This novel was so much fun...not a scholarly read, but very entertaining. The characters and the plot were engaging enough to keep my attention and curiosity piqued.

“I wrote until my mind was wrung free of madness, and my headache lifted, my anxious thoughts cleared.”

– La Vie, According to Rose
Hey, everyone. Long time, no book reviews, am I right?

I’m so sorry that I couldn’t recommend many books this year and the year is already ending. I had a social media and a book reading and writing detox at the beginning of this year, don’t ask why. I just didn’t have the emotional bandwidth to read, write or socialize, and then (work) life came in the way but don’t worry, it’s not like I didn’t read anything. I did read a little bit this year and that’s why I have a book recommendation for you today.

La Vie, According to Rose was a book that I had read in the month of December in 2022 (yes, I know, how did I not write any reviews this whole year!!) and let me tell you, this is a perfect read for the end/ beginning of a year, because this book is about new beginnings and taking new steps. If I had to describe this book in a sentence, I would say, it’s a book about learning to live. Needless to say, most of my 2023 year goals and resolutions were inspired from this book.

This book is about a girl called Rose who is a shy, introvert stuck in a very disappointing, thankless job and a toxic family of two other sisters and her mother. One day when Rose’s opportunity at work gets given to someone else and she is asked to take a break (because she never takes an off), and when she finally realizes that her toxic family doesn’t expect much from her, she takes a break, alright. She books a plane to Paris to get a break from her normal life. There, of course, a new adventure awaits her.

The prose was delightful. It was very immersive and I could totally visualise myself as Rose. 10 out of 10 marks for that. The plot was pretty good too. I really liked the way the author sprinkled flashbacks to Rose’s character history throughout the novel in right proportions and at the right moment.

The characters, however, were a little meh. Don’t get me wrong, the characters were placed into the right roles and even the toxic family was written pretty well but something was a little off. Like, honestly, I’ve read so many books with characters having toxic relations but this one just didn’t sit well, and then there were some scenes where Rose was just too much. It was like the author was trying to prove a point on how much of a silly, shy, clumsy girl Rose is…and I feel that this was pretty overdone.

Like we get it. She gets uncomfortable easily and she’s shy. Typical. In my personal opinion, the characters needed a little work.

Also, at the climax, there’s a revelation about a side character which wasn’t really needed and it didn’t at all move the story at hand forward. If anything, it made the story stretch unnecessarily.

Overall, the story was nice. I loved the main theme about romanticising life. The book also talks about loving and enjoying life in your terms, and not on anyone else’s terms which was another message that I really liked. I guess I would give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars!

I would like to thank Netgalley and the author for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book!

Good book. I would Buy another book by this author. I connected with the characters and plot. Highly recommend.

Okay book that took me a while to get into fully. I liked it but the whole first part was disjointed and slow to me.

As the eldest daughter who forgets things frequently, Rose was very relatable to me! It's so nice to read about a character who puts her family and friends first -- it's not a good quality all the time, but one that's interesting to read in a character. When Rose gets to go on a vacation, what she expected to be a relaxing trip turns into a whirlwind of learning important life lessons and discovering yourself amid heartbreak, grief, and long-lost friends. I loved reading about how she grew as a person and learned valuable things about herself.

A delightful mandated journey to Paris for self discovery. I enjoyed Rose’s character and the discoveries she made.
Many thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

La Vie, According to Rose is a story of one woman trying to find herself. Rose has been overpowered by her needy sisters, and her nagging mother who make her feel as if she is smothering. She has no life of her own and has been responsible for her sisters since they were young. A challenging read.

La Vie, According to Rose by Lauren Parvizi had an interesting premise for the story but unfortunately for me it didn't live up to the hype. Rose was scatter-brained to the ninth degree especially the way she kept losing things to me didn't seem like the actions of a thirty something women. However I thought that the way the grief was shown and talked about was great but I could not connect to the main character.

I loved this book and the way the grief aspect of this was written. Propulsive, rich and compelling.

I loved this book. It raised my blood pressure so much in so many ways. So many times I wanted to jump in and yell at the characters. Rose deserves better xx

Rose Zadeeh is a people-pleaser and tries to make everyone happy except for herself therefore Rose needs an escape and a much-needed vacation is just what she needs thus she takes a trip to Paris.

<i><b>"This is what the best of us do, no? We learn. We empathize. We step falsely and try again."</i></b>

All the eldest daughters (in my case granddaughters) need to read this! Although I had a hard time to get into this book for the 3 first chapters, I'm glad that I stick up until the end. Other than an escaping/travelling story, there's a lot of life lesson in it.

The main character's life are dictated by her parents (especially the guilt and values shared by her father) that seems to restrain her to live for the fullest, until she decided to go to France. A trip in France, turns out, not as smooth or magical but it's a whirlwind mess instead. Rose getting to learn more valuable life lessons, from self-discovery, confronting and accepting grief, reunited with the long lost friend, heartbreaks, and most importantly to stand up by yourself and not hide yourself from anyone, included your own family.

Every connections she made on her trip, especially with Marine and Marco, the part where she finally can let go of the past, the letters she sent to Dear Gladys, and tiny bits of his father story as an immigrant plays a strong role in this story and I enjoyed it a lot.

Rose is the daughter that puts her family and obligations above herself. When she is forced to take some vacation, she actually travels to Paris and goes on an adventure to find herself. With enough ups and downs to keep everyone interested in Rose's journey, this is a great read that I would recommend for everyone!

This book was a 3.5 -4 stars for me. I loved the writing style and it flowed really well. I’m an older sibling so can understand Rose the main character and her feelings to some degree. It’s a story of dealing with grief and finding oneself . Rose is told by work to take a vacation so she heads to Paris to have a fun filled no obligation time just enjoying herself and all the thrills a week in Paris might hold. The story for me got a bit muddled with some of the characters and what they really lent to the story. All in all I enjoyed the story and would like to see in future what the author writes, she is wonderful at putting descriptive words to paper.

I voluntarily received a free copy for NetGalley and all opinions are my own

I would recommend readers check out this book

What a sweet story about finding yourself through travel. Rose Zadeh is somewhat stuck - a job she dislikes where she isn't valued, an overwhelming family, and a general sense that she isn't doing all she is mean to do. She is basically forced to take three weeks off work, and she choses to spend it in Paris, where she has always wanted to go. What follows is not what I typically expect of Paris escapism - there are many novels and movies about this very topic... But Rose finds herself involved with some very interesting people and events, including an art theft and a mysterious man from her past. It's a very well written book and one I enjoyed quite a bit.

I enjoyed this book, but I also found it a little deflating at some moments. I did however thoroughly enjoy the overall plot and storyline, and I thought the character development was beautifully done.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
The premise of the book drew me in but once I started reading it, I just couldn’t get into it at all.
I wish the author, publisher and all those promoting the book much success and connections with the right readers.

Rose is a people-pleaser who focuses on others’ needs over her own, time and time again. So much so, that she’s mandated to take a vacation from work after years of vacation days piling up, unused. Drowning in all the expectations her family piles on her, she drops everything and takes that vacation- all the way to Paris. Her trip is filled with drama, sight-seeing, lies and misdirection, love, and croissants.

I enjoyed this light story, perfect for an enjoyable if not terribly memorable beach read, a nice afternoon escape.

Thank you Lauren Parvizi, Lake Union Publishing, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to the author, Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This debut novel had some wonderful parts and glimmers of promise, but unfortunately - for me at least - they were far outweighed by the frustrating and grating parts of the story. The protagonist, Rose, is the oldest sister of three, and lets herself be taken advantage of by everyone around her: her family (who are mostly horrible), her friends, her employer. Coping with the expectations of everyone means putting her life on hold - but when she has the opportunity to break out of her life of drudgery and fulfill a lifelong dream to go to Paris, she can't cope either. She loses the keys to her rental flat in Paris (multiple times), loses her wallet, loses her phone, is entirely too trusting to be a mid-thirties woman - and it just got too much for me after a certain point. Instead of detailed descriptions of food she buys at the supermarket, a bit more meat on the bones of this story would have been nice. Yes, there is of course a happy ending, but for me it was too little too late.

Ahhh...Paris. The magic of that beautiful city is something I hope to experience one day, especially after reading this book. Rose and her family seem to be caught in a grief cycle and her forced three week vacation in Paris opens her up to going for what she really wants in life. The story has a dry wit running through it, a few sad reflective moments, and an incredible amount of relatability. I forgot where I was while reading this novel and that's an escape that is priceless. I'll be reading this book again and again.