This was a cute and fun romance! I liked the main couple and thought the side characters were very fun as well. I did find myself a bit bored until the mystery subplot was introduced around 50%, but I really enjoyed that subplot although I found the solution kind of obvious.
Overall, even as someone who doesn't usually read romance, this was enjoyable!

I absolutely loved this book! The characters are lovable, the background story is intriguing, and and the ending was swoon worthy. I loved the whole thing!

The writing was visceral! It felt like I was in the castle, in the garden, on the bridge, and could even taste the cucumber.

I listened to this book as an audiobook. And I have to say, I would recommend it! The narrator did a wonderful job, really bringing the character to life.

Five stars all the way around!!!

Thank you, NetGalley for the audio ARC!!

💭 ᴍʏ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛꜱ:
Your classic summer Romance. A chateau in the countryside of Annecy, France, filled with good food, wine and handsome men. The perfect combination. I loved that there was a deeper layer behind Noah. Which really added to the story. You could feel the spark between their denial. It is quite a slow burn and it could have easily been a lot shorter than the 450 pages. I felt like more could have happened and it was too quickly wrapped up. But overal a really enjoyable read.
⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤓 ʀᴇᴀᴅ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
Short chapters
French Chateau
Confined space Romance
Character built

ꜱʏɴᴏᴘꜱɪꜱ:
𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘋𝘦𝘓𝘶𝘤𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮—𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘨 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘪𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯.

𝘚𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦-𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘱𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦. 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘩 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘪𝘹 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵. 𝘈𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵, 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘕𝘰𝘢𝘩 𝘞𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵—𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘯—𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘦.

𝘍𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭 𝘥𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘺 𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘭 𝘣𝘺 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, 𝘕𝘰𝘢𝘩 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘦. 𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘰𝘢𝘩 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘭𝘦, 𝘪𝘯 𝘢 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘕𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘕𝘰𝘢𝘩.

Enjoyed this but didn’t love it. Sometimes these cartoon covers are hit or miss for me. Overall okay

I normally don’t listen to audiobooks but wanted to start because I had to ‘read’ this story. I got to chapter 6 and then got approved for the ARC ebook so I switched to reading it instead. A fantastic read 4⭐️

This was a really fun read.

A huge Thank You to NetGalley and Swift & Lewis Publishing for my advanced e-book and audio copy of French Holiday!

What I Enjoyed-

✨The Cover Art- Super Cute. The cover art really caught my attention first and then I realized it was Sarah Ready. It's all I really needed to know before diving in.

✨ The Audio- Kelsey Navarro was frickin fantastic.

✨ The Entertainment Factor- I am here for the drama 🤣. This book was so entertaining. I was never bored.

Why This Book Lost a Star 🌟

The Romance- The Romance wasn't BAD but the progression of the relationship was just unrealistic to me.

Overall- This was a great read / listen. This is my third Sarah Ready book and every single one has been a hit. I can't wait to read whatever she decides to release next. ❤

Satisfying Book!

I have to say at the beginning I thought it might end up being too cheesy for my taste surprisingly it wasn’t. I find myself rooting for Noah and Merry’s relationship. The plot has some deep storyline which made it more intriguing to read.

I also believe that the Narrator made the story come alive. Her story telling prowess was very engaging.

Definitely a feel-good read!

French Hoilday - Sarah Ready
Pub Date: 26 Apr 2023
Rating: 4.75⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

🇫🇷 🇫🇷 🇫🇷
✔️ Enemies at first sight
✔️ forced proximity
✔️ Enemies to Lovers
✔️ Grumpy x Sunshine
✔️ Unrequited love
✔️ Quirky godmother
✔️ Mystery

If I've not said this before, I'm saying it now.... I absolutely love Sarah Ready, in my eyes now, all her books are absolutely worth listening or reading.
This is my 3rd and as usual I wasn't disappointed.
I love a very good rom com... fun, beautifully written with so much depth... n this was it.

I listened to the audiobook and read it at the same time, finished the same day but in 2 sittings and it's worth every bit of my time. I just couldn't get enough of Noah and Merry. It was relatable and brought a whole host of emotions.
The Mystery part was a bonus.
I loved the narration.

Thank you Sarah Ready, to the publisher Swift & Lewis Publishing, LLC and NetGalley for allowing me to listen and read to this book for an honest opinion

Merry is in love with her best friend but her best friend is about to marry her sister she needs to get out and away from them so she can find herself again. When she has to quit her job she takes the opportunity to live in her godmother's villa in France for a few months. Little did she know that the best man would be there

Merry doesn't like Noah, they had a bad first meeting

Noah is in France to work alone but now has Merry to deal with.

The house only has one bed and it needs a lot of work but Meery is determined to make the best of it while she gets over her crush and tries to move one

This story was more than meets the eye - Noah has a mystery being solved throughout the book. That's what makes this more than a romance.

I enjoyed Merry and her narration throughout this book - there was a lot of talk about past traumas and how one gets over them. As well as how that trauma affects how we love
A great romance with a lot of moments of overcoming past traumas

The narration was awesome - all the characters were distinct and I could hear the tones and meanings through her voice

I LOVED this book!

To start, the narrator Kelsey Navarro was perfection preforming this book. I was instantly hooked on that alone.

I think this has been one of the best contemporary romance in quite some time. It was the perfect amount of cute, emotional, dramatic, and witty without being too much.

Leo is Merry's best friend, and she's also in love with him. Leo is marrying Merry's little sister. As if that's not the worst situation to be in, she is standing up in the wedding aside the only person she truly despises. Noah.

Merry decides it's time to initiate her flight plan. That brings her to France for a three month holiday. She can't wait to unwind and get back to herself when her housemate turns out to be none other than, Noah. It's either going to be the worst three months of her life or the best three months of her life. Only time is going to tell which it turns out to be.

This is enemies-to-lovers ; unrequited love; forced proximity; witty banter ; and sister rivalries all wrapped into one. I loved the writing style and that the characters face their inner demons. There's fluff and depth which is what made it so good in my opinion.

Thank you Net Galley for the opportunity to listen and share my honest review. Thank you Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen and as well, this is my honest review of French Holidy by Sarah Ready.

This was my first novel by Sarah Ready and I’m now a huge fan! French Holiday, releasing April 26th, is such a fun contemporary rom-com that had me smiling, laughing, swooning, and tearing up.

Merry De Luca is trapped in unrequited love hell; pining for her best friend Leo, who quickly falls in love and marries her sister. After the wedding, Merry flees to France for a three month break from reality as a caretaker of her godmother’s beautiful chateau. She encounters two huge problems when she arrives= the chateau is in complete disrepair AND her godmother has also rented the chateau to Noah Wright, a grumpy travel documentarian and Merry’s arch-nemesis.

I love a good ‘only one bed’ trope, and the tension between Merry and Noah was so rich! There is plenty of laugh out loud drama around faulty plumbing, cooking without electricity, and runaway lobsters, and even broken walls and beds. The author gave both MCs detailed and complicated pasts that added depth (and mystery) to the plot. The descriptive writing had me feeling like I was strolling through the vineyards, tasting delicious wine and food, or exploring the local idyllic village. Neighbors Pierre and Camille were a fun addition that included some fun double dates and increased tension between Merry and Noah. The slow burn romance was one to root for and led to breath-holding tension, and eventually some highlight worthy swoony dialogue.
This is a perfect beach read, so add it to your TBR.

Readers will adore:
Gorgeous, escapism French setting
Laugh out loud banter
Enemies to Lovers
Only one bed; forced proximity
Past family traumas
Relatable and funny heroine
Cinnamon roll, yet pensive hero

Kudos to the narrator, Kelsey Navarro, who brought the broad variety of characters to life! Her energy and humor inflected into Merry’s character was so good, and boy was her Noah so sexy.

Thanks to NetGalley, Swift & Lewis Publishing for a chance to read and review an advanced listeners copy of this audiobook.

Sadly, I dnf’d this book at 23%. I’ve read other titles by this author and really liked them. This one just did not pull me in. The characters were flat and I just wasn’t invested in any of them. The instalove between her sister and her best friend was so not on point.

Merry quit her job and her little sister just married her best friend and the man she thought she would spend the rest of her life with. When her aunt offers her a chance to stay at her castle in France for three months, she accepts. She is expecting romance with a French man, delicious food, and great accommodations. When she arrives at the castle, she discovered her aunt has leased the castle to Noah, the best man at the wedding and the one she hoped to never run into again. Noah writes travel documentaries, and he is there to write a book. They decide they can stay in the same castle and do their best to avoid each other. The castle has bats, rats, is cold and the walls are crumbling. As they spend time together, they realize they have a lot in common and become good friends. There is a little bit of everything in this story; sibling rivalry, friendship, passion, and mystery. Great book with wonderful characters and a magical setting.

French Holiday mostly takes place in an adorable village in France. I already loved the concept because I am an avid Francophile and Sarah Ready never disappoints when writing rom-coms. Merry and Noah, who share a best friend, both suffer from unrequited love and find themselves living together in a château in France despite not liking each other very much.

I really loved the chemistry between Merry and Noah. I wouldn't quite say that this was an enemies-to-lovers romance but they still had that electrifying tension in the beginning. One thing that I thought took away from the story was that the plot switched over to being more about Noah's parents about mid-way through and it was less about Noah and Merry's romance.

Despite that, I still really enjoyed reading. The setting was beautiful and I felt like I was transported to France. I love how everything turned out in the end. The characters finally got their "coup de foudre".

Thanks to NetGalley and all for an ARC copy in return for an honest review.
This was a very cute and funny story about all different kinds of love.. family, friends, unrequited, love at first sight, love that grows slowly and new love. It's an interesting story the whole time with many comical scenes, my favorite being with Louie the lobster!
Great voice for the audiobook! Perfectly portrayed of all the emotions.

Unrequited love is the most heartbreaking kind of love, but the power that Merry (and Noah) gained from it was amazing! I loved the dynamics from the very beginning between Merry and Noah, and watching that grow and change was so cute! I need to stop reading these books of Americans abroad because all I want is to travel the world, and I don’t have the money for that!

I read the book and listened to the audiobook. I’ve already provided my review of the book itself but I also really enjoyed the narrator- she brought the book to life!

Title: French Holiday
Author: Sarah Ready
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis: Merry DeLuca’s younger sister gets everything she wants, including the boy Merry is in love with. After a drunken night with Noah Wright, whom she can’t stand, she decides to take charge and put herself first. She’s off to Paris for three months of food, fun and to find love. But who just so happens to be in the same chateau, of course, Noah Wright. Will they be able to put aside their differences to even live in the same place for a few months so Merry can have the abroad holiday she’s always wanted?

Review (spoilers): Thank you Net Galley for the ARC audiobook! This was a very enjoyable book to listen to. It was laugh out loud funny at times and at other times it shattered my heart. In this enemies to lovers romance we see Merry and Noah grow separately and together and the character development is nice. Merry finally having something of her own made me feel so proud for her. Noah finally finding the answers he’s been searching for made my heart swell with love. These characters grew together so well. I loved the addition of Camille and Jean Pierre, they added a light hearted feel to the book. I totally would read a sequel about these two to see the direction their lives went. I definitely recommend reading this book once it is released!

I couldn't stop listening to the story - it was that good.

In French Holiday we find that Merry DeLuca has a problem. Can you imagine your sister marrying your best friend and the love of your life? Not being able to stay around she takes an offer she can't refuse - spend three months living in a castle in the countryside.

She thinks this will help her feel better about what happened. But that changes quickly when the most annoying person - the best man - is staying at the castle.

Great story and a great narrator.

This is a beautifully written story. Merry spent three months in a French chateau. Surprisingly, she has to be with her sister’s best man Noah. They had to share the cheteau and later on their friendship started to grow.

Thank you to the publishers at Swift & Lewis Publishing, LLC and NetGalley for allowing me to listen to this audiobook for a review.