It smells like French baguette, field of lavender and fresh caked cake!

What a wonderful book that is! Full of love, friends, joy, but also family affairs, lost cellars, long-kept secrets and difficult choices.
Still... my god, what a pleasure to dive in that story!

I have listened to that in the summer, while driving long hours to my summer vacation and it fits perfectly!
Something to keep your mind occupied, have some fun and ignite the sound of Europe mood ;)

I was sold immediately and that is my must have for next French summer!

Hattie Carter-Jones needs a new start after her relationship begins to flounder and losing her job. She accepts the offer from her uncle to plan her cousin's wedding in France. They have booked the Chateau St. Martin for the wedding, and he wants Hattie on sight. When Hattie arrives she meets, Luc Bremont, the son of the owner. He was unaware of his father's plans to turn the Chateau into a wedding venue. He wanted to reopen the family's old distillery and begin making the champagne his family had been known for. Luc realized that he has to fulfill the contract his father agreed to and begins to work with Hattie, helping her to source things for the wedding. He also introduces her to what it means to live in a small village and slow down to enjoy life. In reverse, Hattie gives Luc a different perspective and that he can do both. Luc's aunt is very much against Luc getting the champagne business going again, and he doesn't know why. There are secrets to be revealed, lives to enjoy, and love to be shared.

Although this is the 10th book in the Romantic Escapes series, the story is a standalone and I enjoyed it very much. I enjoyed meeting both Hattie and Luc and loved their chemistry. The situation they found themselves in could have made a friendship impossible, but they both bent a little and made it work. The story is told from both their points of view. Hattie wants to make a name for herself in the wedding planning business, Luc wants to reopen his family's champagne distillery, rather than see the grapes sold to others, as his father and aunt had been doing. The chateau has a housekeeper/cook/surrogate mother to Luc, and there is a major situation involving her daughter and the use of the chateau and the grounds. It almost derails the wedding, but Hattie doesn't give up. The two months in France give Hattie perspective and she realizes that she’s in a relationship with the wrong man. This was a fun romance, with armchair travel, new beginnings and family secrets. The narration of the audiobook was wonderful. Sophie Roberts does an amazing job with the French accents, making this an enjoyable way to experience this story.

This was a simple story that explored a French town and the experience of living in the French countryside. The romance is expected and straightforward with fewer miscommunications than is usual for the genre.

Hattie is a wedding planner, or at least an assistant to one until her cousin gives her a big break. This may not be as simple as she anticipates, however, when she arrives on location early to find that the people are not ready to have a wedding on site (at least not the one she is planning).

The romance is almost an aside. I enjoyed the planning aspect and the other hurdles that Hattie faces. The mundane parts of organizing and getting things ready were fun to explore. The way the people are won over happens gradually. There is an extra twist, which does not fit the rest of the tone, but adds an extra mystery part to the plot.

I have read a few other books by the author, and this one is well-written and equally well-narrated. Hattie’s ex-situation closely mirrors one of a friend of mine who mentioned having a similar situation, and I think it is the more serious of the side plots in the book.

I think fans of the genre will enjoy this book. I would have rated this book even higher if I had been more interested in the central romance. I liked all the other aspects a lot more!

I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience

What a delightful read, felt as if I was reading this in a sunny lavender field, when in fact it was rainy and windy. Loved the main characters

Thank you for the chance to listen this book

A really enjoyed listen with warm humour and everyone loves a wedding.

What an absolutely charming book!! Great characters, sexy French men, vineyards, mouth-watering food and weddings! What more could you wish for. A truly lovely story, that will make you smile from start to finish.

What I was looking for: An intelligent, fun romance novel.
What I liked: As with the previous books I read by Julie Caplin, I really like that her heroines are nice, kind and friendly. And I like that miscommunication is not the main drama of the book.
What I did not like: By the end of the book, I was willing to throttle somebody if I had to hear “he’s all man” one more time. What even is that supposed to mean? Fliss was quickly my most hated character (which means I will stay clear of the Ireland and Scottland books as it seems she is also featured in those). I was also very annoyed by the constant insistence that French men are great in bed by the two British women.
Narrator: I liked Sophie Roberts as a narrator liked her voice and the way she pronounced the French words and names.
Conclusion: I fear that the one book I did love by Julie Caplin was the odd one out, I got lucky. The books I picked from the author since have gotten progressively worse and this one mostly annoyed me. When I look at the rest (apart from the above mentioned things I hated), the book is an easy, predictable and heteronormative read with wonderful descriptions of food and France. The little plot twist at the end was quite nice, especially since it was not based on any romance.
I received this audiobook from netgalley free of charge.

Thanks to a great author we have warmth, wisdom and emotional intelligence, this book was a huge pleasure to read! A fabulous, really enjoyable read.
I would highly recommend to family and friends. I love author’s that can describe a scene and you are immediately there, you close your eyes and you picture the scene. This author does that for me.

I loved this book. It was a bit predictable at times but I didn’t mind. The whole ‘wedding planner’ ‘vin yard’ theme was so good. I totally wanted to be there with them.
There was enough depth to the story to make it interesting and not trite.
If you want to escape from the drudge of the every day, read this book as an escape.

Hattie has volunteered to be the wedding planner for her cousin’s wedding at a French chateau to get away from a long-term dwindling relationship. Her unexpected and unwelcome arrival puts her on the back foot from the start. Locals don’t seem very helpful, why is that? Luke just wants to go back to making champagne but again there is resistance from his family.
Twists and turns, and romance abound.
I’ve read many Julie Caplin books, although this is the first on audiobook. This doesn’t disappoint, it’s engaging and fun.
I loved it.

I really enjoy reading and/or listening to Julie Caplin's stories. They are such a lovely escape from my every day life and often set abroad, somewhere interesting that I am not all too familiar with.

Although the story is set in a vineyard, there is not that much about the wine there. The focus of this story is Hattie and the wedding she is there to plan and how she gets on in this completely new environment where not everyone seems to welcome her or the fact that an outsider is to have a wedding at the chateau. This sometimes leads to unpleasant situations for Hattie and other times it was quite funny.

As for the romance... it was definitely there, sometimes more than I expected, when listening without a headset, but it was not smooth sailing. There were some misunderstandings and unexpected events, but overall it was just a lovely gentle story.

The French Chateau Dream is the literary equivalent of a long boozy lunch in the sunshine! I really enjoyed this - it was one of the first audio books I have listened to and the narrator Sophie Roberts was fantastic
The novel is part of a Romantic Escapes series by Julie Caplin, who I have not read before but will definitely be looking out for in the future.

The story of the Chateau follows Hattie Carter-Jones, a disgruntled and disillusioned wedding planner (assistant) who gets her big break organising her cousin's wedding in the Champagne region of France. The son of the owner of the Chateau, Luc Bremant, is there as she arrives, trying to forge his own path after years of being dictated to by his father. He is disconcertingly handsome but also slightly arrogant and aloof. As they both try to chart their new paths, will love blossom along the way?

With a brilliant cast of characters, mouthwatering descriptions of French food and wine (I spent most of the audio book feeling permanently hungry and longing for a glass of cold fizz!) and an uplifting message, the French Chateau Dream is the perfect summer read *or listen!

My only tiny criticism was the narrator's attempt at a french canadian accent - having hailed from that part of the world I can only say it wasn't quite right - but top marks for trying. Not enough of a downside to bring it down from a 5* review.

Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an advance release copy in exchange for an honest review.

When Hattie hears from a friend that her wedding planner quit she jumped at the opportunity to take the job and get out of London after all it would take way less in a failed engagement to get me to spend the summer in France bought for Hattie it took just that a failed engagement and off she goes to France. When she pulls up the first person she meets his Lucas and although he is the owner’s son it is also his firstday there in a long time. He is more than happy to show how do you the ground in the house and although Hattie is still reeling from her break up it doesn’t pass her notice how good-looking Lucas is. Once Hattie looks around the beautiful home it makes her wonder just what does the housekeeper do? While she is there she will learn employee it’s just another word for family and although her and Lucas‘s relationship is slow to start in this book The build up to romance is so sweet and so worth reading. I listened to the audiobook and thought the narrator did a wonderful job I have not read any other books in the series If this is what happens in France then take me away. I am not a big reader of romance and definitely do not like the Insta love most books play assault is romance this one was so good and so worth reading I don’t know what came over me but at the reading the summary I knew I wanted to listen to this audiobook and cannot just say I have been craving almond croissants since reading this book. This is a great book and one I highly recommend if you love authentic build up to romance then you’ll definitely love this book. I am not a big romance reader and I am absolutely Gaga over it. a definite five star read. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

With a broken heart and a broken spirit, and in need of a summer escape, Hattie snatches up an opportunity to work at a beautiful, stately chateau in the Champagne region of France. Romance is the last thing she's looking for. So when gorgeous Luc strolls into her life, Hattie starts to wonder if a holiday fling, or maybe even something more, might be just what she needs.

It was a new culture, new surroundings and new people; a rocky start, being met with an air similar to hostility by some of the residents, but Hattie rose to the challenge and won their hearts. She also had some unlearning to do considering the toxicity that her ex wound around her. I loved to see it.

Luc cheered her on, helping her in any way he could, all the while loving on her and showing her what a healthy relationship could be like. I didn't get him at first but thank goodness for dual POV 😂

I will say that I didn't connect with the side characters in the book, though that could be attributed to the main focus being Hattie, and by extension Luc. Still, I enjoyed the audio.

Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

“The French Chateau Dream” is one of those one-standing book reads that you stumble upon one hot summer morning and can’t get enough of! This is the 10th book in Julie Caplin’s stand-alone series “Romantic Escapes” and, I admit, although I haven’t read / listen to the previous books in the series, I’m sure they give off the same good vibes as this one.

The tenth novel has a dual point-of-view storytelling. One side of the story comes from heart-broken Hattie, who is now on a mission to organise her first and best wedding ever in a chateau based in the Champagne region of France! On the other side there’s Luc, whose family owns the chateau and dreams to one day reopen the Champagne distillery at his family’s aged surrounding vine yard. As the two characters’ journeys get more tangled up in one another, so do their feelings.

What makes it even more adorable is the narration provided by Sophie Roberts, whose French accent adaptations are a delight to listen to, as the story comes along.

Special thanks to NetGalley, HarperCollins UK Audio, One More Chapter, and the editorial team for giving me the opportunity to review the ARC in audiobook format and to you, my reader, for taking the time to read this honest personal book review.

If you are interested in other of my book reviews, make sure to follow me on GoodReads! #TheFrenchChateauDream #NetGalley #LifeLongLearning

A delightfully heartwarming story and the perfect summer escapist read. Hattie is a darling of a character, determined to build a new life for herself and carve a name in the industry of event and wedding planning. Her cousin's wedding at a French chateau and winery is the perfect opportunity. I was rooting for Hattie all the way through this book as she faced plenty of obstacles and sabotage along the way.
Luc is a likeable character and has his own family issues to work through but he and Hattie make a cute pairing. There were times when I wanted to shake Hattie as she let misguided guilt and obligation sway her mind with a useless ex. With much relief, the conclusion dealt with matters satisfactorily with Hattie taking control of her own destiny aided by a little nudge from new friends and family.
The supporting cast in this story was charming and I could really see what Hattie's life would be like in the future with these people around her and a thriving wedding and champagne business to keep them all busy.
A wonderful story to listen to as the narration was performed well. The French accents were nicely done. It added to a sense of being in France but gentle enough that they weren't distracting.

I loved this book more than I thought I would do. It was romantic as I hoped, but it wasn't too "romantic" or with too many "clichés", it was just perfect.

I have to admit, the first few chapters made me think is going to be a boring book, but quickly changed my mind after going through more of the book.

Even though this book was a nice book, I believe there's still something to learn from it and from the main character, Hattie. I thought about it and realised that probably there are so many people in unwanted relationships which they might want to get out and they don't know how, as the partner knows how to play them and keep them close, making them feel stuck.

I was also amazed to find a character from one of the previous books I read by Julie Caplin. Or at least I'm pretty sure that Nina from The Little Paris Patisserie made her appearance in this book as well.

And not last, I want to thank NetGalley for offering me the opportunity to listen to this book in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars...rounding up to 4.
This was a sweet romantic story about Hattie, Luc, a couple of weddings and champagne. I listened to the audio and really enjoyed the performance. I really enjoyed Hattie and Luc and Alfonze and Fliss. When Hattie moves to the French Chateau to escape her life and her boyfriend (who gave her an ultimatum - France or him) and plan her cousins wedding, things seemed to be against her planning the perfect wedding. She meets Luc who lives at the chateau, and a cast of wonderful characters such as Salonge, Alfonze, Marthe and even Yvette (names may be spelt incorrectly as I listened to audio). French food and wine and making of the champagne played a large role in the story too which was lovely to read about. A few bumps along the road but we get a great ending. Such a sweet story.

I enjoyed listening to this book from start to finish. The narration was excellent and very easy to listen to, with each character's voice being quite distinctive. The story itself was gentle, interesting, and developed well. Characters were fun and well fleshed out. A definite success for Julie Caplin.

When hattie is offered the chance to organise her cousins wedding in France she jumps at the chance. This is exactly what she needs to kick start her wedding planning business not to mention it gets her away from her dead end relationship. But will romance find her while she is organising someone else's romantic day?

I enjoyed this book. A little slow moving compared to what I usually read but not in a bad way. It was the perfect book to read while enjoying the sun.

The descriptions of France were beautiful and made me want to visit for myself. A good relaxing summer read.