From the very first page I was intrigued! “The Paris Novel” is great read. From new territory and memories of a broken past this book will keep you entranced and wondering what happened next. You won’t be bored reading “The Paris Novel”! There may be triggers if you don’t like forced touches.

Around the Year in 52 Books 2024: 5. A book set in one of the 25 most beautiful cities in the world
Spring 2024 Rainbow Cover Challenge: White

I've long been an admirer of Ruth Reichl. I love her memoirs, use her recipes, and think she's had an amazing life. As Gourmet's editor, she helped me learn to cook. The only thing I have not enjoyed that I have read by her is her first novel, which was a big disappointment for me. Because I hadn't loved her fiction as much as the rest of her writing, I approached this book with a bit of trepidation.

However, I relaxed as I kept reading. The clunkiness of the writing in her earlier book has disappeared. Instead of trying to do too much, this book was clear in its aim. This book is a fairy tale set in Paris. It's a literary sort of tourism both of the past and of the city which Reichl clearly adores.

As with most fairy tales, the main character is a girl with a mother who was terrifying in life but who sets her daughter a posthumous challenge that ends up being transformative. Stella's mother, Celia, was not maternal. Celia's priorities were rising in society and the perks that brought her. Stella, neglected by her mother, abused by one of the men her mother brought into her life, made safety and predictability her own priorities. Stella had made a life for herself in New York City that wasn't glamorous but was controlled. Upon her mother's death, though, she found that her inheritance was meant only for her to go to Paris and spend it.

Stella manages to get to Paris but can't break from keeping herself tightly to schedule, safe, practical, and mundane. It takes a magical dress and a sort of fairy godfather to rip her from her routine and begin to explore ways to make a way to explore life passionately instead of keeping resolutely to the narrow path of the practical.

Reichl uses the book to introduce Stella and the reader to some of the literary and culinary personalities of the Paris of her youth. Stella begins to learn more about herself and finds herself enthusiastically pursuing paintings of a female 19th century painter who was disdained and kept from art's inner circle by her male contemporaries. I liked the idea of Stella believing that there was more to this artist than met the eye and this subplot was a way to keep the book moving forward. It also gave Stella, who was generally a very passive character, something to do.

There are no huge surprises and there is a happily-ever-after. Although I wouldn't call this book world changing literature, it was an enjoyable place for me to go to escape into a world of food, art, fashion and travel, filled with kind characters. It's light and frothy despite dipping its toe into some difficult areas with Stella's past. It's a wonderful improvement as a second novel.

This story definitely inspired some wonderlust for me. I just felt that the glamour should have been more and there should have been more of a direction for the story to go.

1980's Paris with fashion, food and art - who could resist. I absolutely loved this novel and it's feast. Take a glass of wine, get comfortable and enjoy this delicious story.

Ruth has done it again! This is a feast for all the senses! What a delight this book is. It takes me straight to the streets of Paris and will definitely become another go to for all my Paris literature recommendations. I absolutely devoured and savored it. Will go back to it again and again- will revisit it and carry it with me like an old friend!

Stella St. Vincent is a young woman who is a shy, introverted book editor, very withdrawn into herself. Her estranged mother is outgoing, always surrounded by men, and the life of every party. When her mother dies, she leaves her a one-way ticket to Paris along with the note "go to Paris." Stella complies, takes a leave of absence from her job, ends up making quite a personal transformation, and finds herself, in spite of herself!

The setting was Paris in the 1980's. We encounter food, restaurants, chefs, art, fashion, the Shakespeare & Company bookstore, books, and reading. All the things I absolutely love in a book. She meets people along the way who befriend her and help her out. She has a wonderful way of expressing herself, whether it's eating an oyster, viewing a beautiful painting, wearing couture fashion, or looking at Parisian street life.

The author has such a way of transporting the reader to the locale, in this case - Paris! I have read several other books by Ruth Reichl and find this to be true of all of her writings. I really love reading her books and would highly recommend this new novel, her second. It is due to be published April 23, 2024. Run, don't walk, to your local library or bookstore, grab it and read it --you won't be disappointed. While you are at it, check out her first novel, Delicious, published in 2014, along with all of her non-fiction books. Be aware of content warnings for this book.

Thanks to NetGalley for this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Read more of my reviews at https://thegoodreader13.blogspot.com/.

Ruth Reichl has written a lovely, nostalgic book about difficult family relationships, books, art, food, Paris, love, passion, and searches. All bundled together, this makes for an engaging and delightful story. There is a seemingly unnecessary section involving child abuse that is difficult to digest which kept me from marking this otherwise excellent book with five stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Random House Publishing Group for the opportunity to read this ARC.

If you’ve read and enjoyed this author’s food writing, then you are in for a treat. A novel set in Paris, full of lush descriptions of the people, and of course, the food. Stella, a cautious young woman who suffers from social anxiety, receives the unexpected gift of a ticket to Paris from the mother who abandoned her when she was a child. Deciding to embrace the adventure laid at her door, we readers get to enjoy all her charming encounters and decadent meals. A sweet and sincere story in great company!

I loved Stella's adventures in Paris. I love that her mom forced her to go (the only way to get her inheritance). The people she meets along the way are wonderful. On the other side of it, I was sad for Stella and the life she could. have had when her mom was alive! I understand her character and how she was portrayed but I really felt for her and why she was who she was (the complete opposite of her mother).
There was also a scene at the very beginning that caught me off guard and didn't have a trigger warning. It didn't match with the rest of the book (thankfully) and there wasn't too much detail.
Overall I will take away the descriptions of Paris and the food and it made me smile because I had a great trip to Paris and felt like I was exploring it with Stella! Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing for this sweet book! The whimsical cover is a great compliment to the story inside.

Charming, joyous, light and exciting. Reading this book was a brief respite from the oft-times negative world we can find ourselves in today.
Ruth Reichl's writing sets all the senses ablaze with her descriptive flair as so few writers can.

I'd like to thank Netgalley for an ARC of this book. In exchange, here is my honest review.

Ruth Reichl has a gift for transporting her readers to different locales through her descriptions. She is excellent at conveying Stella's life in France and at creating a cast of remarkable characters. I felt like I was in Paris in the 80s, living the rich life of a young woman on an adventure, discovering herself and what the world has to offer.

I loved the descriptions of the food, which is something that Reichl always does well.

However, I had a hard time with the pacing. I felt that a good portion of the book was devoted Stella's search for works by a female artist and her growing accustomed to life in Paris. And yet, in the final 15-20% of the book, she has multiple major life events happen, and we never get to spend enough time with her in these moments.

I also found Stella a bit flat. She was surrounded by so many dynamic characters that she felt pretty empty. Regardless, I enjoyed the book. If goodreads allowed a 3.5, I would have gone for that.

Although I ended up loving the book, I would have greatly appreciated a trigger warning. It would be highly inappropriate if the author to have included such a detailed traumatic event without having experienced it herself, but I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt. I enjoyed the arc of the plot, even though it is predictable. The way Reichl describes food is fun!

I’m so sorry, but I had to DNF. There is child abuse about 10% in and that’s an absolute hard pass for me. I wish there had been a warning in the beginning as I’ve seen other books do. I’ve heard amazing things about this author and wish her success, but this is not for me.

Stella is in Paris, far from her New York apartment. She sees herself as invisible early on this book, but, as time goes by, she finds herself in Paris and leads a self-assured life. To my delight, the author weaves her knowledge of food throughout the story. There is a good deal of name-dropping, famous French artists, clothing designers, and the like. Quite fun!

I have never been to Paris, but experiencing the city through Stella’s time there makes me long to visit. This novel brings back pleasant memories of reading a Ruth Reichl memoir, SAVE ME THE PLUMS. I’m glad to have the chance to read her fiction writing. Thank you, Random House and NetGalley, for giving me the chance to read and review an ARC of THE PARIS NOVEL.

Ruth Reicht is one of my very favorite authors. I did enjoy her latest "The Paris Novel", but I found that it was not as captivating as some of her other books, in my opinion.

Also, may want to check trigger warnings. There was some content towards the beginning of the book that I was caught off guard by, and might have chosen to skip reading this one if I knew it was included on the page.

Thank you to the publisher & NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Beautiful writing and an enjoyable read you will want to share/discuss with friends and book club members

While I wasn't crazy about the beginning because of the molesting, I did enjoy Stella discovering herself in Paris and the new possibilities of life.

A charming foodie novel from Ruth Reichl. I've seen other reviews that have expressed some disappointment, primarily because they are comparing it to Reichl's other books. Personally, I feel that comparing her works of fiction to her non-fiction isn't the best approach. Read as though this is a new-to-you author, and I believe you'll see the charm, and find the pleasure of the read. I particularly enjoyed the descriptions of Stella experiencing and appreciating new foods for the first time.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.

I am a big fan of Reichl’s many food based memoirs, so when I saw she wrote a work of fiction I was intrigued.

The Paris Novel has everything I loved from the memoirs, delicious food descriptions, transportive local, and juicy stories about people and places in the food and tourism industry.

This was a sweet story about a woman who goes to Paris as her mother’s final dying wish. Stella is pragmatic, safe and content, going to Paris she treats like anything else, a task with a check list, but an encounter at a vintage couture store sends the trip spiralling out of control and Stella is soon discovering things about her mother and herself she never knew.

If ever a book encompassed what it means to live that joie de vivre it is this one. I love a second act in life style book, and if you are going to set it in the City of Love and talk about all the divine cuisine and culture well good luck not enjoying this in some capacity.

The parts that shine of course are all the parts surrounding food, from restaurants, to mouthwatering descriptions, to markets, and cooking, you will feel that Reichl passion coming through. There is also a great found family, self discovery and hint of mystery and intrigue and even some love, oh la la, as they say.

This is a delectable slice of life, arm chair travel book that will have you digging out the passport and looking for a cheap European flight.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the digital arc all opinions are my own.

3.5 stars

New fiction from former Gourmet editor Ruth Reichl, food-centric as you might expect. This one has almost a Cinderella fairy tale quality about it and is set in the 1980s.

The main character, Stella, didn't have the best childhood. Her mother was a narcissist who was too involved with her own life to pay much attention to Stella, including a disturbing but brief episode in the book where Stella was molested. Her mother was bigger than life, vibrant, outgoing and Stella was quiet and a bit nerdy, but totally enchanted with art.

When her mother dies, Stella's meager inheritance requires her to go to Paris. And so begins Stella's transformation and magical interlude. The fairy godfather would be Jules, an old, cultured, wealthy Parisian who is in the art world and befriends Stella. Because of her background, she is suspicious. But Paris works her magic on Stella, and soon she is relaxing, opening her senses to new friendships, fabulous food, vintage fashion and the world of art and literature.

There are plenty of actual people who flit in and out of the book: Allen Ginsburg, James Baldwin, various chefs and artists. The food descriptions are wonderful and it is no surprise when Stella lives happily ever after. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.