Published by Lake Union Publishing ISBN 9781477829936
Trade paperback, $14.95 282 pages
Cat Jordan is trying to make it as a photographer in New York City and engaged to the wealthy and hard-charging financier Christian when she receives a letter from a lawyer in Paris telling her that she has inherited a Paris apartment from a woman she has never met in Ella Carey's novel Paris Time Capsule.
The lawyer insists that Cat must come to Paris to claim her inheritance and since Cat has always wanted to go to Paris, she makes the trip. She learns that the woman, Isabelle de Florian, was close to her grandmother, but that still doesn't explain why Isabelle would leave her apartment to Cat instead of her own family.
As Cat visits the sumptuous apartment, she meets Isabelle's handsome grandson, Loic, who is astonished to learn that his grandmother owned such an ostentatious home. He and his mother Sylvie knew Isabelle to be a cleaning woman who struggled to make a living for her and Sylvie.
They learn that there is a painting in the apartment that could be worth a million dollars, and after some research they discover that Isabelle's mother was a famous courtesan. Isabelle and Cat's grandmother lived in the apartment until the beginning of WWII, when Cat's grandmother's parents ordered her home to safety. No one had been in the apartment since 1940.
Cat doesn't want to take the apartment, she believes that Loic's family are the rightful heirs, but Sylvie wants to follow her mother's wishes no matter how strange and hurtful it may be to her.
Cat and Loic grow closer as they travel throughout France to discover the reason behind Isabelle's decision. She loves Christian, and he seems to love her, but he appears to be somewhat controlling in my opinion. (He even goes so far as to track her by GPS on her phone.)
Christian's mother sends the wedding planner, a former girlfriend of Christian's, to Paris to help Cat shop for a dress. I liked that the wedding planner wasn't a typical vengeful ex-girlfriend out to sabotage the wedding. She and Cat even become good friends.
It's also interesting that Carey chose not to tell her tale as two stories in two different time periods, as that is a popular construct that many writers use. We only see the story unspool as Cat discovers what really happened to Isabelle and her grandmother.
Carey's story comes from a kernel of truth. There really was a Marthe de Florian who was a famous courtesan and actress during the Belle Epoque, and her apartment was discovered in 2010, untouched in 70 years. I enjoy when an author takes a true story and spins an interesting fiction out of it.
Paris Time Capsule will appeal to fans of historical fiction and stories of woman finding their passion.
Thanks to TLC Tours for putting me on Ella Carey's tour. The rest of her stops are here:
Ella Carey’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:
Tuesday, September 1st: A Chick Who Reads
Thursday, September 3rd: Daily Mayo
Friday, September 4th: Just One More Chapter
Monday, September 7th: Romance Novels for the Beach
Tuesday, September 8th: Reading Reality
Wednesday, September 9th: Bookchickdi
Thursday, September 10th: girlichef
Friday, September 11th: Raven Haired Girl
Monday, September 14th: No More Grumpy Bookseller
Wednesday, September 16th: Bewitched Bookworms
Thursday, September 17th: Chick Lit Central – author guest post
Thursday, September 17th: Kahakai Kitchen
Monday, September 21st: Books a la Mode – guest post/giveaway
Monday, September 21st: 100 Pages a Day
Monday, September 21st: Kritter’s Ramblings
Tuesday, September 22nd: Peeking Between the Pages
Wednesday, September 23rd: Musings of a Bookish Kitty
Thursday, September 24th: The Lit Bitch
Monday, September 28th: Patricia’s Wisdom
Tuesday, September 29th: The Baking Bookworm
Sounds like a fun read, especially for Paris fans. I too like that it was inspired by a true story. However, I'm not quite sure this one would be for me.
ReplyDeleteI wish someone would leave me an apartment in Paris! This sounds fun!
ReplyDeleteI also enjoy it when an author can take a tidbit of truth and create a fictional story about it!
ReplyDeleteThanks for being a part of the tour.