The Little French Guesthouse

La Cour des Roses, Book 1

By: Helen Pollard

Narrated by: Helen Johns

Sun, croissants, and fine wine. Nothing can spoil the perfect holiday. Or can it?

When Emmy Jamieson arrives at La Cour des Roses, a beautiful guesthouse in the French countryside, she can't wait to spend two weeks relaxing with boyfriend Nathan. Their relationship needs a little TLC, and Emmy is certain this holiday will do the trick. But they've barely unpacked before he scarpers with Gloria, the guesthouse owner's cougar wife. Rupert, the ailing guesthouse owner, is shell-shocked.

Feeling somewhat responsible - and rather generous after a bottle (or so) of wine - heartbroken Emmy offers to help. Changing sheets in the gîtes will help keep her mind off her misery. Thrust into the heart of the local community, Emmy suddenly finds herself surrounded by new friends. And with sizzling hot gardener Ryan and infuriating (if gorgeous) accountant Alain providing welcome distractions, Nathan is fast becoming a distant memory.

Fresh coffee and croissants for breakfast, feeding the hens in the warm evening light, Emmy starts to feel quite at home. But it would be madness to walk away from her friends, her family, and everything she's ever worked for to take a chance on a place she fell for on holiday - wouldn't it?

Fans of Jenny Colgan, Lucy Diamond, and Nick Alexander will want to join Emmy for a glass of wine as the sun sets on the terrace at La Cour des Roses.

©2016 Helen Pollard (P)2016 Bookouture

A cute, happy story

I rounded my rating up to 4 for the great narration. Plus, it’s France!

The story is cute. Quite enjoyable and not heavy at all.

I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next.

Fantastic Read

Really enjoyed this book! Lovely story with well written characters. Very relatable main character - loved her! Definitely recommend!

I'm looking forward to the sequel.

It was a lovely story and the narration was great! Thoroughly enjoyable! Can't wait for more!

Adorable, heartwarming and fun!

Oh this book was an absolute joy to listen to! It was bright and humorous with plenty of feel good warmth. It opens with Emmy finding her long term boyfriend, Nathan in a…ahem…delicate situation with Gloria, one of the owners of the guesthouse where Nathan and Emmy are supposed to having a romantic vacation. So clearly this one grabbed my attention right away, as much as I felt awful for the lovely Emmy the way Pollard wrote the scene and then Johns delivered it was just too hilarious! It set the perfect tone for the story and was highly memorable.

As much as this has romantic elements the plot doesn’t hinge on a love story and I really liked that. It focuses more on Emmy doing what makes her happy, with or without a man in her life and I found the way everything played out to be realistic and true to real life. I adored Emmy and found myself wishing I had a friend like her myself and then there was Rupert a charming old guy, his meddling and bossiness made me giggle. The location was gorgeous as well and both the author and the narrator did a fantastic job of bringing the story to life! There’s a sequel and I’ll definitely be reading it ASAP, I can’t wait to catch up with these lovely characters.

Brave girl moves on with delicious love interest

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I would. It's funny, heartwarming and full of delicious food! Also, I like the heroine's modern take on romance and not falling to pieces over a man.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Rupert was funny and warm, although annoying when he got angry for no reason.

What does Helen Johns bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I always love a good narrator. Some narrators fit the story and the age of the characters and others don't. I was happy with her. She did a great job with the French accents.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Love wins in the end.

Any additional comments?

This is a typical chick lit book and although these books don't hold surprises, I think there is sometimes a message or a passage that speaks to my heart or to my life. Those are the ones I love. This one does that for me.