Member Reviews

The Paris Cooking School is a wonderful unexpected romantic story with wounded characters who meet at an exclusive cooking school in hopes of taking their minds off of their problems by learning to cook. Never expecting anything other than trying to make sense of their problems, what happens is a bit of romance, fun and also a mystery to try and solve. The theme of the story...love...which happens in so many different ways.

Sylvie is the owner of The Paris Cooking School. She has a partner and a son who assist. The school itself has been a favorite for years with people traveling from all over the world to be taught by Sylvie. But suddenly, Sylvie discovers she has a problem. Someone is trying to shut her down. They have left bad reviews and put in a complaint with the food police. How and why can this be? This school is her life!

Kate is just coming out of a terrible marriage, although she had no idea how terrible until she found out her husband/business partner had been cheating on her. Heartbroken, she comes to the school to take her mind off of her problems, try something different and hope perhaps some of that Paris magic would come her way, never imagining what would become a life changing experience.

Gabi is an artist who created what everybody (but herself) calls a masterpiece! But Gabi has a terrible secret. She has been unable to paint or create for quite a while, always giving one excuse or another. As she tries to digest the inevitable loss of her career, she comes to The Paris Cooking School in the hopes of finding some sort of creativeness in order to move through this artistic block. But what Gabi discovers about herself will change her perspective on everything.

These three women will have extraordinary experiences during this session of The Paris Cooking School. They will learn valuable lessons which will change them as they move on in their lives but most importantly will discover in themselves the strengths and friendships which they will take with them forever.

The Paris Cooking School is a lovely story with characters who are strong and resilient but will discover who they really are and what they really want out of life through a remarkable change of events.

Thank you #NetGalley #AlcovePress #SophieBeaumont #TheParisCookingSchool for the advanced copy.

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So much fun! I really enjoyed this book. Anything with beautiful food writing is exciting. Great sense of setting and characters.

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Loved this. I really enjoyed everything about this. I loved the story completely. It will stay with me for a long time. I appreciate that the author has very strong voice - one I really enjoy.

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I really enjoyed this story about three women whose stories intertwine at a Paris cooking school. Told in alternating POVs we get to know Australians, Gabi and Katie looking for a fresh start and inspiration in the city of lights and the school's owner and instructor, Sylvie. The women bond over a shared love of food and cooking and also find love in unexpected places. Full of amazing food descriptions and a love for all things French food, this was a feel good read that was also good on audio. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review! Perfect for fans of Julia Childs.

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I love women’s fiction novels that involve food. Throw in Paris and I’m more than definitely interested. The Paris Cooking School features a rather low-key cooking school in Paris that draws students from all over the world for its four week course. This time around, two women from Australia enroll, both needing an escape from Australia, and learning to cook the French way is just what they need. I don’t read many books featuring Australian characters, so it sounded like a fun twist on something familiar. Unfortunately, the cooking part took a minimalist approach to the point where the actual cooking in the school was practically non-existent, and romance was clearly in the driver’s seat.

Sylvie runs the Paris Cooking School, an idea that sparked when she was wandering the famed gardens at Monet’s home with her then young son. Years later, the school is thriving and her son is off across the world on an adventure of his own, and baseless complaints are starting to besiege the school. Not to mention she’s decided to take a hard line with her lover who, for whatever reason, won’t disentangle himself from his ex-wife. Gabi is an artist from Australia, but, after the success of her first show, she’s found her muse missing. So she heads to Paris to attend the cooking school, hoping to find inspiration there, possibly in the form of a handsome man who sells cheese. Kate is recently divorced after her ex-husband’s shocking betrayal, so romance is the last thing on her mind and a few weeks cooking in Paris, a place she once visited with her ex on an extremely packed schedule, is just the thing she needs. Romance isn’t part of her plans, but an adorable dog might have other plans for her owner and Kate.

First of all, I liked Sylvie and her love interest Serge, as well as the dog Nina. They were absolutely lovely. Nina was adorable and so full of energy, but still such a good dog. Every time she was on page, I felt her enthusiasm for everything, and it was kind of infectious, though that might also be because literally nothing else excited me about this novel. Sylvie and Serge have a lovely friendship that predictably progresses to more, and I just really liked how mature it was, though Serge was also kind of passive, letting Sylvie do with him what she wanted. His character, though, was delightful, and I really loved him outside of his romance with Sylvie.

There’s a bit of mystery woven into the story with Sylvie having to deal with someone trying to besmirch the Paris Cooking School. Someone clearly is out to get her, and she has to figure out who and why. This ended up feeling a little crammed into the second half and largely forgotten in the first half. I’m also completely bewildered about why Sylvie trusted Kate so much after just a few classes to bring her in on the problems, all because Kate has some tech experience after creating an app with her ex-husband. I don’t think Kate added anything at all to this, and Sylvie was able to handle it quite admirably. I liked the way the mystery wrapped up; I just wish it had had more of a presence.

Most of The Paris Cooking School is given over to the romance each woman has. That meant the cooking was all but glossed over, with scenes skipping from Sylvie introducing different dishes to the characters sitting down and enjoying what everyone made. There’s cooking, but certainly none that I can remember actually happening in the school. Instead, Kate’s and Gabi’s love interests did a lot more cooking for the women than anything else. I love books about food because I usually learn something from them. All I really picked up from this one was that there are really a lot of different kinds of cheese, but more on that later. Instead, the focus was really on the three women falling in love. Sylvie’s was probably my favorite, but also kind of crammed into the second half so it never got any real space to realistically blossom and progress. There aren’t really any hints about it until, suddenly, they’re basically in bed. Kate’s was sweet and slow, because both she and Arnaud had been hurt in the past. I liked how it felt more like a friendship on both sides, but they were clearly always going to get together. Gabi’s was fast and flashed hot and cold. It was kind of a roller coaster. She and Max were fun together, but clearly aren’t masters of communication, though I think Gabi’s characterization contributed a lot to that, not that Max seemed much better, though.

Of the three women, Sylvie felt the most levelheaded. She’s older and more settled, and Paris is her home. Actually, aside from being frustrated with her lover and sad her son is so far away, she was kind of bland. I didn’t even get the sense that she was Parisian; she just felt like an ordinary woman, one without anything interesting about her. Kate felt very much like a tourist, taking every chance to explore the city. Reading from her perspective made me think I was reading a tourist’s guide to Paris. There was a lot of interesting information about places I didn’t know about, but it was definitely info dumping with big paragraphs that sounded like they’d been lifted from a guide. Other than her evident love and enjoyment of Paris, I didn’t really get a strong sense of who she was. She was there, she helped out, she liked Nina, otherwise her sudden closeness to Sylvie was kind of out of left field, like it was a plot point but the transition wasn’t complete, so it instead felt like I was jumping from plot point to plot point. Gabi is the artist looking for inspiration, and that comes across loud and clear. She’ll do anything to find her muse, and will run hot and cold on a whim. I felt her frustration and anger, as well as her joy when she was creating and discovering. She felt the most real to me, with good and bad points, but she was also just a little too much to the point where she completely overshadowed everyone else.

I was most disappointed, though, by the strawberry tart promised on the cover. I can only recall three mentions of it, and I was so hoping it was something the students were going to be making. But not only was there no real cooking done by the students, there were also very few mentions of the tart. It comes back at the end, supposedly as the symbol for something, but that isn’t followed throughout the story. Instead, this focused on the women’s romances, which completely had nothing to do with a strawberry tart. Amusingly, though, there’s a ton of cheese. This is so cheese-filled I started to wonder why cheese didn’t feature on the cover. I lost count of how many times cheese was mentioned. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book with so much cheese before. This novel just managed to not feel cheesy. Definitely give certain parts of this book a try if you love cheese and want to read about several different kinds.

The Paris Cooking School could have offered so much. It had all the ingredients I love in this kind of book, but all of them let me down. I didn’t even really enjoy exploring Paris because it read more like a tourist’s guide than anything else. The other cooking students were mostly forgettable with no real personalities of their own, and there were three men I could not for the life of me keep straight. I liked that Kate hung out with them a lot, and some great character development for all of them could have happened here, but all it did was highlight how wonderful and friendly Kate is, so of course Sylvie should trust her and make her an offer Kate can’t refuse towards the end. I still don’t understand why Sylvie thinks Kate is so great. Sure, she loves Paris, but she also clearly has a loving family waiting for her in Australia, and, well, the ties Kate and Gabi have to Australia are never really addressed. This really just read as a series of plot points with three fairly generic women going through the motions and the men doomed to follow along after them. The transitions were only half baked and not something I could stomach. Unfortunately, this one missed the mark for me, but someone who loves reading about different places in Paris and romance might enjoy it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

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In Paris...

Everyone is looking for something in Paris, as is Gabi and Kate.
Sylvie is the owner of the Paris cooking cook and has her own problems.
See? Even in the city of light, there are thorns.

Engaging and I somehow now want a croissant and butter and chocolate.
Recommend.

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This book was gripping and hard to put down. It didn't feel like everything else you see out there, it felt very fresh. I really enjoyed this book!

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The Paris cooking school by Sophie Beaumont...
They had me at Paris and cooking!
Gabby and Kate are each struggling with their current place in life, where they are and where they're going. Sylvie, owner of the Paris Cooking School, has her own challenges - with a man and with an unknown person waging of vendetta against the school. Can coming together in springtime in Paris, over food, provide a way forward for each of these women? Friendship, mystery, romance... A lovely story but I wish she focused a little bit more on the cooking/food aspect. Still, a good read that I would rate 3.5 ⭐s

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I enjoyed reading The Paris Cooking School by Sophie Beaumont. You will fall in love with all the characters. I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely. Happy Reading!

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I was drawn to this book as I do love cooking and food as well as reading. And of course the blurb grabbed my attention too. A lovely story of three women which brings love, hope and food together to make the perfect read. The descriptiveness of the setting and the food will make you hungry not just for food but for life and travel as well.

I went on a journey and I enjoyed this journey as the writing really makes you feel as if you are there. The three women, Kate, Gabi and Sylvie are women I want to know and want to take strength from. But the best thing is that all the characters as well as the food and setting brought something wonderful to this story. But I do wish there would have been a few recipes included as this would have made it 5 stars for me! 4 1/2 stars from me for this one.

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

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Do not read while hungry! I made that mistake and Sophie Beaumont’s food descriptions caused a real issue - especially because I wouldn’t be able to make any of the food without attending a cooking school myself! Food aside, all of the descriptions in this book are beautiful - the characters, the scenery, the stories! The writing is very well done.
This is a story told from three perspectives, and while the branches do intersect at the titular cooking school, I did feel like there was very little crossover between the main characters and kept waiting for a deeper connection between the three. I also was more drawn to two of the stories and the third fell a bit flat for me - while Kate and Sylvie connect and grow through the cooking school, Gabi makes her own path in Paris and the school was more of an afterthought in her narrative. Though I thought Gabi’s story was disparate from the others when it comes to the school, the common theme of self-discovery runs strong in all three perspectives and I did enjoy following the path of each woman. Overall a good read, inspiring a desire to travel, a hankering for French cuisine, and self-reflection.

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Thank you to @netgalley @alcovepress and the author for the gifted copy of the e-book.

The vivid descriptions of food, cooking, and the French setting were absolutely captivating. The characters Kate and Gabi were incredibly resilient as they embarked on a journey of self-discovery. They meet Sylvie, the owner of the Paris Cooking School as they embark on a 4-week cooking course. Despite facing adversity from someone attempting to sabotage the school, Sylvie, remained truly inspiring. The delightful supporting characters added an extra layer of charm to the story.

If you're a fan of food, self-discovery, and the enchanting city of Paris, I recommend this book. Mark your calendar for its release on August 6th.

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The book title and blurb captured me immediately, because I love to cook/bake, travel and also lived in Europe for four years. It would be an absolute dream to attend a Parisian cooking school with a friend or my husband. Give me an interesting book set in Paris or Italy and I'm a sucker for it every time. The Paris Cooking School has a mix of culture, food, a beautiful setting, friendship and a little romance. I will say that this was a light and predictable read, but if you enjoy the art of cooking then you'll find it entertaining enough. It was lacking in strong plot development and character depth but all in all an easy read. It would be fine as a palette cleanser, but not something to read if you're looking for emotion, depth or strong character development. I feel like based on the premise of the book, throwing in a few recipes would have been a nice touch to the book. Recommend reading this book with a good latte/coffee and a buttery croissant.

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Oh April in Paris! Kate and Gabi meet when they sign up for cooking lessons from Sophie. Kate's struggling with her marriage and Kate with artist's block. Things aren't so easy for Sophie either-someone seems to be targeting her. This is very much about three women bonding and supporting one another. It's a light read that will make you hungry and want to get on a plane to Paris! Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Good lazy day read.

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I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I enjoyed this book and think you will to.

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This book is sweet and very well written. I loved the food descriptions and the cooking school students. The Paris setting is wonderful. You feel like you are actually in the city. The food aspect is perfect for foodies. You can almost taste what they’re cooking.

However, I sometimes got bored with their stories. It was almost too much drama and not enough plot to keep the drama interesting. I do feel like things tie together neatly at the end. But the book felt too slow for me to give it more than 3 stars.

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This sweet book was impossible to put down. It was just what I was looking for: a cozy kitchen fiction, with good character growth, interesting challenges, and plenty of descriptions of food. I particularly liked Kate’s storyline and transformation through the book.

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Loved the premise and the setting, however the novel itself fell short in every way imaginable. I do not recommend it.

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I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great book. I enjoyed it a lot!

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A very lιgнт and engagιng вooĸ!

A ғoody delιgнт aт Parιѕ wιтн a connecтιon тo Aυѕтralιa ιѕ all нere. Тwo мaιn ғeмale cнaracтerѕ , ĸaтe & Gaвι ғroм Aυѕтralιa cнooѕe тo learn Ғrencн ғood aт Тнe Parιѕ Cooĸιng Ѕcнool wнιcн ιѕ rυn вy anoтнer lady, Ѕylvιa. Тнree oғ тнeм нave тнeιr own perѕonal тroυвleѕ тнaт тнey ѕтυмвle υpon, yeт тнe ѕcнool gιveѕ тнeм a reaѕon тo re-connecт wιтн тнeмѕelveѕ and тaĸe a leap тowardѕ тнeιr нappιneѕѕ and ѕelғ-growтн.

Ι enjoyed тнιѕ lιттle ғrencн delιgнт & ιт мade мe wanт тo rυѕн тo Parιѕ aѕap! Ι loved тнoѕe deѕcrιpтιonѕ oғ ғood & тнe мenтιon oғ вaĸerιeѕ all aroυnd. Loved тнe ιdea oғ тнe вooĸ тнaт eхplaιnѕ "Lιғe rarely ѕerveѕ υp тнe perғecт dιѕн, вυт ѕecond cнanceѕ are alwayѕ on тнe мenυ"

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