Member Reviews
Princess Tatiana Vytenis fled Russia during the revolution, with her mother Irina, niece Anouchka and her sister Katya. Like many former Russian aristocrat’s they are living in France, her sister Katya’s married to Harry Morten and own a popular fashion house. Tatiana works as a model, she studied ballet, and this helps with her posture and she has the perfect shape for the 1920’s fashion. She’s engaged to Gerard de Sainte-Vierge, he’s rather stuffy and can be over bearing. After her experiences during the revolution, Tatiana’s looking for security, marrying Gerard will provide this, even though his mother isn’t very happy with his choice of bride and Tatiana doesn’t like his creepy brother Armand.
Tatiana meets American photographer Regan Dortmeyer, he’s originally from Hell’s Kitchen in New York and he’s not as refined as her finance. Tatiana discovers Gerard and his brother Armand have a dark side, when an accident happens, the man who’s supposed to stand by her, lies and to save his own reputation. Tatiana feels betrayed, she doesn’t know who she can trust, and she has doubts about her best friend Contstanza Darocca loyalty? Her family have left Paris for various reasons, Tatiana’s struggling to find work and her engagement ends. The girl who once spent all her money on stockings, make-up and hairdressers is in dire straits and in trouble with the law. The one person she can rely on for help is Regan, has she pushed him away and made another big mistake?
The Paris Girl is a story about a young woman being a model in post WW I Paris, she’s still traumatized by her experiences during the Russian revolution, and she’s vulnerable, once she has to fend for herself, she grows up and her priorities change. I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, it's well written, I like reading about Russian notabilities lives after they fled their homeland, and four stars from me. I have shared and posted my review on Goodreads, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Amazon Australia and Twitter.
The story is set in Paris in the 1920s.
It is obvious that the author had done a lot of research. I felt that I was taken back 100 years and was living in the pages.
The characters were well developed. They were likeable and relatable.
The story is well paced and is filled with suspense.
A great book
I very much enjoyed this book. The characters were vivid, and they were a good representation of the different types of people one would find in post-WWI Paris.
I couldn't get into this one. I really tried, I set it aside and went back. It just wasn't a world with characters that I could get lost in.
I really struggled to get into this one and therefore didn’t really enjoy it all that much unfortunately.
1920’s Paris is a favorite historical fiction setting for me. I love this era! Wonderful descriptions throughout.
A heartbreaking love story wonderfully written!
Thank you NetGalley!
Although this story of the Vytenis sisters is a tale of survival and betrayal, 1920s Paris life amongst the fashion industry of the time, does lighten the mood.
Tatiana who is a ruined Russian princess, will lose everything, but she will grow also to discover family is everything. And love across borders and across classes of wealth is the most prized possession.
I enjoyed the twists and turns as we follow the vivid characters Tatiana and her sister Katya through highs and lows of post war devastation, with a nasty twist (in relation to Vera, who is the third sister).
This book would interest on so many levels....Paris, fashion, photography, Russia and historical fiction. I never lost interest or skipped pages.....I enjoyed every word. Apparently this is a follow on book of The Secret Vow, but The Paris Girl is a captivating stand alone read and I will actively seek out more by Natalie Leg Evans.
#TheParisGirl #NetGalley
This is historical fiction (pretty heavy on the fiction) that grapples with some very heavy topics.
The premise of it pulled me in - Russian princesses start new lives in 1920s Paris.
It wasn't completely what I love in a book, but many will appreciate this novel.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.
Thank you to NetGalley for the book in exchange for the honest review.
I enjoyed reading about a model's life in Paris set during the 20's. No ordinary model either but a White Russian who's family is missing and wanting to free the last sister in Russia free from prison.
Tatiana the main character wasn't my favorite I enjoyed her love interest the American Regan. Katya, Tatiana's fashion designer sister. I was pleased once Tatiana was no longer with her former fiance the Marquis who was in a relationship with his cousin on the side, while also seeing her best friend behind her back.
This was a fast paced book and an enjoyable read!
This is another great historical fiction book by Natalie Meg Evans. It's set in 1920s Paris and the descriptions of the city and the fashions are so well done you can almost believe you're there.
The book is well written, and the plot is tight and full of twists to keep the reader on their toes. The characters are interesting and memorable. I recommend this book to all historical fiction readers.
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Gorgeous cover, amazing story line, and an overall enjoyable read!! Thank you so so much for allowing me the opportunity to review this book!
This is a rather miserable and melodramatic book with the redeeming features of a lovable hero and an atmospheric setting in a glamorous era. The self-sabotaging heroine, Tatiana, goes from one disaster to another, although she is likeable enough and her reasons for this are explained. Although I enjoyed the book, I won't be reading it again. Miserable books seem to be very popular at the moment, I am not sure why. The times are bad enough!
The book begins with the evil brother of Tatiana raping her and getting her pregnant. A Russian refugee in Paris, Tatiana works in the couture business and her pregnancy leaves her in grave danger of losing her job. Will her aristocratic fiancee stand by her? What are her feelings about handsome Regan, a smart young American photographer?
I loved the descriptions of life in Paris and the fashion and photography businesses in the 1920s, and I thought that this was a well-written historical novel, although the writing wasn't smooth at times. It is worth reading if you like historical novels.
I received a free copy of this ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.
EDITION Ebook
ISBN 9781838881214
PRICE £1.99 (GBP)
I was greatly intrigued by the synopsis for this book - a Russian Princesses now model, French noblemen (if a somewhat shady Marquis), the classic ‘American (photographer) in Paris .... it looked to have the right ingredients - all set to the backdrop of Paris 1920s - what could go wrong?
There were some interesting aspects to this tale. The definite positives are the rich descriptions of place and time; the modelling scene and accompanying photography is lavish. In fact, I wish there were more of it. I did enjoy the drama, particularly surrounding the remaining two sisters and Katya’s journey. Even photojournalists from WW1 turning to shooting Parisian fashion was a worthy topic. The premise, as stated, is a worthy one, that being, when a person loses everything going from riches to rags and losing your home and family, to what extremes would you go to never feel threatened again? Would you marry a man that absolutely everyone (including me) vehemently state you shouldn’t?
‘Are you sure you want to marry into the family?’
Sadly, however, I did not like the main characters. As stated above, Katya was the exception and a few others having secondary roles. The leading man, Regan, is okay within himself, but with Tatiana being so hard to like, what on earth did he see in her? His back story and why he was in Paris was interesting. Yet this book is all about Tatiana in one sense and she is a difficult character to come to terms with even given her childhood experiences. Spoiled, unappreciative and just plain annoying - it became very difficult to feel sorry for her.
All up this is a real saga of its age, rich in style and detail. With the aftermath of the war and the evolution of a range of characters, The Paris Girl will try to sweep you away along a journey of much drama and heartache.
‘Why do you love him?’ When she gave no answer, Benjy supplied his own. ‘He’s hypnotised you with his own sense of self-worth. The answer, of course, is that you don’t love him. Not truly. You need him.’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
Paris in the 1920's is what drew me into requesting the book. However, with many historical and cultural mistakes, I felt the telling of the story and the inaccuracies seemed a bit "dishonest." I have tried more than once to re-connect, to reread the story, but found myself skimming through it. I finally finished it, but was dissatisfied. Yes, even though I knew this was basically a work of "historical" fiction (my favorite genre) I wasn't enthusiastic. Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Wonderful story of about how a woman had to change from the Russian Princess she was, to an model, and what she went through to get there.
Tatiana and her family, former Russian royalty, were banished from Russia and now live in Paris. Settled in Paris in the 1920s, Tatiana is engaged to a aristocrat whose brother also has an unhealthy obsession with her. She soon learns that her fiancé would be willing to ruin her to save his reputation. The story follows the story of her ruin and her attempt to piece her life back together.
I love that this historical fiction is not set in a war circumstance but in Paris during a relatively calm period of European history.
It wasn’t the most fast paced of novels, but it was enjoyable and that cover is so beautiful!
The Paris Girl is a fantastic historical novel. It has some slow parts,but the storyline is interesting. The characters are well developed and It is well written.
Wow! What a fantastic setting in 1920s Paris. I loved this one!
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.
This book was just ok for me, and I think I didn't enjoy it more because I just didn't like the main character, Tatiana. The other characters, I enjoyed much more. The story was good and easy to read, a little much at times, but still a good book. *
I received this eARC from #netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
Set in 1920s Paris against a backdrop of the aftermath of World War One and the Russian Revolution, The Paris Girl is the story of displaced Russian Princess Tatiana. She is engaged to aristocratic Gerard but his brother Armand, deeply disturbed by his war experience, is madly in love with her.
American photographer Regan is an unlikely saviour for Tatiana but comes to her rescue time and time again. There are plenty of dramatic twists and turns which throw the pair together…
Tatiana is a really interesting character. She is vulnerable and likeable but also spoilt and infuriating. She is dealing with the innate misogyny of the period, the double standards which allowed men to have affairs but expected woment to be virginal.
The politics of love, the power of old money and the heady excitement of the post war era are brought to life by Natalie Meg Evans. This is a really enjoyable book and it is fun to read because we don’t always agree with or like the main protagonist Tatiana whilst the events of the book are utterly compelling.
The plot and style are rich in historical detail and the Paris of the 1920s is beautifully realistic. There is a lot of emotion in this book as we see the aftermath of the war and revolution on the main characters and the poverty and heartache they have experienced as a result.
The Paris Girl is an impressive, almost epic saga of love and loss and I ope to read more from this author soon!