The Paris Bookshop for the Broken-Hearted is poignant women’s fiction featuring a mother/daughter relationship, a community of readers, and a sweet side of romance.

Coco arrives in Paris after a breakup and losing her job. She and her daughter will move in with her parents until she can find a job, any job. Coco comes across a charming little bookshop complete with a cafe, a cocktail bar, and a reading room, and she’s offered a job. To her dismay, she sees the grumpy (handsome) man reading at the cocktail bar that she’s had an unpleasant encounter with recently. What are the chances? Can bookshops heal broken hearts?

Rebecca Raisin loves Paris, books about books, and romance, and l have found her to be a dependable author in women’s fiction. Her stories (those I’ve read) are closed door romances with limited (to zero) profanity for readers whose preferences are similar. I love that she writes books for book lovers. Have you read Rebecca Raisin? Do you have a favorite book?

One of the reasons I enjoy Rebecca Raisin is that her stories have substantial themes beyond romance. In other words, I would consider her books to fall into the women’s fiction category rather than romance. In this story, there is a focus on the mother/daughter relationship, family dynamics, a community of readers, and bullying. The romance element is there, but it’s a side and doesn’t necessarily drive the action.

As the title suggests, those that suffer from broken hearts are drawn to the bookstore. The owner seems to know what each person needs. This sprinkling of magic is enough to make the story fun and intriguing but is never annoying for readers who prefer not to entertain the idea. Even though I avoid magical realism, I enjoy the idea that bookshops, books, and a bookish community can all have a role in healing the brokenhearted.

Content Consideration: bullying

I’m warmly recommending Paris Bookshop for the Broken-Hearted for fans of Rebecca Raisin and books about books/bookshops, community, mother/daughter relationships, family drama, and sweet romance.

Thanks #NetGalley @BoldwoodBooks for a complimentary eARC of #TheParisBookshopForTheBrokenHearted upon my request. All opinions are my own.

The way this story was built up is perfect! I felt as though I could feel the atmosphere around me. All the characters truly felt alive!
This book made me feel as though I was curled up in the sun somewhere in Paris while I read it was amazing!

Thank you Netgalley for this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is yet another victim of using google translate for french sentences. It takes a few seconds of proper research to find out the gender of things. Like the least you could do when writing a book based in Paris with a French main character is triple check the french you use. Even when you will only have a few french sentences in the book.
Also, mentioning Rupi Kaur, several times, as an actual good poet was one step too far for me.

Putting those two things aside, cute concept, cute story. Lovely side characters, main character not so much.

This is a beautiful ode to love, to books and to friendship.
It pulled me in from the very first page and I’ve loved spending time getting to know Coco, Henri and Valerie.
The bookshop sounded so wonderful - a haven for lost souls hidden in the side streets of Paris - described as that place you’d stumble upon when you needed it most.
The warmth and feeling of community came from the whole story and hearing about how words and stories changed so many of our character’s lives was rather poetic.
The art of Kintsugi intrigued me and learning about how the flaws and breaks are fixed with the golden thread was a beautiful metaphor for how we are as humans - how life can damage us but how we’re often stronger as a result of the healing.
All the stars.

I'm in love with the city of Paris and books, so I've chosen this read for the title and the cover, but I've found so much more than a romantic story set in the city of love. The pages are filled with a difficult mother daughter relationship, a diverse group of friends, and an unexpected attraction for a charming, grumpy man.

The Paris Bookshop for the Broken-Hearted tells Coco's story. She is back to Paris after a bad break up, with a hostile daughter who hated to leave London, without a job, and with her savings getting lower and lower. A day, while strolling for the city's streets she finds a bookshop that gives her a job, a new group of friends, and a new hope.

Coco is understandably shook by the chain of events that forced her to reconsider and rearrange her lifestyle choices, but I've appreciated how she doesn't give in to self-pity, and she is ready to roll up her sleeves and start anew.

"Lovebirds with damaged wings are always hesitant."

I liked how Rebecca Raisin builds up her stories: Paris is perfectly drawn, you can feel the vibrant atmosphere, the pace is good, the characters are lively and endearing, and the emotions flow out of the book and they hit right to the heart.

I highly recommend to get this novel, and let you dream about walking through the Parisian boulevard under a warm spring sun.

I really loved the book. Taking place in the romantic city of Paris, the city of lights and love.
A delightful romance but the book didn’t solely focus on romance. It was female friendships, mother daughter relationships. These newly formed friendships were so lovely to see how supportive they were of each other.


Paris……….. I don’t think you can say anything bad about it. I became more enamored with-it page by page as I read about the charming descriptions.


The bookshop was truly magical, a place for romantic relationships to be made and great advice to be had.

This is truly a book to read when you have afternoon to yourself to devote to it because once you start you won’t be able to put it down.

I was given a complimentary copy of this book.
All opinions expressed are my own.

A cute romance set in Paris in the Spring

Coco has recently moved back to Paris with her teenage daughter. Her publishing house and love life had both recently crashed because her partner (in both business and romance) had been cheating on her. No longer able to find work in London, Coco had to move back in with her parents. Life is rough – most of the publishing industry is wary of hiring some tainted with scandal, so it’s hard for Coco to find a job. Her daughter is having trouble adjusting to life in Paris, far from her friends. Sharing a small room in her parents flat with her daughter isn’t making things easier for either of them. She finally lands a job working a small (and slightly mystical) bookshop and starts to rebuild her life. Unfortunately, she keeps crossing paths with grumpy and gorgeous Henri.

This was light read. Fairly predictable, but still enjoyable. Great read for an afternoon on the beach.

Recommended. I received a copy of this from NetGallley.com that I voluntarily reviewed.

Coco has had to make the decision to return to Paris and move back in with her parents, much too her teenage daughters disappointment. Wondering the streets of Paris in search of a new job she discovers The Paris Bookshop for the Broken Hearted. Here she enters into a booklovers dream, books everywhere and even a cocktail bar and she meets Valerie, the owner. Valerie offers Coco a job and it seems the perfect solution until she realises a frequent visitor is the handsome man she bumped into at the Eiffel Tower on her return to the city where he was less than kind to her.

When we meet Coco her world has been flipped by her ex, not only is their relationship over but she has lost her business. She arrives in Paris with her reluctant daughter, Eloise, in tow, and things are looking bleak. You feel sorry for Coco and what has unfolded to her, so it is great to see her building friendships in Paris which helps grow her confidence and back on the path of building a future for her and Eloise.

The highlight of the book for me is the bookshop. Not only does it sound like the bookworms dream, there are a great bunch of characters there and it has a sense of a little bit of magic in the air. The book club members have such different personalities and then there’s Henri, the handsome stranger from the Eiffel Tower. I enjoyed getting to know his story more too.
This isn’t my first book by Rebecca Raisin, and it won’t be my last. I found this book perfect escapism and spending my time wishing I was there in the book shop. It’s easy to read and easy to get lost in.

Books, romance and Paris in spring, what could be better to lift your mood?

Loved it!! It wasn't hard to see that Henri and Coco would be perfect together. They had to get over their constant bickering and being called a banana. Henri did save her from being robbed and Coco showed her gratitude by yelling at him. I repeat they are perfect together. Constant miscommunication always leads to love. The Bookshop for the Broken Hearted was the right place for Coco to get back on her feet. I'm not sure Valérie made much money at her shop selling books, but it was a lovely place. The book club was interesting and the members were an extremely lively bunch. Coco was definitely a patient and very loving mom. I probably would have dropped Eloise off in the forest far, far away and hoped she got a job in a traveling circus. Eloise was such a bratty thirteen year old. Did she not realize why she was living with her grandparents and sharing a bedroom with her mom? All her whining about going back to England and how she treated Léa, Eloise was the epitome of a bratty teenager. Loved all the friends Coco made at the bookshop and how they stood by each other when someone needed help. Loved the mystery behind the poetry book. All around this was a great read. The only thing the bookshop needed was a cat.

Definitely recommend the book. I loved the story, characters and writing style. It was great to see Anais make an appearance. Couldn't Coco get a job with Anais' literary agent Margaret? Hopefully there's a follow up book!! Something horrible needs to happen to Alexander. Look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Boldwood Books through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

A book set in a quirky bookshop. What's not to like?!
Coco has returned to Paris from London after her business and her relationship implode.
Finding a job at the Bookshop for the Broken-Hearted, Coco deals with the challenges thrown at her and gradually rebuilds her life.
A lovely return to Paris with Rebecca Raisin.

I am a fan of Rebecca’s book as invariably a light and engaging read is in store.

On this occasion, Coco is escaping her London life as everything she had built up in her business was lost due to a now ex boyfriend. She moves back home to Paris to start over with her teenage daughter who is not supportive of this move. She stumbles across a hidden bookstore and that sets in motion events that will change her life forever.

A light, feel-good read about second chances - perfect for lovers of cosy bookshops and Parisian settings.


‘… you know how books find us at the very right time, right when our souls are yearning for a fix that we cannot name?’ I nod. Bookworms know this to be true. ‘The same goes for The Paris Bookshop for the Broken Hearted. The lost, the lonely, heartsick, heartsore find their way here.’

This was an entertaining, well-written book. It was sweet, heartwarming, fun and kept me reading. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to others.

Cozy
I so love a good book shop setting! Rebecca is fast becoming a favorite for cozy romance. This one was a journey because it felt so personal. Her characters are so relatable. And the friend groups and setting I always long to beat part of. This story is emotional but also so inspiring.

When Coco has to return to Paris with her teenage daughter after her boyfriend ruins her life, her career and her reputation, Coco is not sure what to do, Even is she could get a another editorial job Coc is not sure that is what is right for her just now.

Coco needs a ve made it perfect would have been to find out whether the ex got his just desserts

job , with her background the perfect job seems to be working in the Paris bookshop of the Broken Hearted with its hotch potch of rooms and customers.

Then there is Henri, a very Parisian frenchman, who has no time for this new french woman who had been living in England but life has a funny way of working things out.

I really enjoyed the book, the characters were well scripted and you got to know all the characters really well.

The only thing that would have ;made it even better would have been known that her ex got his just desserts.

Was a nice cosy read. Was a shame when it finished.

Loved the first person narration and the relationship that’s the focal point. Loved the parental relationships as well. Swoon worthy and romantic. Perfect setting. Lovely writing

Thanks #netgalley for this book, I was so good, I loved the bookstore for broken hearts sounds like the perfect job tbh, cocktails and books what more do you need! so many relatable parts as a mum of teenagers!

This was a beautiful book that helped me through the dark days of January tremendously. It's clear that the author has an affinity with Paris as it is written about so lovingly - even though Coco, the main character, is back living with her parents and sharing a room with her daughter, being back in Paris made this seem not as depressing as it could've been.
although there is definitely romance in the storyline, the book is about much more than just meeting 'the one'. It's about finding your place in a new reality, formed from the broken embers of your previous one, and realising that you are stronger for it. The sense of community that Coco finds within the slightly magical bookshop is exactly what she needed, the romance is a bonus on top of that.
All of the secondary characters are just fabulous too, especially Valerie. I could smell, hear, and feel her bookshop as the descriptions were so detailed...just lovely

I absolutely love reading a new Rebecca Raisin book. It’s as comforting as sinking into a warm bubble bath. The only trouble is that I find myself up half the night to read ‘just one more chapter’. It was also lovely that Rebecca slipped in a ‘cameo’ of Anais – the heroine from a previous book – it was like meeting an old friend.

Coco is half English and half French. She was living her best life in the UK - Joint head of a Publishing company with her boyfriend, wonderful daughter, and a lovely home. When it transpires that said boyfriend has been stealing royalties from the writers, he disappears leaving her to clear up the mess. By the time she has made recompense to everyone, she is left with nothing, and has to relocate to Paris and move in with her parents – taking an extremely grumpy teenager - who is extremely unhappy about being separated from her friends! Unable to get a job in the publishing industry because of the adverse publicity, Coco find herself taking a job in a Bookshop to make ends meet – and not just any Bookshop – a very special bookshop which seems to be able to mend broken hearts – or perhaps that is just the owner!

If you haven’t tried any Rebecca Raisin books yet, I recommend all of them! This one is up there with the best of them – and you get the beauty and atmosphere of Paris too. Perfect.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7280140611

https://maddybooksblog.blogspot.com/2025/02/the-paris-bookshop-for-broken-hearted.html

This is my new address:
The Paris Bookshop for the Broken-Hearted.
All mail can be forwarded there.🥰

Coco's life is in shambles. She uproots her daughter, Eloise, and "flees" back to Paris.

Her rule, her only rule? Do not trust men.

With finances dwindling, she needs a job. Any job!
And lands at, you guessed it, the bookstore in the title, where selling books will be the least of her worries.😂

I just love our characters, such a lovely gathering of personalities. J'adore Valérie!

I am actually keeping this short today, my lovelies, I really want you to get to discover all these things yourselves that I adore about this book.🩷 💕

What a lovely trip to Paris! Coco and her daughter return home to Paris after a huge betrayal and breakup. Coco stumbles upon The Paris Bookshop for The Broken Hearted and learns to heal.

There are many real places in Paris described in detail, so it would be perfect for anyone wishing to go, planning to go, or remembering a trip to Paris. It’s also a lovely love letter to writers, publishers, and readers.

There are many fun side characters, including Coco’s very supportive parents and the bookshop patrons.

The romance fell a bit flat for me, so I would classify it more as women’s fiction than romance.

But overall a sweet, heartfelt read!

No spice beyond kissing. Note the story deals with grief, toxic relationships, and bullying.

Thank you Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the advance read copy! The book comes out Feb 3!