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.

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.

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.

By all accounts I should have loved this book. I mean, who wouldn’t want to go to Paris and discover a long lost apartment? But, despite its gorgeous setting, it just wasn’t for me. The story just seemed a bit surface level. There was so much potential to explore the contentious relationship between mother and daughter, but it got sidetracked against the backdrop of a weak romance and odd manuscript mystery. It all ended just a little too conveniently for me.

overall this book was a pleasant afternoon read. It was a bit much with the Mother/Daughter angst that wasn't really fully developed. It was an easy read and didn't require much thinking. So an easy afternoon on the couch. I did feel a bit like there wasn't enough about it that made it different fron twenty other books out there right now.

I requested this book based on the cover alone, because who wouldn’t want to get lost in Paris, and I didn’t really know what it was about, and that ended up working from me. Quite enjoyed this story!
Hannah is a tour guide in England and one day her estranged mother turns up on her doorstep and says she found some papers in Hannah’s recently deceased grandmother’s house that said she left them an apartment in Paris that no one knew anything about. Despite their rocky relationship, they decide to go to Paris and figure out what exactly is it that they have been left. When they get there, they find an amazing little place, although covered in dust and grime after being abandoned for many, many years. With the help of their lawyer, they get it cleaned up and decide to stay and figure out the history of the apartment and that may in turn lead to knowing more about Grandma Ivy’s life. While cleaning the apartment, they find her diaries, and in alternating chapters we read pages from it showing her life in Paris leading up to the war.
While they work on figuring out the past, Hannah and her mother learn to work on their relationship and are even able to work together to branch out the tour business to make a new tour about grandma Ivy’s life and all the famous people she came in contact with before they were super famous. And Hannah’s mom worked on herself to be a better mom to Hannah and help figure out who her father was.
Really enjoyed this story overall. The characters had depth and I loved reading the journal entries! Will definitely be recommending this one to my other book friends.
Thanks to Simon & Schuster and Netgalley for this Arc in exchange for my review

Hannah Bond and her mother, Marla, have an estranged relationship. Hannah resides in England and her mother appears in England on New Years Day with a deed to an apartment in Paris, France that belonged to Hannah's great-grandmother, Ivy.

Hannah and her mother venture off to Paris to find the apartment and to see what kind of mysterious life great-grandmother Ivy once led. Hannah has trust issues with Marla and Marla wants a new beginning with Hannah. During this opportune time both mother and daughter rekindle a once lost relationship.

Lost in Paris has a dual timeline between Hannah in the present and Ivy in the 1940s discussing her time before and in the Paris apartment. I loved the historical aspect of the book, but I'm a sucker for anything related to France.

The story itself was charming between Hannah and Marla. I understood both characters. Loved the mysterious building of Ivy's life throughout the book.

A fantastic enjoyable read! Thank you to Gallery Books and Netgalley for offering me this ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.