A charming story of budding adulthood and love. Kisses and Croissants was a surprise fav for me, carried along by it's charm and setting. I'm missing Paris and ballet in this new installment from Jouhanneau, but I'm still here for YA romance that centers the personal growth and ambitions of the female protagonist and NOT to set them up as an obstacle to her relationships/love interest.

“French Kissing in New York” is an homage to a romanticized NYC adventure. It follows 18 year-old Margot who’s finally ready to take the first step to the rest of her life by first, getting her dream job as a chef, and second, finding the love of her life that she met one romantic night a year earlier. While Margot’s energy and vivacity was charming in the beginning, it definitely gets more difficult finding empathy for a character that’s so entitled. She doesn’t really develop as a character and everything magically works out for her without any real genuine reflections on her end. The descriptions of the food around NY was the bright spot through all of this.

2.5 stars!

"French Kissing in New York" by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau is a filler book. It's one I won't remember reading until I see the cover in my end-of-year summary. I'll think, "oh yeah, I forgot all about that book." This is not to say that it's poorly written, it's just not all that memorable. It's a young adult "Before Sunrise," if it all went wrong.

I found Margot to be an annoying and overly optimistic main female character. No one who has really lived is as hopeful as she is. She is privileged, recognizes it, doesn't fully understand what that means, and has her head in the clouds. She never really thinks about anybody but herself and her own idealistic dreams. She nags Ben about following his 10-year plan, but only cares about herself. She's driven and focused and is selfish enough to seek out what she wants. When it comes to Ben and Zach, though? She's pretty freaking clueless...then again, she's only 18, we can't *really* expect her to know anything about true love, can we? Her mother tells her to extol her own virtues and sell herself wherever she goes, but her attitude comes off as elite and pretentious. On the other hand, Jouhanneau's writing about the food and about New York is really good. Very descriptive. It's like I could smell everything in this book, from the delicious browned butter to the sickening subway smells

Sappy, lovesick teenagers will eat this one up and think it's the definition of "goals." Anyone else who has lived a little? Be wary.

Thank you to NetGalley, Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau, Random House Children's, and Delacorte Press for providing me with an ARC copy of this book! All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for my review.

* Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for ARC, in exchange for an honest review*

Another book that took my breath away. There are so many words I could use to describe this book, but that would be pages. I don't think I could accurately represent all my emotions right now. Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau is a new author, and this is my favorite way of discovering a new author. The cover and the title is what captured my attention first. Look at the cover, how colorful it is, and how the couple embraces one another. I was curious about the story before reading the book's description. I didn't know what to expect when I picked up the book since it was my first by the author. It didn't take long to fall in love with the story and the characters. French Kissing In New York transports you to Paris, New York. All the descriptions within the book make you feel like you are there, along with Margot, Ben, and Zach. It felt real and magical.

Ben and Margot. There’s a lot that I can say about the two of them. I felt the connection between the two of them even before they did. I could tell how much Ben cared about Margot, how he went out of his way to help Margot find Zach, despite how he felt about her. I couldn’t believe that Margot didn’t see it, that Ben loved her. I was waiting for her to figure out and realize that it was Ben that she belonged with, not Zach. I wasn’t t sure how I felt about Zach from the beginning, it was romantic how he and Margot met, but like Ben, I thought it was weird that he didn’t want to exchange numbers. If you meet someone special, wouldn’t you want to keep in touch, especially if you are not going to see each other for a while? I had a feeling that maybe he didn’t take their meeting as seriously as she did. I hoped that he wouldn’t hurt her if they did finally meet.

I love New York and have visited it a couple of times. I loved that the book took place in New York. I loved all the descriptions; making me remember how magical it is. French Kissing In New York will make you go and revisit New York. This book will make you hungry, all the food descriptions, even if you just ate, it would make you want to eat again. Another character that I wasn’t fond of was the chef, I understand that he was running a restaurant, but he still should treat everyone with respect. I wonder how long Margot would last working for him.

I loved the friendship between Liz and Margot. It reminded me of a friendship between a few of my closest friends. French Kissing In New York was one of my favorite reads of this year so far. I’m happy that I got to read an early copy of the book. Now that I read the book, I’m eager to see what the author has in store for us next.

This was a cute read for the most part, though slightly predictable. I knew as soon as Ben was introduced that he'd be interested in Margot, yet her mind was on finding Zach to rekindle the perfect night she had with him in Paris a year before. Classic YA love triangle, basically. Still a good story though.

I enjoyed the culinary element of this book the most. Especially how real the nature of it was. Margot expected to be hired as a line cook when she gets an interview with the head chef at Nutrio, who was a colleague of her mother's, due to her connection as well as working in her mom's restaurant in France throughout high school. Of course, that's not how it goes for her. She's disappointed to be hired as a dishwasher, which ends her in ridicule of her coworkers who make fun of the fact that she thought she'd be on the line right away. While I did feel bad for her, I knew it was a wake-up call she needed as she was definitely naïve in thinking that, especially when she's just out of high school and working in New York City... she was lucky to have gotten into a restaurant like that in the first place.

I didn't dislike Margot by any means, she just seemed to look at the world though rose-colored glasses, and didn't realize that no matter your experience in high school, you usually have to start at the bottom in real life. The real kicker was thinking that she and Zach would really still meet up on the date they set without exchanging numbers or keeping in touch through social media a year after one "perfect" night together. She took her lessons in stride though. Of course she was disappointed, but she was determined for things to work out and they did eventually, just not in the ways she planned.

Ben, of course, was a sweetie and was there to help Margot even when their friendship was strained. He didn't let his feelings get in the way of helping her when she really needed it and overall it's because of him that she realizes that Zach is basically a douche. I was rooting for Ben the second he came onto the scene.

The only real surprise in this book was who Margot's best friend, Luz, ends up dating. It does have some importance as the person directly affects Margot in different ways. Other than that, this book is really about character growth, which we see in more than just Margot in the story. 

Overall, this is a cute, quick read that I think many will enjoy. While it isn't my favorite book, I did enjoy it for the most part - the culinary aspect more than the romance (since that part was predictable).

Another super cute romance from Jouhanneau! This time we explore New York City, a place where so much is going on at all times and cultures come together. I enjoyed following Margot on her journey to become a chef and find her place in a restaurant, while also exploring love in the city.

This is well paced and has an entertaining plot. I especially enjoyed hearing about so many delicious meals and it makes me want to take a trip to NYC just for the food! Margot is pretty likeable, she can see when she makes a mistake at the restaurant and she tries so hard to succeed. I was a bit frustrated that she didn't see the great guy in front of her was just waiting for her to reciprocate his feelings, but they had plenty of sweet moments and I'm happy with how everything worked out.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Delacorte Press and NetGalley for the copy

Despite the slightly cringey title, I had a great time with French Kissing in New York. It follows Margot, a girl from France who is moving to New York for the first time after she turns 18. She has big dreams of becoming a chef after years of working with her chef mother. She quickly learns that New York City is not all dreamy fun and that she actual has to work. She’s also chasing a boy she met in France a year ago. Yeah, she’s a little annoying, but her journey is relatable and so fun. It was satisfying from start to finish.

One of the best parts of this book is the descriptions of food. Margot loves to eat and cook, and while in New York, she tries all kinds of food. It made me hungry, but also felt like I was learning about all sorts of new cultures and food. I also liked getting to see how messy working in a restaurant can be. There’s no glamorizing these parts of the city and I love that. I also loved reading a character whose dreams and passion were so clear.

My only issue in this was Margot’s obsession with a boy she barely knows. She meets another very sweet boy and then instead of giving him a chance she just obsessed over this guy from a year ago. It was annoying when she had so many other things to learn and explore.

Ultimately, this was a delight. Young readers should love this, despite the fact that Margot is college-age. She reads young and I can see his being a YA movie hit. For real, it would be a great Netflix rom com. This was so fun and while I think it does skew a little old for my middle school library. I’ll still recommend it to certain students and am so glad it was my first read of the year.

3.5 Stars

French Kissing in New York by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau combines several of my favourite things to read about: cooking, a bustling city, and plans gone awry. With a main character who dreams of becoming a chef–and finding a boy she met a year ago in Paris–and vivid descriptions of New York’s flavours, this one has all the makings of an engaging plot. This is the perfect read for foodies, and for those who enjoy books with immersive settings.

After spending one magical night in Paris together, Margot and Zach promise to meet each other a year later in Times Square. On the day they’re supposed to reconnect, however, Margot lands an opportunity to work in a restaurant and finds herself running late, and Zach doesn’t seem to show at all. In hopes of rekindling her relationship with Zach, Margot teams up with a line cook at the restaurant to try and search for him him around New York City, but as she finds herself getting closer with Ben as their search progresses, she finds herself questioning if Zach really is her soulmate after all.

❀ INTERESTING MAIN CHARACTER

Margot is an interesting main character, and I admired her dedication to her dream. After returning from school in France, she is excited to begin her career as a chef like her mother, but she must first work her way up from washing dishes. I enjoyed the way Margot is a dreamer, but at times I struggled with her unrealistic expectations, especially with her obsession with finding Zach. Her character does change as the book progresses, but I had difficulties connecting with her because of this.

❀ NEW YORK COMES TO LIFE

What I especially enjoyed about this one is the way New York comes to life. Throughout the book, Margot explores many neighbourhoods in Manhattan and some of their most iconic sights, and I loved accompanying her on her adventures in the city. The descriptions of food are particularly vivid, which makes this one a true love letter to Manhattan’s restaurant scene.

❀ AN UPBEAT STORY

French Kissing in New York by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau is an upbeat story about the unexpected ways that plans can change. I admired the main character’s commitment to her dream, and the descriptions of food throughout the book are mouthwatering. This is a great read for those looking for something atmospheric, capturing the spirit of New York’s food scene.

It took only two paragraphs for me to become completely enamored with Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau's French Kissing in New York. The naive yet courageous Margot was a perfect protagonist, and the vivid description of New York City made it feel as if I was right there with her. I was utterly captivated by the romantic story, and I know it will stay with me for a long time.

It’s always fun to read books about someone experiencing New York City for the first time, with fresh eyes and enthusiasm. Margot has just arrived in the Big Apple from the French countryside, ready for her rom-com-esque reunion with the guy she met for one night in Paris the year before. It goes how you’d expect, but it sets the stage for her tour through the city and some of the most famous landmarks. I loved being able to picture the setting in my mind, and I enjoyed Margot’s relationship with Luz. The conflict with Ben near the end of the book was realistic, but I found the ending to be odd and a bit rushed. All in all, a very quick, foodie-minded read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was a cute, sweet romance book. I loved the premise, and found it really interesting how it played out. I think that the main character has things come to her a little too easily, but I enjoyed all the side characters a lot.

This book was nothing if not enjoyable, the characters were fun, the food descriptions made me salivate, and the descriptions of New York made me nostalgic for a place I’ve never been!
I read Kisses and Croissants and was so happy to get to read an early copy of this book. It’s well written and I liked that the ending though it was different from what I was expecting.

This book was adorable!

First. This story will make you want to eat all the things. Especially soup and desserts.

Second. Margot is a dreamer who has a lot to learn about life. She is on the search to start her life by finding her dream guy, landing her dream career (her kitchen work struggles may have been rough for her but she has a cushy apartment to go home to and no bills to worry about it so it makes her “struggles” a little hard to relate to AND in NY of all places!) , and making a life in her dream city.

Third. Ben! He is practical, already working toward his goal of being a chef and owning his own space but maybe needs to enjoy life a little more. And he needs to speak up about what he wants.

Read this if want to go on a NY adventure with two friends and their fun loving family/friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book.

French Kissing in New York by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau, 336 pages. Delacorte Press (Random House), 2023. $13. lgbtqia
Language: PG13 (19 swears, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
Growing up in her mother’s restaurant in France, Margot (18yo) learned a lot about traditional cooking. But Margot is done with doing things traditionally. Now she’s moving in with her father in New York City where she plans to work as a cook in a decidedly non-traditional restaurant and have an epic love story – and Margot did not make a backup plan.
Like Margot, we all have to balance our dreams and plans with reality and setbacks. I loved that no one told Margot not to dream big and go after what she wanted. Her loved ones supported Margot, which sometimes meant sharing their points of view – unobscured by the big dreams Margot didn’t want to see around. The moral of the story is not to stop dreaming but that it’s okay if you go after your dream and then want to change your mind.
Margot is French, Ben is half Haitian, and Raven is described as having “dark brown” skin. The mature content rating is for alcohol use, including underage drinking, and innuendo.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘩 𝘒𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐𝘯 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘠𝘰𝘳𝘬 follows Margot, who after spending an enchanting night in Paris where she thinks she's met the one, goes off to New York for a work opportunity and to reclaim the romance she felt a year earlier.

- ~ -

This book may be a love letter to New York, but this review is a hate letter to the character.

The main character has the personality of a wet cardboard, as in, she soaks up the energy of the situation and manipulates her emotions to fit in, which only ever benefit her.

Ben deserves so much better and I can't emphasize that enough.
I just know the author can do better, I mean she has done better (ref: her previous book) but what's this absolute downgrade.

The only thing tolerable was the New York sightseeing. The author's passion for the city and its magic is well reflected through those descriptions and it did almost feel like being there with the characters (if only I had better company).

- ~ -

2.87 / 5✩

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘙𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯'𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘐 𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 & 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸𝘦𝘥. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘰𝘸𝘯.

This book was TOO FREAKING CUTE! I absolutely loved the new york setting and all of the descriptions that came with it. OMG the food, DO NOT read this book on an empty stomach because the food descriptions were absolutely mouth-watering. Margot was such a fun character to read from, I loved her self-discovery journey and everything she learned while pursuing her dreams. Ben, Ben, Ben. he was just the sweetest golden retriever character he was so sweet, I love how he always stood up for Margot and was also willing to help her find Zach despite his feeling for her.

Cute coming of agre story. Loved the food references and the travel through NYC. The French throughout was enjoyable too. Definitely a good teen read. The characters all got annoying, but still seemed realistic.

There are some things that this book did very well, and other areas where it definitely lacked. I thought that the descriptions of the scenery and food that were crucial to the storyline were done very well. It almost felt that you were in New York City alongside Margot and eating all of the food that was mentioned. But, that doesn't help the fact that one of the main storylines was drawn-out and pointless. One of the characters that the story focused around, barely was in it. It would have been better to have excluded that character. *Spoiler Alert* it's Zach,.

I also found Margot's character to be annoying at times, especially when it came to Ben. The ending was also very underwhelming. Although, it was an interesting read overall. It wasn't the best book I ever read, but it also wasn't the worst. It was the imagery and descriptions that really saved it. Luz was also a really fun character!

This ARC has been on my TBR forever. With an expected publication date of January 3, 2023 and a title like that, I was thinking this would be a perfect New Years Eve read…and then I got impatient and had to read it!

This ARC definitely got me with it’s cover. All those bright colors and the promise of romance was right up my alley! So how did this seemingly adorable book stack up? Let's find out!

What I liked about the book:
1. This story was basically a love letter to food and New York and I loved it!

I’m not a huge fan of New York, but something about the descriptions of all the little local locations and hipster cookie bars made me want to go again and see if my first time was just a fluke. Maybe I’m hipster enough now to enjoy it???

The food in this story was AMAZING! The sounds, the descriptions, the smells (ok, not really, but you know what I mean) all made me hungry, and even more impressive, made me want to cook, which is usually an absolute no-go for me.

2. Another thing I really liked about this book was that the main character, Margot, was really on a journey of self-discovery. I love books about characters who end up finding themselves, especially if it’s wildly different than they originally thought. It was fun to stick around for Margot’s journey to New York and her crazy antics to try to find “the love of her life”.

Every time I picked up this book to continue reading, I couldn’t think of anything but Taylor Swift’s “Welcome to New York”, which definitely got played on repeat several times while I read this coming-of-age story.

3. Oh, how I loved Ben. He was sweet and stood up for her, he helped her on her hunt, and he legitimately tried to date her in the sincerest way possible. He was definite cinnamon-role hubby material and for sure a Short King!

I loved watching how Margot’s opinion of Ben changed as well. He went from the short guy that was not terrible looking to her best friend that was, like, a total babe.

What could have been better:
1. I felt like there was so much emphasis on the food and locations that it detracted from the characters themselves. I would go so far as to say Margot was not the main character; the main character was New York. As a person that needs a lot of character connection in a book, I found this area lacking.

2. Similarly, because there was so much emphasis on the food and locations, I felt we were really just location hopping, which took away from real plot development at times. I definitely didn’t mind reading about all the locations and food choices the characters made, but there were a couple times I was left hungry and feeling like I didn’t really read anything that advanced the story.

3. I really, really hated how much of the plot was around her happiness being dependent on her finding Zach. Not only because it was Zach, but because it was any other person other than herself. I get that this is a total YA thing to think, and is probably normal (?...But what do I know, I ditched high school in favor of independent study because I couldn’t understand my peers…).

HOWEVER, even if this is “normal” I definitely don’t think it should be emphasized like this in books, or it at least should have been wrapped up with a better message than not being addressed at all. It’s definitely not a healthy message for teens to obsess over someone and completely shirk other parts of their life/responsibilities in order to get them. Like, GIRL, YOU HAVE A JOB AND A DAMN FINE MAN RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU. WHAT ARE YOU DOING RISKING THAT FOR SOME DUDE YOU KISSED ONCE???


Final Thoughts: This was a cute little love story to food, first loves, and the city that never sleeps. Definitely worth a read if you are a YA romance fan ❤️

Final Rating: 3.5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's / Delacorte Press, and Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau for the free copy of this book. The review above is reflective of my honest opinion.

This story is truly an ode to New York, in all the best ways! There was a lot to love about this book from the minute I picked it up: the cover, the reference to Emily in Paris...it wasn't until after I started reading this book that I realized I had read (and enjoyed) Anne-Sophie's first book, Kisses and Croissants. Getting into this book, I was a little taken a back by the unfolding of the events in the prologue. While one of my favorite reasons to read is that I can escape from the world and read, sometimes, unrealistic things, the plot of a young French teenager meeting a dreamy American boy in Paris and making a pact THAT NIGHT to meet one year later...without exchanging phone numbers or social media contacts...just felt a little TOO farfetched to me. It felt to me like Margot was living in a fantasy world, or even a dream. But I was rooting for her and Zach, so I kept reading.

As Margot moved to New York, with major plans of meeting up with Zach - and getting a job in a restaurant - she had the whole world in front of her, so to speak. Unfortunately, plans don't always go the way we want them to go. This is something Margot soon found out.

One of my favorite aspects of this story was that Margot worked in a restaurant and was an up and coming chef. There are a handful of tropes/themes that I absolutely love in books and chefs/books set in restaurants/kitchen are high on the list. There was so much talk about food - that you'll want a snack while reading! This book is not to be read on empty stomach.

I was slightly annoyed with many of Margot's actions throughout the story, but I did appreciate the character growth that she had throughout. She learned important lessons and heard hard truths. While I kind of wanted a different outcome for Margot at the end of the story, I do appreciate how this book was written. Besides some minor themes and storylines that I wasn't really a fan of, I think this has probably one of top favorite Young Adult books.