I received an electronic ARC from HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review. I had read The Sweeney Sisters last year and was excited to get this one as well.

This is the story of Joan Blakely, the daughter of world-famous artist, Henry Blakely, and super model, Suzi C Blakely. She is an art historian and has spent the better part of a decade trying to keep her father's art preserved after he died in one of the planes in the September 11 attacks. She's been married to her husband Casey and one day finds out that he has had this double life: another woman with who he had twins. Of course this is a huge blow to Joan, so she decides to take a trip to Paris as an art courier, carrying extremely expensive drawings in her bag. She meets a handsome man, Nate, sitting next to her on the plane, and they have dinner once they get to Paris that turns into, what they think is a one-night stand. When she wakes the next morning, she realizes the drawings are gone.

What I thought was going to be more of a romance, this story definitely has mystery and intrigue with a host of different characters. At times I found my mind wandering while reading and had to go back and reread to make sure I understood what was happening in the story. I liked the characters, except maybe Peter Beckman (he was a bit annoying), but I guess I am more like Joan that way. I like things neat and orderly and he was a bit too carefree and easy for my taste. I thought I had the ending figured out, but to my surprise I did not and I was happy about that. The ending for me was very satisfying. Thank you HarperCollins for giving me the chance to read this. Enjoy readers!

I loved Lost and Found in Paris!! From the moment Joan Blakely’s husband showed up to completely blow up her world, I was hooked. The real adventure begins when Joan heads to Paris for work as an art courier, and to visit an old friend and regroup. Joan awakens from a one night stand to her art missing and her job on the line. After first accusing him of stealing, her one night stand, Nate, becomes her accomplice in a race to find out who stole the sketches and why. As we get more clues from the thief, the crime takes on a personal nature and Joan starts learning about her family’s past as she gets closer to recovering her lost art.

I really enjoyed Joan and her interaction with the various characters. Her and Nate had a fun “relationship” and I like how they worked together after only knowing each other so briefly. I liked how the author weaved Joan’s past so seamlessly into the story and helped the story come together. I also enjoyed how the story completely wrapped up at the end and didn’t leave me hanging like a lot of books I’ve read lately. Very fun read—would definitely recommend!

Delightful romp of a book. All of Lian Dolan's books make me smile. Not only did this make me smile, but it made me want to visit my local art gallery and Paris. This is a fun, quick book with an unexpected mystery to boot. I liked the main character and the fictitious premise of the story. I love the little throwbacks to Lian's own hometown of Pasadena. I also liked all the history of Joan of Arc. All in all would highly recommend.

This is a fabulous and enthralling tale of a young woman, Joan, in the aftermath of her father’s loss on 9-11. Her father was a brilliant artist known for his devotion to Joan of Arc. On a trip to Europe, couriering valuable artwork for the museum where she works, Joan’s life takes a few unexpected turns. With the help of her mother, a good friend from high school, and a kind and caring man she met on the plane to Paris, Joan learns things about herself, her father, and her mother.

The characters, even the ones who may or may not be bad guys, are great. I loved Joan and Nate. I got a bit of a DaVinci Code vibe from seeing them hunt down the clues that they received in search of the missing artwork.

This book is about art theft, hidden pasts, mysteries, surprises, unraveling family history, with a touch of romance. I enjoyed every page of this book. It kept me smiling and guessing throughout. I highly recommend it.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. I thank all involved for their generosity, but it had no effect on this review. All opinions in this review reflect my true and honest reaction to reading this book.

Joan Blakely grew up in a different village than the majority of the rest of us, her famous artist father and a supermodel mother. She was living the perfect dream until it all came to a halt. Her father was in one of the planes that flew into the Trade Center on 9/11. Her world was forever changed. Fast forward to present time and she is still coping with the loss of her father and her marriage falling apart. She dives back into her work and transports some art work to Paris. And it's never easy. Transporting art is supposed to be top secret. Joan gets to make up a cover story and become someone else, if only for a trip across the sea to Paris. But somehow, trouble finds her. In her journey to get out of the trouble, Joan finds out more about herself than she ever knew.
Lost and Found in Paris by Lian Dolan was the most appropriate title for this book! I wrestled with this one. I waxed and waned. I loved the story, then I was bored and back and forth. I loved Dolan's previous book, The Sweeney Sisters so much but this one fell a little more flat for me. I will still be looking for other works by Dolan. I just wasn't feeling this one. On the plus side, I didn't know very much at all about Joan of Arc before reading this and I did learn a thing or two about her. Special thanks to NetGalley, Lian Dolan, and William Morrow-Custom House publishing for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest opinion. 3.5 stars for me
#LostandFoundinParis #NetGalley

I hate not finishing a book. And I really hate not finishing a book that I got an arc of. I want to do my best to finish it because I feel like I owe that to the author for letting me reading it early. On top of that? I also feel guilty about doing that when there aren’t a lot of reviews up yet. But I just cannot get this book and I feel like I really tried. I expected to like it based on both the storyline and the author. But I’m halfway thorough the book and I realized that I wasn’t looking forward to going back to it :( I’ll add the caveat that I always do, just because this book didn’t work for me does not mean it won’t work for you. I’m addition, I’ve been distracted this week and it really doesn’t make it easy to get into a book when you’re distracted.

Just a brief run through.

Joan’s husband of 10 years has just told her that he has 5 year old twins. She leaves him (good call Joan!). She needs a distraction and she jumps at the opportunity to escort some very important works of art to Paris. She missed out on her time to Paris when she was younger because her dad died and then she got married very young. She’s got a second chance to spend time in Paris.
So, it took 25% of the book before Joan got to Paris. I just kept reading and turning pages and thinking, when is she getting to Paris?

She gets to Paris. She has a one night stand (I think that was the plan) with her seat mate from the plane.
When she wakes up, he is gone and her very important works of art are missing.
She accuses him, he says it wasn’t him. And now, for some reason, he is trying to help Joan track down the person who really stole the art. I don’t understand why, he barely knows Joan. Maybe he’s afraid of her getting hurt, but if that’s the case then he’s putting himself at risk too.

I made it 50% into the story. I don’t feel like I understand anyone’s motives in the book. I also don’t really understand what’s going on.
I was expecting the story to be cute and light and that was probably my misunderstanding. But this book wasn’t what I was expecting and it wasn’t a fit for me.

I got to read an early ebook edition from NetGalley. Thanks!

Onward and upward huh?

As with Ms. Dolan's wonderful last book, The Sweeney Sisters, Lost and Found in Paris kicks off with a man behaving badly and, soon after, a mystery to be solved. Joan is the daughter of iconic artist Henry Blakely and his former supermodel wife, Suzie Clements. She's led a relatively charmed and sheltered life once her father's artistic career took off - traveling around the world and hobnobbing with rock stars and celebrities as a child. But tragedy strikes Joan and her family on September 11, 2001. In the ten years since, Joan's life has centered around a hasty marriage, her museum job, and maintaining her father's legacy.
In 2011, her life is, once again, shaken up and this leads Joan to Paris, where all kinds of adventures and challenges prevail. I loved the details about the city, Joan of Arc, and Henry's unique (at least for me) artistic endeavors. Ms. Dolan's creative story stretched the bounds of reality a few times, but was entertaining, and her characters were interesting and well developed. She left me wanting to go to Paris, learn more about Joan of Arc, and to do whatever I can to get the ear worm of the It's A Small World theme out of my mind.
Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins Publishers for the opportunity to read Lost and Found in Paris in exchange for an honest review.

Lian Dolan’s, The Sweeney Sisters, is one of my most favorite books, so I was excited to read Lost and Found in Paris. A few similarities were found. In both stories, the father had died and the daughter (s) is recovering. Our main character, Joan (named after father’s fascination with Joan of Arc), is still recovering from her father’s death ten years ago in one of the 9/11 planes. Her husband has had a secret for the past five years of their ten year marriage. He tells Joan that he has twin sons with his assistant and they will talk about it when he returns from a business trip. Joan calls her lawyer, files divorce papers, and changes the locks on the house. Working for the Walter Aston Museum, she asks to act as a courier to take some artwork to Paris. On the plane, she connects with her seat mate Nate. A new love interest?

I enjoyed the first part of the adventure in Paris. Someone steals the artwork from her hotel room. Clues start appearing. Nate involves himself as Joan’s protector as they follow clues in a “treasure hunt” to recover the sketches in Paris. I really enjoyed this part of the story and other characters we meet along the way.

I was not fond of the second part when they end up at Peter Beckman’s and a little disappointed with the ending. My thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. The opinions in this review are my own.

I was swept away by this story from the start. A scavenger hunt to find missing artwork in Paris with a handsome sidekick, what’s not to like?Joan is having the adventure of a lifetime in which she finds a new direction in life. An interesting cast of characters.

I thought that this book was a little slow but overall I liked it! It made me really want to visit Paris.

I really, really enjoyed this book! I wasn't sure how it ended up on my bookshelf because i usually avoid books with cartoon-y covers (and was wondering - is this a romance?). But to my delight, this was a great story that yes, had a love interest but was so much more than that. I loved watching the main character, Joan, grow and evolve as the story went on and she learned more about her parent's past while connecting with old and new friends and opening herself to new possibilities. The Paris setting helped satisfy wanderlust cravings, and the glamour of both her parents careers was very fun to read about. This was definitely one of my top books of the month and I can't wait to recommend it to everyone with the publish date coming in a few weeks. Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC!

Lost and Found in Paris by Lian Dolan was such a sweet book, and I really enjoyed it!

Growing up as the daughter of a famous artist and a famous supermodel, Joan Bright Blakely had a pretty interesting childhood. But when her father is killed on 9/11 and her grieving mother takes a step back, Joan finds herself stepping into the role of Responsible Adult. After 10 years in a safe job and a safe marriage, her husband drops a bomb on her: he's the father on 5-year-old twin boys. Determined to shake up her life and use this betrayal as a fresh start, Joan accepts a position as art courier to bring precious Joan of Arc sketches to a prospective buyer in Paris. But when the sketches are stolen, Joan, together with her handsome seat mate, Nate, embarks on a treasure hunt across Paris to get them back. And in the process, Joan finds something she wasn't expecting.

Joan is such a well-developed character. Dolan provides background scenes of Joan's past that, while they sometimes can come on a little suddenly, ultimately provide good insight into while Joan is the way she is. Joan's grief after losing her dad is handled very well, showing that grief isn't linear. I loved seeing how much Joan now regrets some of the choices she made, such as not asking her dad more questions when she had the time - it felt very realistic.

I also loved the treasure hunt! Joan and Nate's adventures around Paris are so fun to puzzle out with them. Once they were racing around Paris, I couldn't put the book down! Both Paris and the art world are so well-described, you feel like you are there. Dolan clearly did a lot of research and it comes across very well.

Many thanks to Netgalley, William Morrow and Lian Dolan for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

an Blakely, the daughter of a famous light artist (who died in 9/11) and a supermodel, was content in her marriage and her job at a Pasedena-area art museum. Then, her struggling photographer husband drops a bombshell -- he is the father of of 5-year-old twins born well into his and Joan's marriage.

Joan impulsively takes a work trip to Paris to deliver valuable works of art to a buyer. She meets Nate on the plane, and they plan to have dinner in Paris. Sometime during the date, the artwork is stolen from her room and a "clue" left for a Parisian goose chase -- but not one that Joan wants to be on since her work reputation is on the line.

Dolan brings Paris' sparkle to the page -- you are on this journey with Joan as it unfolds. This is a fun book for romance lovers and even readers (like me) who only dip their toe in the genre. But this book is not just a love story. Dolan touches on so many great themes. The plot is developed, the characters are fun and Dolan does a great job unpacking fame and its perils. I loved that part, but no spoilers here.

“It’s about love and friendship and faith and loss and redemption. You know, Life’s Top Five. You know, life’s top 5.”

From heart break to healing Lian Dolan has us traveling to France for a fantastic treasure hunt and what should have been a one night stand that turned out to be just what the Dr ordered (read the epilogue!!) that kept me reading page after page. Supporting characters that are just as strong make this one of my favorite books this year.

Lost and Found in Paris starts in a museum. If you are not a fan of museums, don't worry. It quickly changes scenes to Paris with a little romance and a lot of mystery. What better place than Paris for both of these. I enjoyed Lian Dolan's descriptions of all the scenes in Paris almost more than I enjoyed actually being there. I can't wait for the release date so I can recommend it to all my friends as well as my book club.

I’m Instantly drawn to anything that has to do,with Paris. Joan’s life explodes one day and she returns to Paris to sell a series of sketches, only to have them stolen after a quick romp with a veritable stranger. I loved the scavenger hunt around Paris and all the lovely landmarks so wonderfully described. I loved d the concept of lost notebooks and the mystery of meant happened to them. I liked all the references to Joan of Arc.
The art references were mostly over my head but I liked the intimate story of Joan and her family that is explored.
The vibe of the book is very artsy and high class, but it is appealing to all different genres of readers.

Four and a Half Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭒

Lost and Found in Paris by Lian Dolan is a mystery, set in the exclusive art world of Paris, and it’s so much more than just a mystery. It’s a story of one woman’s journey to find herself and find out what matters most.

Joan Blakely is the only child of a world-famous artist and a supermodel. Joan works as an art history scholar in a museum in Los Angeles. Her father, an artist specializing in light and lighting exhibitions, died on 9/11 and lost all his notebooks during the airline crash. Her mother, once a supermodel, now lives a quiet life in Ojai, California.

Joan learns that her husband of ten years has not been faithful and in fact has fathered twin boys with another woman. Needing a change, Joan decides to take an assignment with the museum as an art courier to take some valuable drawings to a museum in Paris. Soon after she arrives in Paris, she realizes the drawings were stolen out of her hotel room and she embarks on a twisty, scavenger hunt through Paris in order to find the drawings before the museum finds out. She learns more about her famous parents, and herself as she travels around Paris, searching for the missing drawings.

I sure enjoyed this book. The characters were well developed and I was rooting for Joan throughout the book. I loved how she grew through the journey and realized she is far more capable than she realized and her ex-husband was leaning on her too much and not allowing her to live her life. There is a side romance, but most of the story is about Joan, her discovery of herself, and the legacy of her famous parents.

I truly felt like I was traveling around Paris with Joan. The author has an excellent knowledge of the city, and this made the journey so much fun for the reader. The mystery of the stolen drawings add a bit of adventure to the story and had me stumped until the reveal at the end of the book.
I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys women’s fiction. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Lost and Found in Paris, by Lian Dolan, is a "finding yourself" story about Joan Blakely, an educator at an art museum who is the daughter of a famous artist who died on 9/11 and a superstar model who has spent the last 20 years closeted as his widow. Joan is on the cusp of divorce from a cheating husband, and decides to take on the task of accompanying some art from the museum to a dealer in Paris who has a buyer . She meets a guy on the plane with whom she ends up having a one night stand, and disaster strikes: the art she is to deliver is stolen from her hotel room.

The story isn't just about finding the valuable artwork, which leads down many paths - but it also about Joan finding herself. Dolan has created compelling characters and a compelling plot with unexpected twists - I simply couldn't put the book down. I highly recommend this novel!

#netgalley #LostandFoundinParis

Loved this! I’m a sucker for any fiction book set in Paris, but I truly appreciated every detail in this one. You felt like you were really there, that’s not always captured! Truly ignited the travel bug in me. This was a quick, fun read with humor and very entertaining. The love story was so sweet, I don’t know much about art history but it was fun to follow along. Thank you NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

Lost and Found in Paris is an engaging genre-defying read, perfect for anyone dreaming of springtime in Paris. There's so much here to love, and it all fits together really well. An art theft mystery. Travel memoir-worthy scenes of Paris with a clever scavenger hunt kind of pacing and storyline, with nods to California and NYC as well. A Joan of Arc thread that weaves throughout. Romance. Flashbacks to scenes of the late 70s/early 80s world of rock music meets bohemian art complete with supermodels and celebrity name drop cameos. The characters are quirky and likeable, and the plot is a page-turner. The cover hints at a fluffier read than it turned out to be, and I was thrilled by the unexpected depth, TW: the 9/11 death of a parent is central to how the story unfolds.

I received a digital pre-publication copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, and will include it in a TBR round-up of recent releases for Francophiles this spring.