I really enjoyed this read! I felt like I was transported to Paris, both in the present and past timelines. The mother-daughter relationship between Marla and Hannah is fraught with a lifetime of hurt. But great strides are made as they learn more about their family history and begin to trust again. I loved reading about the literary inspired tours in both Bath and Paris, in fact I’d love to go on both of them right now! Such an interesting, fun and hopeful story!

A lovely dual time line novel told by Hannah and the diary of her great grandmother Ivie, who lived and loved in 1920s Paris. Hannah, already upset about the death of her beloved grandmother, is at a loss when her wildly irresponsible mother Marla turns up in London from Florida with a key and the deed to an apartment in Paris. Turns out Ivie's apartment has not been touched since 1940 and it's a secret treasure chest. This is about more than Ivie, though. It's also about the relationship between Marla and Hannah, who has never known the identity of her father, and it's about Paris. Oh to be in Paris! I loved walking the streets with Hannah (even that long trek when they first arrive). There's a couple of men (no spoilers as to how those relationships turn out). And, not to forget, Hannah is a tour guide who, at the start, is doing a Jane Austen tour which sent me off to look up the Sally Lunn Inn to reminisce a bit more. You might also, like me, find yourself checking to see which of Ivie's set are real people and which are fiction. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A very good read.

I love books that take place in Paris, and requested this immediately when I saw it. I ended up having mixed feelings about this book. I absolutely tore through the first half and really enjoyed it, but the next day when I finished it it started to become tedious and I just wanted it to end. The book mainly takes place during a present day timeline with Hannah and her mother Marla who discover they have inherited great grandmother Ivy’s secret long lost Paris apartment that they didn’t know about, but alternates with Ivy's diary entries from her time in Paris in the 1920’s, This was all interesting in the beginning and then became predictable. I did like the ending and how it left off for Hannah and Marla. While not my favorite book, I’m still glad I read it. Thank you Gallery Books for providing an arc in exchange for review.

“Lost in Paris” by Elizabeth Thompson. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Fiction. Location: London, England and Paris, France. Time: 1929-1940 and 2020.-
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Hannah Bond leads bookish tours in London, as far away from her unstable, alcoholic mother in Florida as she can get. But now her mother, Marla, arrives with a surprise. They have jointly inherited an apartment in Paris. And so begins a journey to claim an apartment that has been closed up since 1940. Along the way, Hannah and Marla must sort out deeply personal and hurtful issues between themselves.-
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Interspersed throughout their story are diary entries from the apartment’s owner (Hannah’s great-grandmother) who moved to Paris in 1929 and just happened to meet and party with-well with every famous expat you’ve ever heard of (Hemingway, Picasso, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, etc, etc, etc.) Suspend your belief in reality and you will enjoy her diaries.-
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There are hard to believe events in Hannah’s story as well. How did this empty apartment full of paintings escape looting by the Nazis? How was it that squatters didn’t claim it between 1940 and 2020? Again, suspend belief and you will enjoy this book. It’s best read for what it is- an imaginative little novel with a sprinkle of romance, and lots of lovely descriptions of Paris. I give it 3 1/2 stars rounded up to 4 stars for an easily read, lightly romantic story. 🌵📚👩🏼‍🦳 Gallery Books will publish this on April 12, 2021. Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to read it ahead of time.”

This was such a fun read. I loved the relationship between mother and daughter and even though it started off so strained, by the end a beautiful new one had begun. It was a good reminder that we never know what’s going on with someone and why they make the choices they do. I would’ve liked to see the relationship between Aidan and Hannah develop more though.

Lost in Paris
by Elizabeth Thompson
Gallery Books
You Like Them
Historical Fiction | Women's Fiction
Pub Date 13 Apr 2021 | Archive Date 13 Apr 2021

What an excellent debut novel!! Loved this historical fiction about a mother and daughter and the mystery involved. I will recommend this! I was drawn in from the first page to the last. Thanks to Gallery books/NetGalley for the ARC.

5star

Lost in Paris is a story in a story. The primary one is about Hannah and her mother Marla and their strained relationship. The secondary is about Hannah's great grandmother Ivy and her life in Paris during the 1920's and then jumps to 1940.

Hannah is a lover of books and leads Jane Austen tours through the English countryside. Marla, who abandoned Hannah as a children to the care of her mother, has bounced from man to man in an alcoholic fog. This is the backdrop of a mother versus daughter relationship.

What brings them together is the death of Hannah's grandmother and the discovery of key to an apartment in Paris. Marla shows up unannounced at Hannah's London apartment. Tensions are high as are the accusations as they travel to Paris to find this unknown apartment and the secret life that Ivy kept. These secrets are revealed in Ivy's diary and excerpts are scattered through the book.

This is a basic mother/daughter love/hate relationship. So in this sense, there is not much new. I did enjoy this as the writing was good and getting different stories from each main character held me interest. This was a very quick read and good for a vacation get away which I was on.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of Lost in Paris.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! The main character, Hannah, is a twenty-something living in London leading Jane Austen-themed tours around England when her mom, whom she has never been close to or gotten along with, shows up at her door to share about a key to a Paris apartment that she found while cleaning out her recently deceased mother's attic. What progresses is a dual-timeline story that tells of Hannah and Marla finding the apartment, cleaning it up, and learning the history of Ivy, Hannah's great-grandmother. They are simultaneously building a relationship and learning their own histories. The other timeline is from the perspective of Ivy and her life in Paris in the 1920s and 1930s. It tells of her life and love interest and social gatherings with now-famous authors like Ernest Hemingway, Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald, and others.

There was a lot to love both about the stories and about the writing. The stories themselves were well-developed with strong descriptions, like-able characters, and a fast-moving plot. The short chapters and jumping back and forth kept me reading and wanting to know more. The back and forth was not at all confusing, and it was easy to follow. In both cases, I was excited when the story got back to that time.

Additionally, the research and writing is strong. Thompson put some time into researching Paris architecture, famous literary characters of the 1920s and 1930s, and life during the Années folles in Paris. It made the book so much fun to read, and I felt like I learned so much! While I was reading and something would happen in the plot, I would look it up and find the connection to a real-life event or a real place. There were no holes left in the story--all the plot lines were tied up, and they were done so in a realistic way. There was never a time that I rolled my eyes or questioned what any of the characters said or did. Overall, it was just an enjoyable, well-written book that taught me a little and made me feel good reading it.

I would absolutely recommend this to anyone!

This is an amazing debut!!!!!!!!! 5 stars to Elizabeth Thompson and Lost In Paris!!!!!! This is a charming historical fiction book about mothers and daughters that pulls at your heartstrings from the first page. I love this authors style of writing so much!!!!!! I highly recommend this book. Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for my early review copy

Lost in Paris, by Elizabeth Thompson, is a very enjoyable read. The novel contains interesting historical fiction, intrigue, and mother-daughter relationship issues, with a touch of romance thrown in.
The story alternates between two time periods. The first story line begins in Paris, 1927, where Ivy Braithwaite has moved to pursue her dream of designing and sewing in the Chanel atelier. The second story line starts in Bath, England, 2019, where 27 yr. old Hannah Bond, an American, is working as a Jane Austen tour guide. When her estranged mother, Marla, contacts her about an inheritance, the two storylines begin to intersect in clever ways.
Most of the action takes place in Paris, and I enjoyed the rich descriptions of its arrondissements, historic establishments, famous expats and everyday life in that city.
The novel’s characters were realistic and well-drawn, as well as interesting to follow. The storyline told from Hannah’s point of view is especially strong, as her thoughts and reactions to circumstances feel very authentic for a young woman her age, as she figures her life out in the present and finds peace with her past.
Marla’s character was a bit less detailed and not easily likeable, especially since Hannah does not trust her. The historic character Ivy, living in the interwar period from the 1920s to 1940, has her story told in journal entries, so her character, while sympathetic, is not as fully realized as is Hannah’s.
This is a well-told tale of historical fiction and family relationships, reminiscent of books by Fiona Davis and Beatriz Williams. I enjoyed reading it; the writing was bright, fun and interesting to read, with a satisfying story arc. It features women characters who are believable and an attractive setting, beautiful Paris, in which to become lost!

Thanks you to Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my unbiased review.

This is a fun, interesting book to read. It concerns a young woman and her recovering alcoholic mother who have been left an apartment in Paris that has been closed up since 1940. As no one has any idea why the apartment was abandoned and never mentioned by it’s owner, Hannah’s Great grandmother Ivy, Hannah and her mother Marla begin trying to piece things together through journals and paintings left behind.

There are two stories constantly alternating, that of Marla and Hannah set in the world of today and that of Ivy set back in the 1920’s where she meets expats like the Fitzgerald’s, Hemingway, Gertrude Stein and all the artists, writers and Bohemians as she seeks employment in the fashion world of Paris between the great wars. The story itself is simply charming, fun and a quick, interesting read. This book is a very lovely story about a time when everything felt possible. Life was vibrant and meant to be celebrated. And then things changed.....at first slowly but after Hitler’s invasion, nothing was the same as the world fell apart. Ivy never saw her beloved Paris again after fleeing first to England and then on to the US seeking safety but she never told her family anything about her life or her apartment waiting for her return all those years.

When I saw this title on Netgally it took me all of 2 seconds to request it. If you see a historical fiction set in Paris, you’ll find me reading it!

But before you get to Paris, the story first starts in London. A young woman emulates Coca Chanel’s style as a statement of liberation.

As an aside about Chanel, I found a quote from The Metropolitan Museum of Art that was really interesting to me: “Her jersey separates of skirts, dresses, sweaters and cardigans liberated women from the pretenses of dressing for an occasion or for an allotted time of day. Rational and versatile, they fostered self-reliance and self-expression.”

I love a book that inspires strong emotions and the desire to know more. Lost in Paris did just that.

This is yet another dual timeline, (I swear I’m not choosing these on purpose!!) starting in 1927 & 2019. The author did a fantastic job of immersing me in both London and Parisian life. I felt the fog of London settling around me, the lamplights barely visible through the shimmer. And I easily pictured walking along the Seine and gazing up at the Eiffel Tower. It wasn’t a complicated or overly descriptive book and my attention never wavered.

The only part of the book that I wasn’t a big fan of was the constant inner monologue of the main female protagonist. Had it not been for that I could’ve seen this being a 5-star historical fiction. Unfortunately, that aspect distracted me enough that this one lands at a respectable 4.25.

A big thanks to @netgalley and @gallerybooks for the ARC!

Look for this April 12!

Thanks to Gallery Books and NetGalley for a digital advance reader copy. All comments and opinions are my own.

I loved this book from the first until the last page. The description pulled me in and I couldn't read this one fast enough: "When a deed to an apartment in Paris turns up in an old attic trunk, an estranged mother and daughter must reunite to uncover the secret life of a family matriarch." This premise is not new, but Elizabeth Thompson skillfully weaves the past and present, the wounds of mothers and daughters, and describes Paris so that it is another character in this novel of family secrets and healing relationships.

Hannah and her somewhat estranged mother find out that they have inherited and apartment in Paris from Hannah's great grandmother.

Together, the two women travel to Paris to inspect and clean out the apartment where they come across a diary belonging to the great grandmother. They slowly piece together the life of this amazing women.

Filled with characters such as Picasso, Hemmingway and Gertrude, the novel could not help but remind me of the movie Midnight in Paris. Many readers with love the layers while I found my attention drifting at times.

Lost in Paris is a very enjoyable book which takes place in London. If you have ever been there, or wish to go, this is the book for you. One of the main characters, Hannah, leads historical tours based on literature. The book begins with Jane Austen. You will read about many historical people, but also about an apartment left untouched since the 1940’s. Hannah and her mother, Marla, discover that they have inherited the apartment left exactly as it was when Hannah’s great grandmother left. Enter lawyers, new friends and lots of excitement. I really enjoyed this book, which alternates from Hannah and a diary she finds which has been written by her great grandmother, Ivy.
Elizabeth Thompson has done an excellent job in her research and includes many famous people of the day. I highly recommend this book. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the ARC copy.

How much do be know about the personal life of grandparents and great-grandparents. Probably some hidden secrets here and there, but not likely as big a surprise as in this story.
Marla (mother) and Hannah (Daughter) always had a difficult relationship and Hannah prefers not to have any contact with her mother. Through her grandmothers will that gives the two of them joint ownership of her belongings they are forced to work together when they find out it also includes an apartment in Paris.
It is not always smooth sailing and accusations tend to surface. A mother and adult daughter relationship can be very complicated. The distrust of each other plays a big role and it takes time for past wounds to heal, accept and forgive. It is an emotional story that is easy to read even encountering subjects that aren’t the easiest to write about.

For those who love (and miss) Paris you'll read enough accurate details about the city to feel like you're there. If you've never been to Paris this will make you want to visit when travel restrictions are lifted. Lost in Paris tells a heartfelt story of past and present, mother and daughter, anger and resentment, and, ultimately, love and forgiveness. I experienced the "ok, just one more chapter" during my evening reading and stayed up way past my bedtime until I finished the book.

I thoroughly enjoyed Elizabeth Thompson’s novel Lost in Paris. The novel is filled with unique characters, romance and secrets which span four generations.
Loved Elizabeth Thompson’s voice—-the vivid descriptions of Paris and its sights and sounds, and the people drew me into the story. I loved the pages where Marla and Hannah get lost in Paris the minute they step off the train from London. I imagined I was walking the streets of Paris with them. I could hear the street noise, see the architecture and the feel the joie de vivre of the city.
Elizabeth Thompson’s choice to use Ivy’s diary to provide to connect the past to the present was executed flawlessly. Ivy’s story comes to life as Hannah reads each page—this drew me into the story. The diary provided insight into ivy, her life and Paris during this exciting time as Paris established itself as a home to members of the Lost Generation. The author’s descriptive writing style shines as Ivy becomes part of the F Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemmingway and Gertrude Stein social circle.
The relationships between four generations of the same family are perfectly intertwined throughout the book. Marla and Hannah’s relationship is complicated at best and I really enjoyed their honest, heartfelt and often frustrating conversations. Lost in Paris is filled with great secondary characters – Cressida and Tallulah, Hannah’s roommates, Aiden and Gabriel.
Lost in Paris has all of the story elements that I adore—intrigue, romance and complex family relationships. Like a red wine, Lost in Paris should be savored slowly for its blend of dynamic characters and well-paced storyline. Lost in Paris is a special vintage—ENJOY!

Hannah left her alcoholic mom in Florida to create a stable life of her own in London working her dream job leading tours based on Jane Austen‘s life. When her mom shows up without warning, talking about a Paris apartment that they’ve inherited, she is slow to join the adventure. Mother and daughter are distinctly different. As they explore the apartment which had been left unoccupied for 80 years, Hannah discovers her great grandmother Ivy’s diary. These entries describe Ivy’s life in Paris in the 1920s. The story is a good juxtaposition of past and present with family members learning to understand and forgive each other and an interesting look at what it was like to be an expat in Paris leading up to WWII. I look forward to recommending this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

A pleasant book escape to Paris! Lost in Paris connects Hannah Bond with a part of her great-grandmother's life she never knew. Hannah is living in England, leading Jane Austen-themed tours, when her estranged mother, Marla, swoops in on New Year's Eve with the deed to an apartment in Paris left to them by Grandma Ivy. Reluctantly, Hannah agrees to accompany Marla to Paris to investigate. What they discover about Grandma Ivy through diaries found in her dust-filled apartment is a surprise.

This book is nothing outstanding, but excellent lunch break reading material. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this e-book in return for my honest review.