from. 


My Review:

This was a fun and cleverly amusing story with an original premise and enticingly quirky and complex characters.  The lively storylines were well-paced, engaging, highly textured, and hit all the feels while alternating between squeezing and warming my heart.  Ms. Baggot’s deft storytelling flows smoothly with colorful details that fleshed out each scene and kept me closely implanted within the characters’ periphery. I got to enjoy Paris without the jetlag, long lines, olfactory assault, or calories.

First i would like to say that i love Mandy Baggot books and i am rarely disappointed by them expect for the last time. Last time I read a book from her, i was so disappointed that I even gave up on my read. So I was a bit worried about reading "A perfect Paris Christmas". I am so so glad that I did give it a try because right from the start I knew I was going to love it... And YES! This book deserves a 5 stars out of 5! And even more! It's so good! It's even excellent! Thank you Mandy Baggot for such a wonderful christmas book!!!!!!!! What a fairy tale!

A Perfect Paris Christmas by Mandy Baggot is a beautiful love story that takes place in Paris. Both Ethan and Keeley are suffering from their loss.  Keeley lost her sister, and Ethan lost his best friend.  I enjoy reading their story and I highly recommend it.  I will be reading more books by this author. 
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The story of Keeley and Ethan, who meet in Paris. Although they don't know it, the pair are already connected. Once they realise this what will it mean for them?

This is my first book by this author and I was not disappointed.  Wonderful storyline and characters.
If you are looking for a feel good Christmas story, this is not it.  Although there are some feel good moments, this story centers around the grief and healing of our two main characters, Keeley and Ethan.  
I will definitely be recommending this book.
Thank you Mandy Baggot, Aria & Aria and NetGalley for allowing me an advance copy for my honest feedback.

What a heartbreaking yet uplifting start to a story. 

Ms Baggott has done it again! She has tackled some difficult subjects with skill and empathy, and even made me cry. Keeley's journey was a long and fraught one and, due to her circumstances, I believe she is still on it - there is a poignancy about the happy-ever-after that makes me think it's a happy-for-now.

Ethan was a tortured soul, and I get the feeling he's only partly healed.

However, despite the emotional heaviness in the story, there were some lighter moments and some lovely descriptions of Paris. But I certainly wouldn't describe this novel as a laugh out loud one.

I was hoping for an easy and cheerful Christmas read to get in the holiday spirit, but I got so much more than that with A Perfect Paris Christmas. The description doesn't give much away about why Keeley is in Paris or why Ethan is having a bad year, and I think that does a disservice to the book. This book isn't just a romance—it digs into grief and the many different ways it can be felt and expressed. It explores what "family" and belonging mean. The romance piece of it was also important, but I do think there was more depth to this book than just the HAE. I definitely got teary while reading this book, which I hadn't expected based on the cover and description. There's a lot more to A Perfect Paris Christmas than meets the eye—it's worth a read.

This was a new to me author and I couldn’t wait to read this book.  It was fast-paced and full of emotions.   I loved the storyline, and the characters were so easy to connect with.  Their grief at losing their loved ones so tragically touched my heart.  It was like being on an emotional rollercoaster and I was so happy to see them help each other slowly heal and start to live again.  It seemed like fate had a hand in placing them in the paths of each other.

Keeley's life changed in an instant when tragedy struck, now a year later she's still struggling to rebuild the life she had before especially under the watchful eye of her Mum. But when an email arrives asking her to travel to Paris in the week's before Christmas she makes the brave decision to go even though she knows it could be painful relieving the trauma she has suffered.

Ethan lost his best friend a year ago and has spent the last 12 months dragging himself through each day, using alcohol to smother his grief. He knows he has neglected his job as manager of the hotel chain his friend lovingly created from nothing, but when the co-owner calls a meeting the hotel isn't top of the agenda and he's adamant he doesn't want anything to do with the visitor that holds a special connection to his best friend.

Ethan and Keeley happen to literally bump into each other outside her Paris hotel and team up to catch a runaway penguin. The chemistry between the pair is instant so when they keep co-incidentally turn up in the same places Keeley has to wonder if fate has hand in things. The pair are both trying their best but struggling to heal their own personal trauma's, but can they help each other or will a series of misunderstandings push them apart?

A Perfect Paris Christmas is a wonderfully written emotive contemporary which is bursting with all the Christmas feels. Set against the back drop of Paris Mandy Baggot's stunning descriptive writing really transported me into the heart of the city's streets and markets, amongst all the trees and twinkly lights. The book has that really cosy, warm feeling that I love to read in the run up to Christmas as it helps me get into the festive mood!

Whilst this book is primarily marketed as a romance in my opinion the romantic relationship was secondary to the other aspect of story which saw so multiple topics explored including grief, loss, guilt and acceptance, with the main focus for me being on the importance of friendship and family. The developing romance between Keeley and Ethan was slow and subtle with plenty of missed opportunities along the way that kept me turning those pages to discover when they would actually discover the truth! It was lovely to see the relationship gain traction as opposed to the insta-love some books portray. I really felt I got the know the characters as I slowly discovered their individual back stories whilst they got to know each other in the present.

I absolutely adored this book and it's one I have thought about a lot since I finished reading as it deals with so many difficult and heart-breaking topics. It's one of those impactful stories that I know will stay with me for a long time and one that I will be recommending to friends and family that read. Despite the heavy topics discussed the book has such a heart-warming feel with a conclusion that offers hope of fresh starts and new beginnings for the characters. A real festive treat that will offer some hope, optimism and love in what has been an awful year. Incidentally this book is set in December 2020 and does on occasion mention the Covid restrictions in the past tense which was really interesting as it felt like I was reading the story almost live! 

**If you are thinking of picking up this book please be aware death and cancer are discussed and could be triggering**

I was so excited to read this book, but I have to say it is just way too long. There were many parts where it just went on and on and so that did diminish my enjoyment and lower my rating. Also, there are a lot of pop culture references that are probably going to feel really outdated in a couple years..

If you are a looking for a festive hug in a book; something to whisk you away and give you both heart warming and heart squeezing moments, then this is it. Perfect for cosy afternoons, ignoring the miserable wet, dreary weather. An escape via book form, Mandy Baggot always manages to whisk us away and give us brilliant stories, characters to adore and a smile from ear to ear.
With a host of characters that each bring their own special quality to love, I couldn’t pick a favourite. Instant chemistry between Keeley and Ethan, even with the added chaos of an escaped penguin. I was laughing at the thought. A classic Mandy Baggot book gives you a hero to love, this book is no exception you will fall in love as quickly as Keeley. Watch out for Pepe, your heart may just be stolen. 
The references to living in a post COVID world were subtle but there i.e. anti-bacterial gel, distancing etc, I wasn’t bothered about this inclusion at all if I’m honest but can appreciate for some this may not be welcome. 
The book does contain some quite deep and meaningful issues which show the fine lined balance between living a good life and actually fully living for the fun and adventure it should be; as its clearly shown how fragile life is. The difference in Keeley living her adventures after being given another chance and her friend Erica who is unable to have all the exciting adventures she desires (although she lives vicariously through Keeley). 
It is a romantic treat, with heart and emotion. You will be left with the warm fuzzy feeling and definitely ready for the festive season. If you haven’t enjoyed any of Mandy’s books yet, treat yourself they are all wonderful and this is a perfect starting point!

thisi s such a beatufil and wonderful christmas read!  please read this book this christmas! it's so cute and precious and the characeters are so much fun!!!

I'm going to get this out up front, I loved this book. It's perfect for Christmas, or any other time of year, to be honest. It's a magical story that cast a spell on me and whisked me off to Paris with Keeley and her friend Rach. 

Both Keeley and Ethan, for different reasons, have had a really rough time recently and not long after Keeley arrives in Paris they bump into each other in one of the most bizzare scenes I've ever read. It's bizarre but in a good way, it works perfectly. Their initial meeting, and continued meetings, are beautiful, and sometimes sad. While this is a gorgeous read filled with Parisian and Christmas warmth it doesn't ignore the fact that life is not always filled only with light and happiness, there are dark parts too. The balance between the dark and light is spot on and makes it pertinent and emotive without weighing down the story. There are so many aspects of this book that I loved and it was like magical fairy dust was being sprinkled on the characters every few pages. The market scene was beautifully written and I felt I could reach out and touch the items on the stalls. The Paris map scenes were lovely, special and just right, my only complaint (sort of) is that I don't have a copy of the map for myself because, when I can, I want to go and visit as many of those locations as possible. 

The only thing I can find that is wrong with this book is that it's not real. I can't go to Paris and watch the events in it unfold for myself. However, I can do the next best thing and that is to read, and re-read, the book itself. Along with Keeley and Ethan's stories there are also the stories of other characters that are connected to them. These characters help give the story the right amount of depth and also give more context to the recent events that have affected both Keeley and Ethan, and continue to affect them. The other character in this story that also deserves a mention is the city itself. The city of light is the ideal place for this book to be set, partly because of the location in relation to London, but more because it has its own magical qualities that are reflected in the book and although setting it somewhere else would probably still have worked, it wouldn't be the same.

As I've said, this is the perfect Christmas read. If you want something that will transport you and take you on a magical journey then this is the book for you, just make sure you bring tissues!