My Thoughts :
We meet Nina, she has been in a job for years which she hates and an unhappy marriage for even longer.
When she receives her divorce papers on her 40th birthday, she decides thats it, no more playing it safe, she wants to start living her life and the time is now.
Going online, Nina decides on a house swap, she will go to live in France whille which the other person, businessman Jean-Luc comes to live in her house in England. She thinks this is the perfect answer as her first love Pierre, who she met in her teens on an exchange programe came from there and she has always wondered and toyed with the what ifs!.
As Nina settles into life in France, meets some new friends and builds her confidence, will she get the chance to re live her youth or is there much more out there for her to explore?!.
This story is pure escapism at its best. Gillian Harvey fully delivers the sights, sounds and tastes of France and will leave the reader wanting more.

A really nice story with lovely (mostly) characters. For me it was a little slow to start with, but it was so worth persisting. I just wish there was an epilogue. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Nina is 40, newly single and entirely predictable.
She decides, after much dithering, to track down an old love in France and dies a house swap.
She meets some nice people and also reconnects with Pierre who is something else.
I like the throwing caution to the wind theme because I often dream of doing that but am too afraid.
I wanted the book to end in a certain way and it sort of left me in limbo.

Nina has spent her life staying firmly within her comfort zone. Her 40th birthday has now arrived, and none of her 'safe' choices has turned out quite how she expected - something made very clear when the anticipated birthday card she opens turns out to be her final divorce papers. It is time to shake up her life a bit and tick off some of those things that have been waiting on her bucket list for far too long.

Reflecting on the past reminds Nina of handsome Pierre, who she met on a French student exchange holiday when she was seventeen, and in a burst of adventurous spirit she decides that a trip to the town where she fell in love might be just the thing to set her on a new path. The ideal opportunity just happens to present itself on a house swap website, so she sets off for a month at a beautiful villa near Nice, while its owner, Jean-Luc, comes to stay in her Victorian terrace in St Albans. Will Pierre still be there? And, if so, could that passionate flame be rekindled?

Gillian Harvey's latest gorgeous, French escapade is a delightful play on The Holiday, which finds forty-year-old Nina picking up the threads of the life her seventeen-year-old self might have had. The story unfurls in two timelines, following Nina's French adventure in the present and the events of the exchange trip in the past that have always stayed with her, which combine to make this something of a coming of age journey for both her forty-year-old and seventeen-year-old-selves.

Harvey floods this book with her trademark themes of friendship, family, and second chances in picturesque France, and the way she explores teenage notions of love is poignantly relatable. There are lovely (and not so lovely) characters to get to know, with storylines that weave romantic suspense and luscious humour throughout - the text and email conversations Nina has with her friends and parents in St Albans, and her lists of Pros and Cons around pivotal decisions are especially comedy gold. But what really makes the story is the relationship Nina develops with tender-heared Antoine and his sister, free-spirited Sabine, in France, who help her on the way to a new destiny. 

This book sums up everything I have come to love in Harvey's enchanting stories, carrying you away on an escapist tide to a warm and ahh-filled ending full of hope. Perfect for snuggling up with on the sofa while the unseasonable rain falls outside.

BLOG TOUR REVIEW


Review for 'The Riviera House Swap' by Gillian Harvey.

WOW!!!! What can I say?!?! What an absolutely beautiful book that I fell in love with!!! I cannot wait to read more books by this extremely talented author!

This book is stunningly written with vivid descriptions setting the picture perfectly in the readers mind. The title, description and cover works perfectly with the storyline.

This book is an absolutely gorgeous escapism!! If you enjoyed the film 'The Holiday' then you will absolutely fall in love with gorgeous French escape! It is an absolute rollercoaster ride of emotions filled with humour, romance, friendship, second chances, love, loss, and so much more. I was completely swept away with the storyline and loved having a holiday in the beautiful French Riviera with Nina. Gillian does an absolutely fantastic job of weaving the present timeline in with the past when Nina was on a French exchange trip, timing the chapters in perfect sync with each other. I have never actually been to the French Riviera myself but thanks to Gillian's evocative writing skills it definitely felt like I was on a holiday there myself seeing the gorgeous surroundings, making friends and falling in love.
I absolutely loved each and every single moment of this beautiful read. I loved the amazing sights, adventures and the fantastic characters who I was devastated to say goodbye to as they had become like friends to me and they would make absolutely amazing best friends in reality! This book really is one of those stunning stories that you can read curled up on the sofa in front of a fire or laying on a beach getting a suntan. It doesn't matter where you read this book as Gillian will whisk you away to the beautiful French Riviera at the turn of a page!. I was utterly glued to the pages and I could not bring myself to put it down. I was carrying my phone and kindle around every chance that I got. I adored the gorgeous ending and would love to see this book turned into a series. I don't want to say anything else about the storyline as I don't want to give to much away as this is one of those gorgeous books that you just have to read for yourself!! I would seriously recommend this book to anyone and everyone but especially to fans of the stunning film 'The Holiday' which also happens to be one of my favourite feel good films!!! A gorgeous uplifting page turner that will warm your hearts 💝 Well done Gillian on an absolutely stunning and unputdownable success!!

Clear your schedules as this is one gorgeous and unputdownable stunner ❤️

I absolutely loved these amazing, strong characters who captivated my heart from the very first moment I met each of them, especially our main protagonist Nina who is such a friendly, relatable and amazing woman! I was completely invested in her from the moment I met her and was rooting for her throughout!. Gillian does an absolutely fantastic job creating this stunning storyline and bringing it alive to the readers. Gillian weaves the multiple timeline chapters together absolutely superbly to give us a deeper insight into Nina's past and present. Each of the characters are relatable, strong, realistic and I became completely invested in each and every one of them. They all had their own unique personalities and I just absolutely loved getting to know them all. I felt each of their love, friendship, pain, heartbreak, happiness, sorrow and so much more. I really was rooting for Nina throughout the pages and hoping that she would find the happiness that she more than deserved. Gillian does an absolutely amazing job of bringing the story to life and the characters leap out of the pages as your turning them thanks to her amazing evocative writing skills!! It is so hard to say more about what I feel about the characters without giving anything away so I won't say anymore about them as I don't want to go into too much detail at the risk of spoiling it for other readers but Gillian really has done an amazing job at bringing each of the characters to life and I am missing them already. Well done Gillian!!!

Congratulations Gillian on an absolutely gorgeous, escapism filled with everything you could one in a page turner!!! I am looking forward to reading more of your previous and future books. I would absolutely love to see this book turned into a movie!!! This is the exact reason I would like to welcome you to my favourite author list and here's to your next success 🥂

Overall an absolutely gorgeous book that will take on holiday to the stunning French Riviera and warm your heart ❤️!!!

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Enjoyable travel romance

This is a very enjoyable travel romance about a woman of a certain age, newly divorced, who swaps her almost-sold house to see whether she can recapture the romance from a long-ago school exchange in France. Obviously not literary fiction, but a great choice for the summer beach or backyard read.

Thanks you to the publisher who lent me an e-arc via Netgalley. This review is optional and my own opinion.

Gillian Harvey is a prolific and popular author who writes escapist stories often set in France, where she lived for fourteen years. This is the first novel of hers that I have read and I doubt it will be the last.

The female heroine Nina recently divorced and forty has decided that her life is somewhat dull and predictable. She decides it is time for her to do something spontaneous, which for her is unknown. A decision to do a house swap in France for a month and see if she can reconnect with her first love, leads to a journey of self discovery.

Humour with a touch of romance that I found a quick dose of escapism. Recommended if that is what you are looking for at the moment.

With thanks to Netgalley, Boldwood Books and the author for the opportunity to read and review.

It's a lovely tale of revisiting the past, self-discovery and taking chances after a house swap. Nina has just turned forty, is newly divorced, and has an unrewarding job. She revisits her past and finds her first love from twenty years ago; Nina is a complex character, somewhat naive for her age but likeable. The story, told from her viewpoint, has flashbacks to her first French experience and explores relationships with new friends. Friendship, humour and poignancy make this an engaging read. I like the French setting, Nina's character development and her dynamic with her new and old friends.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

The Riviera House Swap by Gillian Harvey

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Would you swap houses with a stranger? Nina has always played it safe. But when her divorce papers come through on her fortieth birthday she decides enough is enough.

She’s always chosen the sensible route, staying in her stable job and marrying her rather boring ex. In fact – she realises – she’s chosen security over excitement for years. Ever since she refused to elope with her first beautiful, poetic, thoughtful Pierre, the man she met aged 17, on her French exchange. The only man who ever made her heart race.

Maybe it’s time to take a few risks?

Impulsively she goes online and finds another kind of French exchange… a house-swap. She can’t imagine what French businessman Jean-Luc wants with her terraced home in rural England, but she can’t wait to stay in his beautiful, spacious, bougainvillea-strewn villa on the French riviera.

She’s not just there for the house though. She’s decided to find the love she missed all those years ago. But will Pierre still be the man of her dreams after all this time?

As two lives collide, will love bloom on the French riviera? A gorgeously escapist story for fans of The Holiday, from the bestselling author of A Year at the French Farmhouse.

My Opinion

Nina is on a journey of self-discovery, she has just turned 40 and has just finalised her divorce - why not join her for this journey? This is a delightful tale with a second chance romance when Nina embarks on a journey to find Pierre, her teenage crush. Pretty quickly this book had me hooked as I do enjoy Gillian Harvey's writing style.

Have you got your bags packed for a trip to the French Riviera?

Rating 4/5

An enjoyable read, perfect for the summer holidays or a weekend in the garden or relaxing on the sofa.

If you’ve seen The Holiday with Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet (my most favourite movie ever btw), then you’ll be familiar with what a house swap entails. It does exactly what it says on the tin - two people swap houses - anywhere in the world - for an agreed amount of time. This is exactly what The Riviera House Swap is.

I read most of this in one day, when it was pouring with rain outside, on the east coast of England, when it’s supposed to be summer. Gillian whisked me away to the south of France and even though it was November there, I still imagined glorious summer days, eating buttery croissants and drinking rich sweet coffee in pavement cafes.

The Riviera House Swap is set across two timelines, the present day and brief interludes when our protagonist, Nina, is seventeen and on a French exchange with her school. Nina is currently fed-up and forty and starts to wonder just what might have been.....

No spoilers here, but I really, really would like to know what happens to Nina next. Any chance of a sequel, Gillian?

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review The Riviera House Swap by Gillian Harvey.

I would firstly just like to say a big thank you to Rachel’s Random Resources who very kindly forwarded me an arc copy of this book, for my kindle, in return for my honest review…

This is the first book that i have read from this author but i loved the sound of the blurb so decided to give it a go! I am so glad that i did because, i thoroughly enjoyed it.

The Riviera House Swap was pure escapism and the more that i read, the more that i wanted to go and escape to France!!

Nina was a wonderful, well rounded, down-to-earth character and i really enjoyed getting to know her and what was going on in her life…

There was also a handful of characters who were a wonderful part of the story too and made great additions to the storyline…

I really enjoyed this book and it is a story of second chances and self discovery and a wonderful, feel-good story…..

When Nina receives divorce papers on her 40th birthday she knows it is time for a change. She has been quite conservative, staying in a job she didn't love for 15 years, in a marriage where she wasn't happy. It's time to do something new.

When she thinks back, the moment where she was happiest was when she met a handsome French boy named Pierre while she was on a school exchange programme when she was 15 years old. What if he was really The One. I mean, Pierre and Nina had intended to elope and live happily ever after but it didn't end up happening...obviously.

With the divorce going through and her house for sale, Nina knows that her immediate fate is to move into her parents house. And so, in a moment of madness, Nina finds a house exchange with a man named Jean-Luc. She will travel to his house on the French Riviera and he will come to England to live in the house that she is about to sell.

Once she arrives at Jean-Luc's house she meets his siblings, Sabine and Antoine, and soon they too are helping her in her attempts to track Pierre down. It doesn't actually take long but the question whether Pierre remembers Nina with as much fondness as she does him.

I always really enjoy Gillian Harvey's books and this was no exception. When this book was announced I felt quite surprised. We had already had a new book this year (the excellent Bordeaux Book Club) so this was a bonus!

What do I love about her books? I love the taste of France that she brings to life in each and every story. While each book is about expats living in France, it is always a different aspect of life. In this case, Nina is just planning to be in France for a month rather than moving there. I would be very happy to find myself living in France for a month, although I would be with my husband and not looking for a long lost love.

I did like this book, although Nina does make some strange choices! I really liked the friendships that Nina built with Sabine and Antoine, as well as the friends from home. There was a lovely little side story as well.

Once again, Gillian Harvey brings us a very readable about life in France. I just read on her socials that she has moved back to the UK after 10 years in France. I will be interested to see if there comes a point where she starts writing about life in the UK or if her love for France will sustain her through a few more books yet.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and Rachel's Random Resources for the review copy. Be sure to check out other stops on the tour below to see what others thought.

I am sharing this review with the New Release Challenge hosted at The Chocolate Lady's Book Review Blog.

The novel is a charming tale of second chances and self-discovery, following Nina, a recently divorced woman in her forties. After years of choosing safety and routine, Nina's life changes when she participates in a house swap, trading her home in rural England for a villa on the French Riviera. This decision is spurred by her desire to rekindle a romance with Pierre, her teenage love.

In France, Nina befriends the siblings of Jean-Luc, the villa's owner, whose support helps her overcome initial uncertainties. The novel explores Nina's emotional journey as she searches for Pierre, blending hope, fear, and nostalgia. The story keeps readers engaged, wondering if Nina's reunion with Pierre will fulfill her dreams or lead to heartbreak. Ultimately, the novel celebrates taking risks, embracing change, and the enduring power of following one's dreams.

I enjoyed this story! Nina is going through a divorce and decides to head back to France to find her old love. The one that she met at 17 when she was on an exchange. She arranges a house swap with Jean Luc, who is looking for a place in England to stay. So she heads to France to spend time in the place she enjoyed for her exchange and tries to reconnect with her old love Pierre. Will she find her second chance romance? You’ll have to read to find out.


My thoughts:
I recently read and loved Gillian Harvey’s Bordeaux Book Club and I was excited to get this ARC and be transported to France again. I loved the story of Nina finding her groove again and possibly a new romance. After returning to France she meets Pierre, her old love again, and develops new friendships. I love her friendships both in England and in France.


Thanks to @boldwoodbooks, @netgalley, and the author of this ARC

After turning forty, Nina recently got divorced and thought back on her life. After fifteen years at the same work, she believes it's time for a change. Nina decided to leave her work because she felt it was time to travel to France and embark on an adventure. Nina is heading to France to try to find the young man she met there when she was a 17-year-old student exchange participant, after setting up an online house swap. She recalls their correspondence and their common interest from her time back in England. She's eager to follow him wherever life leads him because she thinks she's discovered him online. She meets the brother and sister of the person she switched places. She meets the brother and sister of the guy she exchanged residences with while in France, and she quickly becomes friendly with them both. After discovering her youthful love, Nina must make some important choices regarding her future. Will she ever find contentment with the love and teenage crush she lost touch with so many years ago? Is Nina putting herself in a position where she will be let down and hurt?

This novel is a delightful exploration of second chances, self-discovery, and the courage to take risks. The novel follows Nina, a newly divorced woman in her forties, as she embarks on a journey to rediscover herself and rekindle an old flame from her teenage years.

Nina's life has been all about routine and safety. She's been trapped in a boring routine with her ex-husband and stable job. She doesn't seem to have that spark anymore. The story begins with Nina reflecting on her life choices, realizing she has consistently chosen safety over excitement ever since she turned down a chance to elope with her first love, Pierre, during a French exchange program when she was just 17. This epiphany sets the stage for the adventure that follows.

In an impulsive move to shake up her life, Nina decides to participate in a house swap. She exchanges her quaint terraced home in rural England for a luxurious villa on the French Riviera, owned by a French businessman named Jean-Luc. The allure of the swap isn't just the beautiful villa but also the chance to track down Pierre, the poetic and thoughtful boy who once made her heart race.

Upon her arrival, Nina quickly befriends Jean-Luc's siblings, who add depth and warmth to the narrative. Their easy camaraderie and supportive presence provide a contrast to Nina's initial uncertainty and loneliness. Harvey skillfully develops these relationships, highlighting the importance of friendship and support in personal growth and new beginnings.

The core of the story, however, lies in Nina's quest to find Pierre. The anticipation builds as Nina traces her teenage love, leading to a series of heartfelt and sometimes humorous encounters. Harvey handles Nina's emotional journey with sensitivity and realism, capturing the mixture of hope, fear, and nostalgia that comes with rekindling a past romance.

As Nina reconnects with Pierre, she faces a series of decisions. Harvey keeps readers guessing about whether Nina's teenage love will live up to her dreams or lead to disappointment and heartbreak. This uncertainty propels the narrative forward, making it a page-turner filled with emotional depth and genuine moments of introspection.

This is a story about taking risks, embracing change, and the power of stepping out of one's comfort zone. Gillian Harvey's tale is a real feel-good story that reminds us it's never too late to follow our dreams and find what makes us happy.

Thank you Netgalley, Gillian Harvey, and Boldwood Books for the ebook! This was Under the Tuscan Sun meets The Holiday! A story about taking risks and finding oneself and learning that it's never too late to do either! Really enjoyed!!

This delightful tale is the first book I’ve read from the author and I instantly added other novels by Gillian Harvey to my TBR list!

Nina is newly divorced after turning 40 and reflects on her life. She’s been at the same job for the past 15 years and feels it’s time for a change. Deciding to quit to her job, Nina feels it’s time to find herself and start an adventure in France.

After arranging a house swap online, Nina is traveling to France in hopes of tracking down the young man she met there during a student exchange program when she was 17. She remembers the passion they shared and the letters they wrote when she returned home to England. Believing she’s found on him online, she’s excited to see where life took him.

While in France, she meets the sister and brother of the person she swapped houses with and a fast and easy friendship is developed with both of them.

Nina ends up finding her teenage love and has some big decisions to make about her future. Will she find happiness with the teenage crush and love she fell out of contact all those years ago? Or is Nina setting herself up for disappointment and heartbreak?

This was a quick and fun 4 star read for me! It releases Tuesday June 11th so make sure to get a copy for yourself!

Just ok for me. It was clear that Pierre was a cad from the start, surely over 20 years later someone would have explained that to Nina. Not sure how she made it to 40 lacking such common sense. Her friends really should have set her straight before such a big trip. But they seemed a little selfish too. The whole thing with Sabine was at first annoying then more interesting than any romance in the book. But again I found Nina’s lack of common sense annoying by just assuming she was so much older than Sabine or Antoine.