Many of us put up a front when we are afraid, after all what would others think if they knew how we really felt? We are so afraid of being judged.
As the book opens we see Sophie, a French-born American chef living in the states chasing a life-long dream. This dream is to be part of the 1% of female chefs running a Michelin-starred restaurant.
When that gets sabotaged she feels as if her life-long dream has been devastatingly snatched away from her.
Her true passion is cooking, it has been since she was seven and learned from the best at her grandmother's knee.
Culinary traditions are passed down from her family and as she cooks it invokes nostalgia within her.
Needing a clean break when her dreams slip away she returns to the land of her birth, France where her grandmother who is in declining health resides.
Knowing she hasn't had the time for her grandmother recently she feels so guilty and hopes her grandmother receives her well upon her arrival.
Grandmother owns an important French chateau with a winery and oh so delicious foods, which the recipes were created by the best,grandmother.
So many questions were answered about Sophie's mother and Sophie's life that she hadn't known about. Sophie's mother was unable to tell her these things because she had a mental illness and was unable to care for herself. As Sophie discovers more about herself,her mother and grandmother we see her priorities changing and what was once so important isn't so much now.
This really is a beautiful story and I highly recommend it.

Published September 8th 2020 by Berkley.
I was given a complimentary copy of this book. Thank you.
All opinions expressed are my own.

Light hearted read for the Francophile wanting to live in south France and enjoy French food. The food descriptions made me hungry but seemed a bit unrealistic in how quickly they dreamed up new menus and brought them to fruition. But all in all, a good book to nest with on a rainy afternoon when you want to escape to a foreign locale and imagine life as an expat!

Came for the food, stayed for the food (and I feel bad abandoning ARCs). Pacing was uneven, writing was uneven, a bit boring and predictable, but the menus were to die for. Sadly, not as good as I was hoping, although I seen to be odd person out on this one.

Pour a glass of wine, settle into a comfy chair, and savor the pleasures of The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux, by Samantha Verant. This novel follows a young chef, Sophie, who retreats to France to reclaim her life after her reputation is sullied and her restaurant burns down. Verant fills the story with evocative details about the French countryside and an unexpected romance and weaves in recipes that will delight foodies. Recommended, and sure to charm readers.

Sophie is really close to making her dream come true. They only need one more star to be ranked high on the Michelin scale. She's cooking part of the meal and another cook comes over to taste her soup. He tells her it needs more spices so she adds them. Then they find out not only did they not earn another star, they lost one they had! Then the cook who had her add spices tells the boss it's her fault. The boss tastes her soup, spits it out, and fires her. It was a set up to get rid of her...

Berkley and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It is being published today.

Sophie decides to go home and see her grandmother again. It's been years between visits. She finds out her mother told her grandmother she didn't want anything to do with her. Not true...

Her grandmother is in the hospital so she visits as she can and takes over her grandmothers cooking duties. At first it's like she lost ability to cook but it comes back. This is where she learned to cook.

One of the sisters working there hates her. The other one loves her. The boy she grew up with won't speak to her. She has a lot to get straight before things settle down. Her mother did a lot of damage before she committed suicide.

She gets her grandmother home, finds out she's inheriting the house and the restaurants, and then she gets invited back to her old job. What will she do? Stay in France or go back to New York?

This starts off slow and sad but as she pieces her life back together the sadness leaves. Despite the odds, she manages to live happily ever after.

As a Francophile who also loves good food, I couldn’t wait to read this book. Usually, in this type of novel (or, at least, the ones I’m drawn to), the main character moves TO France, specifically Paris. In this novel, the main character is actually French-born; Sophie and her mother, Céleste, moved to New York when Sophie was a baby.

In addition, this story is set in the Toulouse area in southwestern France, bringing a welcome change. Lively descriptions of the Place du Capitole and surrounding areas reminded me of my own visit to La Ville Rose, or the Pink City.

I also liked how Sophie is not obsessed with romance. She’s not coy or playing hard to get either. She merely has a pragmatic and take-it-slow attitude toward relationships.

However, Sophie is indecisive and she gets in her own way at times. Her pride doesn’t let her easily accept gifts that she didn’t work for (namely, the gift of running the château’s restaurants while her grandmother recovers).

Nevertheless, the one area that Sophie does not waver in is food. For example, she knows exactly what she wants when developing menus, which I noticed almost always includes a velouté (a velvety savory sauce) and daurade (sea bream fish)!

Apart from Grand-mère Odette, the other characters in the novel were well-developed. I got the sense that they’re more like family than staff working at the château. Rémi and Jane provide tension throughout the narrative, as they weren’t thrilled about Sophie’s arrival. Fortunately, Sophie has supportive friends in Walter, his boyfriend, Robert, and Phillipa, who happens to be Jane’s sister.

The loose ends are tied up rather quickly, but happily-ever-after isn’t what you’d expect it to be. It’s Sophie’s own indecisiveness that keeps her happy enough.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about good food, family secrets, and supportive friendships. (Content warning: mentions of sexual harassment, depression, and suicide).

Not to miss: At the end of the book, Sophie shares a few recipes, including one for crème brûlée, which I’m inspired to make one of these days!

(Thank you to Berkley/Penguin Random House for inviting me to read The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux by Samantha Vérant. I received a digital advance review copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.)

A lovely story of chefs, cooking and the French countryside. Sophie is a chef in a famed restaurant in New York until a rival frames her for a terrible mistake and gets her fired. She spirals into depression until she gets word that her French grandmother is ill. She decides to go visit her and get back to her French roots. There, she learns of her grandmother's two restaurants in a lovely chauteaux, which helps keep the whole village running. With her grandmother ill, Sophie must step in and take over the restaurants - but can she reignite her love of cooking, as well as a childhood romance? This is a lush and lovely story full of food and French atmosphere. C'est bon!

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux is a delightful book, full of passion, joy, beauty, and love! The cover is gorgeous but does not do justice to the beautiful romance the lies inside.

Wonderful book. Once you pick it up, you can't put it down. The Secret of French Recipes of Sophie Valroux is perfect for those people who love food and France. Well delineated characters. Sophie is a sympathetic woman. She is a real person that one can identify with, and the reader will grow to love her and the cast of supporting characters.

The recipes are great but pretty difficult for the home cook.

This book makes me want to get on the next plane to Toulouse. Enjoy.

I wanted to really like this book, but it just didn’t work for me.

Sophie starts off as a chef in a 2 star Michelin restaurant waiting to get its 3rd star. When the restaurant loses a star, she gets thrown under the bus for intentionally sabotaging the restaurant. With her life falling apart, she learns that her Grandmother in France is ill. After falling into a depression because her career is over as she knows it, she decides to go visit her grandmother and make sure she is healthy.

The beginning of the book made me feel uncomfortable just because I was so angry at the fact that she got thrown under the bus. Once she got to France I started to enjoy the book a little more. I wanted to see how she pulled herself back together while also reconnecting with her past.

I loved all of the characters at the chateaux. I wish that there had been even more of them than there was. When she reconnected with Remi, her crush from her childhood summers in France, I was excited for a slow burn, but instead received an instant declaration of love on his part. I really appreciated that Sophie told him that she needed time and that she wasn’t in a space for that kind of relationship, rather than getting swept up.

My real issues with this book started at about 70% of the way through. I felt like the book could’ve been finished at that point and I struggled to get through the rest of the book because I didn’t understand what more could happen. There was a lot that got resolved at 70%, so the rest of the book felt unnecessary. Even though this was never quite a book that I didn’t feel like I couldn’t put down, I looked forward to picking it back up. Once I hit that final quarter, I no longer felt like I needed to read this book.

The story was cute and the writing was good. I just felt like this book was too long for its own good. If there had been more drawn out in the middle and then the final 30% was about the final 15%, I think that would have made it much more enjoyable.

File this one under Books That Make You Hungry. Also, Books The Make Your Want To Travel. The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux starts slowly-- with a ruined chef and her heavy heart and mysterious past. But the narrative really gets going when Sophie gets back in the kitchen and starts cooking again. Oh the food! The ingredients! The pressure. Along the way, there is romance, a historic chateau and forgiveness. The perfect recipe fro a lovely armchair trip to the MIchelin star.

Sophie is trying to work her way to working at a three-star Michelin restaurant when it all comes crashing down in one night. Two fellow chefs throw her under the bus and she is fired. To add insult to injury, she finds out that her grand-mere had a stroke. Since there is nothing for her in New York, Sophie doesn't think twice about flying to France to be with by her grand-mere's side at her family's chateau.
There she is met with people that she hasn't seen in since she was a child, like Remi, the boy who used to be her good friend and who now does nothing but snarl at her.
To her surprise, her grand-mere tells Sophie that she will be the owner of the chateau, including the two restaurants. Sophie has to make the hard decisions on whether he life is back in New York or the new life she is making in France.
This was hard to get through. I thought the premise sounded promising because I love food/chef stories, but it seemed like it was a weak fan fiction. The romance wasn't worth it and Sophie kind of got on my nerves.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for making it possible to read and advance copy of this book. I was hooked from the first sentence and finished the book the same day I started it. I loved it.

The book starts out with Sophie on top of the world only to find it crashing down on her moments later. When she was betrayed by her coworker, I took it a little personally myself as well and was emotionally invested in her from then on. I loved following her journey that began with self doubt and celebrated each success with her as she redefined herself as a chef and person. The story bogged down a bit when she was wallowing in self pity and a few times I did feel impatient with her. But once you are past that, the story picks up and starts flowing again. The descriptions of the food are gorgeous and as someone who loves to cook, I really enjoyed the foodie parts of the book.

"Rule number one: no crying in the kitchen. I never shed one tear. I did what I had to do and I got it done-no matter the occupational hazards

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux was the perfect novel to read during this pandemic. What’s better than taking a mental vacation to a chateau in the South of France.

This book follows Sophie, a NYC chef who leaves everything behind to start fresh in her mother’s hometown in France.

This was a beautiful and heartwarming story. Women’s fiction is not something I usually seek but I was so curious about this one. And it helps that I loved the cover.

I’m in love with the characters. All of them. This book has so many good characters!
Sophie was such a strong woman and I absolutely loved her and was rooting for her to find her strength back the whole time.

Word of advice. DO NOT read this if you’re hungry. The descriptions of the food was incredible, I was truly upset it wasn’t real.
I’m ready to pack up and move to France because of this book !

This was just an amazing read and it got me out of my book slump. I highly recommend it.

Title: The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux
Author: Samantha Vérant
Genre: Women’s fiction
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

A disgraced chef rediscovers her passion for food and her roots in this stunning novel rich in culture and full of delectable recipes.

French-born American chef Sophie Valroux had one dream: to be part of the 1% of female chefs running a Michelin-starred restaurant. From spending summers with her grandmother, who taught her the power of cooking and food, to attending the Culinary Institute of America, Sophie finds herself on the cusp of getting everything she's dreamed of.

Until her career goes up in flames.

Sabotaged by a fellow chef, Sophie is fired, leaving her reputation ruined and confidence shaken. To add fuel to the fire, Sophie learns that her grandmother has suffered a stroke and takes the red-eye to France. There, Sophie discovers the simple home she remembers from her childhood is now a luxurious château, complete with two restaurants and a vineyard. As Sophie tries to reestablish herself in the kitchen, she comes to understand the lengths people will go to for success and love, and how dreams can change.

First of all, this book made me hungry. The descriptions of the food are to die for! The author really brought the environment of a professional kitchen to life (I assume it’s realistic), and I cannot imagine the stress and pressure these people live with on the daily.

Sophie was a lot of fun. She watches her dreams go up in smoke and wallows in her grief for a while—as we all would—before deciding she’s had enough. Her missteps are believable, and her determination—once she finally finds it—is inspiring. This was an enjoyable read that kind of made me want to visit France.

Samantha Vérant lives in France. The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Berkely in exchange for an honest review.)

(Review is on Netgalley now, on Amazon on 9/8, and on blog 9/12.)

Thank you to the publisher for providing the eARC.

This was an enjoyable story. I wasn't overwhelmed but it was a pleasant read. I am not sure I completely connected with the main character, Sophie, which definitely had an impact on my feelings towards this book. There were so many parts to this story, and i feel as though not all were necessary.

I did enjoy seeing Sophie reconnect with her roots, rediscover her strength, and find her friends/family.

Be prepared to feel SUPER hungry when reading this book. There is a lot of talk about amazing dishes and my mouth was watering thinking about it.

I loved this book! From the beautiful French scenery (and brief view into New York), the armchair travel here was on-point. The yummy French recipes and French language were huge bonuses. Check out this heart-warming book about pursing dreams!

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux by Samantha Verant est magnifique! This book is a joy to read. If you love food, you’ll love the book. If you love celebrating women’s achievements, you’ll love the book. If you love second chances—whether in love or life in general--you guessed it…you’ll love the book.

This is not a heavy-handed ode to feminism, but a fantastic celebration of women. It is a lovely story of Sophie, who happens to be a chef, and her grandmother Odette, who is a chef and entrepreneur. During the story set-up, Sophie seems rough around the edges. Just when she believes she is about to get closer to her dream, she is served a life-shattering dish of sabotage that sends her spiraling downwards. Her grandmother’s ill health seems like the nail in Sophie’s coffin, but it is the catalyst for a life-changing affirmation of Sophie’s past and present passions.

I loved how Sophie blossomed while under the influence of a positive and supportive group of women. I loved that the château was primarily operated by women. I loved that Sophie was finally surrounded by people who believed in and encouraged her. Sophie might not have achieved her goal, but she is clearly on the right track. The one thing I was hoping for but didn’t get my need for Odette and Sophie to thoroughly discuss Sophie’s mother and put that nightmare to rest, but peut être one doesn’t need to rehash the past in order to have a fantastic future.

4.5 stars

I love books set in France, so when I had a chance to read an early copy of The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux, I jumped at it! I am happy to say I enjoyed this book!

Sophie Valroux is a passionate CIA-trained chef who dreams of one day becoming a head chef of a Michelin-starred restaurant. After her career is sabotaged by another chef, she loses her job, her confidence, and her cooking mojo. Sophie also learns that her French grandmother, from whom she learned to cook, suffered a stroke. With nothing left for Sophie in NYC, she travels to France to be with her grandmother. In her ancestral French chateau, with the help of its inhabitants, Sophie has a chance to rediscover her roots and her family history, rebuild her life, and reignite her passion for cooking.

I highly recommend this book to readers who love family dramas, second chances, and books about food. A word of warning though: The French Recipes of Sophie Valroux will make your mouth water, so don't read it when you are hungry!

Sophie Valroux has been working her tail off to try to achieve a dream that seems very far off. After she is blamed for a mishap in a restaurant, her future is more unsure and a fateful call sends her to France to rethink if she still wants to really strive for that Michelin-star dream.

I adore books where a main character must return to a place from their past in order to move forward. Sophie returns to France and learns the truth about her mother and her grandmother and is able to heal from a lot of trauma and maybe even rekindle a little romance!

This was one of those feel good books that just makes you happy when you are reading it. Sophie is a great character that has ups and downs, but nothing overtly dramatic. And of course, the romance is predictable, but aren't they all and we, the readers, are still satisfied with the ending that we know is coming.

From what I can tell, this is Samantha Verant's debut fiction novel and I am crossing my fingers that she has more stories to tell!