If you like morally grey characters whose actions are slightly infuriating and it feels like your reading a train wreck in slow motion this is the book for you.

With a lot of sexy pining in the French countryside this book is a solid beach read

I couldn’t get into this story. Lea is unlikeable and Stephanie was a shell of a character. She was barely there until all of a sudden she wants to jump into a serious relationship before she’s divorced.

DNF at 30% but also considering soldiering through so I don’t feel bad about the 1 star review.

“A Perfect Vintage” by Chelsea Fagan

Summary: Lea is a 36-year-old hospitality consultant who specializes in transforming French chateaus into historic upscale resorts. She’s built her reputation on her razor-sharp judgment, impeccable style, and meticulous organization skills. She’s just about to leave for her next assignment when her whirlwind of a best friend breaks some life-altering news, resulting in her best friend and her college-aged daughter tagging along for the summer. Lea leans on her professional skills to balance the pressures of her added companions, the aristocratic French family who hired her, and the rapidly approaching resort opening. When Lea unexpectedly falls for the younger son of her boss, she is torn between the risk of heartbreak and the risk of losing the livelihood she’s worked so hard to craft.

Reasons why I loved this book:
- Lea is a sharply crafted, engaging protagonist. I personally loved that she is a little older and has an established sense of identity. I also LOVED that Lea was happily childfree by choice and held steadfast to this belief.
- BIG ‘Call Me By Your Name’ vibes!!!! There is just something special about the combination of a gorgeous setting, a summertime vibe, and a forbidden romance within a power-dynamic. While the power dynamic and the age gap between the love interests is a focal point in the romance, it’s developed with thoughtfulness - at no point is it exploitative or immoral.
- The writing and vocabulary usage is simply delicious! From the descriptions of the chateau to the food to Lea’s inner voice, I found myself highlighting passage after passage.
- This book does a great job of balancing both the hallmarks of a great romance (pinning, tension, betrayal, steam) with a very strong sense of character development.

Thanks so much to Orsay Press and Chelsea Fagan for the copy via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

“A Perfect Vintage” hits shelves June 6 — and I have a sneaking suspicion it’ll be the hot book of the summer!

The perfect vintage? More like the perfect vacation read. It has a little bit of everything: second chance at love after divorce, first real chance at love with an unexpected partner, perfect French ambiance.

The characters are all so realistic, relatable, and likeable (besides the ones you aren’t supposed to!) The descriptions are flawless and make you feel like you’re there. It has the right amount of spice without being too graphic if that isn’t your thing. This is a stunning fiction debut by Chelsea and I look forward to reading more from her!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Orasay Press for the #advancedreaderscopy. Thank you to Mackenzie at Bad Bitch Book Club for posting about this in the FB group!

A romantic journey through the French countryside~

This is the sort of romance where I literally can’t put it down, find myself going “one more chapter!” in bed, taking all the time I can to read more and more, and I have mentioned it to many of my book reading friends & librarians! It’s too naughty for a bookclub, but very classy, and such a fun journey to the French countryside! This is such a lovely book that inspires such an idyllic vision of the rural living in wine country with the hills and small roads, local restaurants and events.
This is Chelsea’s first novel, and while she has a leg up in French culture after years of experience living in France, she paints such a lovely picture of the relationships, drama, intrigue, dancing, dining, and slow burn romance in the French estate-owning upper-class small village.
There's great descriptions of all the food and wine, restaurants and locations, travel and relationships. I found myself really feeling for each of the characters, their inter-personal relationships, and all the jokes and events.

Going to try to not spoil what happens, who ends up with who, etc, but there are multiple romances, twists, and fun experiences. You really feel like you are there throughout the French countryside as they drive throughout small rural wine country, dine and dance at restaurants, and walk through vineyards. This is what some of the "American finds romance in France" movies and shows could be, really, and I have such a "must read next chapter before bed at all costs" feeling each time I pick up the book!

There's going to be an audiobook, right? Or would it be too hard to read such a hot book out loud without laughter?

This is just the book I needed for summer! A beautiful portrayal of a girl boss who accidentally falls in love. I love the details of interior design and culture sprinkled in. Great summer beach read!

I am DNFing this book at 37%. While I think the descriptions of the chateau and wine are amazing the rest of the story is just not captivating. I find all the characters rather frustrating and annoying. Maya is suppose to be 20 but acts and is treated like she’s 15. Lea should not be pursuing someone younger unless they’ve pursed her and that hasn’t happened yet. It all felt weird.

I really enjoyed this book. I love me some rich people family drama. The characters were very well written. I did feel that in some parts of the book it was a little slow, but it always picked up.

4.25 stars ⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and Chelsea Fagan for the arc of this book!

I really wanted to like this one but had to give up 20% through. The relationship between Lea and Stephanie was extremely irritating and I could already see some really cringey stereotyping of characters (particularly with Gabriel). I enjoyed the setting and think it could be a good summer read, but the writing wasn’t to my taste and characters were already grating on my nerves.

Slow start but once the scene was set in the French chateau, what more could you want? The perfect start to summer romance reads!

I was initially drawn to this book because I absolutely loved the cover and the premise. I was excited for a book with an age gap relationship that had an older, successful, and established female in addition to mentions of therapy, a French estate, and of course family drama but honestly this book fell short for me. While it’s a good beach, poolside, or vacation read it’s a bit too long and forgettable and there’s so much that could have been done to make it an amazing book.

I had quite a few issues which lead me to give it 3.5/5 ⭐️. Lea, is insufferable female lead character. She was incredibly unlikeable, selfish, immature, and at the end I didn’t care what happened to her. Potentially the book written in a first person narrative would been more engaging and had given me a character that I resonated with and felt for. The therapy sessions could have been omitted entirely as it felt gossipy and that we didn’t see any character growth or guidance. I also didn’t feel like I was in France. A few name, word, and scenery changes and the story could have been at a castle in Scotland or a palazzo in Italy. The family drama was also lackluster. I was hoping for more disfunction and scandal like a secret child, embezzlement, or blackmail. My last issue was the spice. The sexual tension and build up between Lea and Theo was great but it was too PG-13 and the reader was only given one lengthy scene.

This is definitely a read for someone who enjoys easy, hallmark style books but will be too tame for those looking for true romance or surprise.

A summer romance set at a chateau in France written by one of my favourite personal finance content creators? Yes, please!

Lea is in her mid 30s, she's divorced and fiercely independent. Lea runs her own business where she overhauls rundown hotels to their former glory or helps new hotels get off the ground. At her latest project she meets the family and catches the eye of the owner's son. Along for the adventure is Lea's cousin and her cousin's daughter. The book is full of interior design, family secrets, covert affairs and Lea opening up to love again.

I enjoyed this but I did find the plot dragged at times. I do enjoy Chelsea's online personal finance content and follow her on Instagram and listen to her podcast. The book was one that I feel that was not quite a romance but not just fiction, which I like in a novel. The romance was fun and had some steam but wasn't overly spicy. The setting was amazing and I loved the descriptions of the chateau and surrounding French countryside. I also liked the glimpse into the old money lifestyle of the family that owns the chateau and the work that went into getting the hotel ready to open. I did find Lea to be a frustrating main character at times as she changes her mind at times and seems to think everything is about her. This would make a good beach read as it was entertaining and had the romantic French hotel vibes for a fun summertime read, I'd recommend this to anyone who wants a summer romance with a side plot!

Thank you to Netgalley and Orsay Press for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

The perfect book to get me in the mood for summer! It took me a minute to get into it, but once the scene was set I felt at home in the chateau in France and was invested in the love lives of every character. The perfect combination of romance and personal growth for the characters!

An exciting book read with twists that keep you guessing till the end! Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC

I love a good romance book and this did not disappoint. Well developed, characters, witty banter, what more can you ask for?

This is a romance for the girlies who like tension and pining. So much tension and pining!!! Lea is a career-focused 36-year-old who has been very successful in running her business turning French chateaus into hotels, but far less successful in her love and family life. When she takes the people closest to her - her cousin Stephanie and Stephanie’s daughter Maya - on a project for the summer, all the compartments Lea has neatly sorted her life into start to break down. This book has every shade of messy family imaginable and did I mention the slow burn and the tension? Also a beautiful setting in a French chateau. It was a very compelling read and I would definitely recommend!

This was an ideal summer romance: not cheesy, well-written, an evocative setting, not overly steamy for me, and a romance that gets under your skin in good ways. I adored the French countryside setting and the descriptions of renovating the chateau, and loved Theo as a character, but Lea often felt whiny and immature to me. I would have loved this book even more if she had been more layered, but other than that, this was just a refreshingly fun read to me, a wonderful summer escape that would be perfect to toss in a beach bag. Thanks so much to Netgalley for the advanced copy!

⭐️- 3.5

The Perfect Vintage is a great summer read. I did think the books started a little slow and more back stories of the characters could have helped with that. But I loved how it was a story that showed how important the people in your life are, it doesn’t have to be a big group, a small group you love and trust is perfect!

I truly think this is a great poolside/beach read that will be a big summer hit.

There is a lot of money, lots of beautiful men (all ages), women too all ages, A
explosive mix.

Lea is a consultant and in this case she is converting an old chateau into a very
high class boutique hotel. No detail is too minute for Lea who wants to be hands on,
on every aspect till the hand over. She knows this project can make or break her
career. She did not expect her cousin and daughter to want to tag along. Stephanie
is just beginning a divorce proceeding and her ex husband is as difficult as they
come. Lea also did not expect the antagonism and put downs of the boss's son. At every turn
being critical unjustly, and very quietly insinuating vituperative stuff to his father
about Lea.

The dynamics get further complicated by romance which do not go down well with the
family further complicating matters.

The story of the stages of a hotel renovation, especially the descriptions added variety
to a story although it was one which was mainly about relationships in a close knit family, especially when "outsiders" come on the scene with all its cross cultural effects.

A Perfect Vintage is the perfect summer read! I feel like I've been whisked away to France!
This book is compelling and sexy. I couldn't put it down! I loved reading about the family drama and about the relationship between Lea and Theo. The cover art is gorgeous also!
I've followed Chelsea Fagan's career since Thought Catalog so I was so excited when she announced she was writing a book and she didn't disappoint!