I liked the premise of the book: a writer and his family relocate to France to write a novel, sharing their real life adventures in the various small towns along the way. Half way through, all the little towns, streets, shops, restaurants and characters they met started running together.

Have you seen the James Bond film "Goldeneye'? Did you know that the author Andrew Kaplan is the writer behind this? I didn't. But now I do. Because I just finished his memoir, "Once Upon a Villa," and it was fantastic.

I may have misled you a little - the memoir doesn't have anything to do with James Bond, well, except for the fact it does take place on the French Riviera, which we all know is a favorite place for Bond to dazzle women and evade criminals.

In this adventurous, witty, and unique memoir, Andrew (or Andy, or André, depending where he is) and his wife Anne (plus their toddler, Justin) have decided to sell their house in LA and move to the south of France so that he can write his latest spy thriller. They live in rented homes in various villages in southern France, plus an apartment in Monaco, and quickly make friends with all sorts of intriguing people, including millionaires with yachts and even Princess Caroline herself.

This memoir is an exceptional example of great storytelling. I found myself pulling the old "just one more chapter" late at night, interested to see what would happen next. And as a former student of French, I was pleased that I knew about 90% of the written French sprinkled throughout the dialogue the book! (If you don't read French, don't let this daunt you: most of the French can be interpreted in context, or, the author will include the definition for you in parentheses. Plus, if you are reading on a Kindle, you can always highlight the word or phrase for a translation). I found the intermittent use of French in the recounted conversations to really immerse me in the setting. It made me feel more like I was there.

I also enjoyed reading about the author's experience of writing his book, which is interspersed with stories of their social life - their 12-hour Sunday lunches with friends, day trips, nights out with friends, and even a round of roulette at the famous Monte Carlo casino. I read a lot of memoirs, but can't say I've read one like this, which made me happy! I love finding a great story that captivates me, and bonus if it's one I can learn from. I felt like I was a fly on the wall during their 18 ish months in Europe, except I regretfully didn't get to enjoy any of the wine or food. I appreciated the subtle way I learned small tidbits about French food and culture while reading.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book and provide my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Once upon a Villa is a memoir about the time that Andrew Kaplan, his wife, and two year old son spent living on the French Riviera. They left the real world to live a fantasy life while he was writing his book. Although he spent plenty of time writing, they also got to know, and mingled with, billionaires, royalty and bureaucrats, as well as the international jet set. They were guests at their villas, partier, farmhouses, and yachts. They were taken to to best restaurants and pubs, and became well known by the chefs, bartenders, and waiters.

I found myself being envious of the life they were leading. At times I wanted to smack his wife for feeling so entitled, not caring about how much money they were spending even though their funds were limited. Perhaps when you start living that lifestyle you cannot stop and begin to feel a part of it.

When I first started reading this, I felt that this was not a real life, that people really didn’t live like this. How could the ordinary person ever fit in. But as I realized, anything is possible. I laughed at parts, wanted to cry at others, and held my breath towards the end. Thank you Net Galley for giving me the chance to read this advanced copy of Once Upon A Villa.

France, writers, memories, family, toddler, language-issues, verbal-humor, situational-humor****

A year in the life of a small family in 1985/6 on the French Riviera. Enjoy the antics of the ancient stove, trying to find a washeteria, dealing with name droppers, chasing a toddler, writing another successful novel, and a whole lot more. Very entertaining and not a dead body anywhere!
I requested and received an EARC from Book Whisperer via NetGalley. Thanks!

I really liked this book. Which is surprising as I usually cannot get into memoirs, no matter how well written. The way the author tells the stories are like you are sitting with him over a meal. The situations him and his wife find themselves are unexpected. And funny!! I feel like I was there! Thanks to Netgalley for the chance to read the ARC. I definitely recommend!

This was very different to what i usually read as it is a memoir but what caught my attention initially was the traveling aspect of the book. I enjoy reading about different countries and their various cultures so this was an interesting read for me to live vicariously through the author’s experiences.

I have never read a memoir in my life and decided to try this one out!! It was an enjoyable read but not enough for me to fall in love with it. Very different to what I read in general!! Money can’t buy happiness and I gotta include that in my own life!!!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC of ‘Once Upon a Villa’ by Andrew Kaplan.

The memoir was different than other memoirs I have read! The main focus was on his family and him living aboard and how they navigated their life there. Throughout the memoir I appreciated the honesty the author incorporated about obstacles they faced living aboard and the ups they had there.

Enjoyable read as I got a chance to view life abroad through the eyes of another. I got to take my virtual vacation while I was actually on vacation myself.

“Once Upon a Villa” by Andrew Kaplan captures the time (year?) that his family (wife, child, and himself) spent living in the French Riviera during the 1980s. While reading this book, Mr. Kaplan was also writing his third novel - so discussions about characters and plot were dropped in, too. I found this memoir, especially toward the beginning, to be rather good - it mentioned struggles about moving to a foreign country, meeting new people, finding ones way around a new area - including adjusting to the European way of shopping (this was pre-Tesco-like stores), and - of course - speaking a foreign language. As the book went on, however, I found myself losing interest in the name dropping and their very rich friends. Granted, the French Riviera is where the rich and well-known go - so I’m not faulting Mr. Kaplan for including the names and their friends’ situations. I would’ve liked an update (or maybe post-script?) about how Mr. Kaplan’s life was going - even if it was a few months after their time in France/Monaco - did they return to California, how’d the book deal go, were they still in touch with their friends? I know this book was different (memoir) from what he usually writes (thriller), so I applaud him for writing a different style - I just wish the last few chapters had held my interest as much as the beginning did.

Not usually the kind of book I read, but wanted to try something different.
A fun, interesting read nonetheless!

Gave this book a 4 - star because it’s not my cup of tea but it could be someone’s cup of tea…

Good message gleaned, money doesn’t buy happiness.