Blog Tour | The Chateau of Happily Ever Afters #review #giveaway

Today is my second stop on the tour for The Château of Happily Ever Afters, the first stop was a guest post from Jaimie letting us in on five things we didn’t know about the book. This time you are getting to hear my thoughts and of course there is still the giveaway that you can enter, first though a little reminder of what it’s about.

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Where dreams come true…?

Wendy Clayton stopped believing in fairy tales a long time ago. Instead, she has a ‘nice’ life. Nice job. Nice flat. Absolutely no men. Until her life is turned upside-down when her elderly neighbour, Eulalie, passes away and leaves her the Château of Happily Ever Afters!

But there’s a catch: she must share the sprawling French castle with Eulalie’s long-lost nephew, Julian. And no matter how gorgeous he is, or how easily she finds herself falling head over heels, Wendy needs to find a way to get rid of him…

Because surely happily ever afters don’t happen in real life?

Escape to beautiful France this summer with this uplifting romantic comedy. Perfect for fans of Kat French, Caroline Roberts, and Holly Martin.

Amazon UK | Goodreads | Amazon US

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Well, I really don’t know where to begin. This book was amazing, I can occasionally have trouble with romance books but this one just suited me to a T.

“How can you be so drunk that you feel the need to vomit in the street at eight p.m.?” she’d say. “People have no sense of refinement these days. In my day, projectile vomiting was saved for strictly two a.m. onwards.”

There were parts that were so funny that I really did giggle to myself. Wendy and Julian’s antics in trying to get the other to give up and go home were hilarious, I have to say in my more childish moments I have seen myself doing some of the things that they were doing to each other and I think that is what made it as funny as it was. Also, there were some observations from them and other characters, one-liners that managed to keep that humour going throughout the book.

The characters were brilliant, I really liked both Wendy and Julian and the Château was a character in itself too. I loved that as the story went on and you got to know them that they were both more than their first impression. That there was a lot to find out about these characters and that even though neither one seemed unlikeable by the end you couldn’t help but have a little soft spot for both of them.

I think that is especially true of Julian, even though he came across as this full of himself interloper, gradually you realize that it’s all an act and he’s this gentle and perfect guy, it, of course, helps that he’s sexy and Scottish a winning combination in my book.

The feeling of home and warmth I get from the house, even though it’s draughty from cracked windows and hot water is still a thing of myth. So much land that holds so much potential to him. I wish I could be as positive as Jules. I wish I could take that kind of risk too. I wish I was as brave as him.

I have to say though that I felt such a connection to Wendy, I think it’s because we have a few things in common and it was so nice to see someone who is just getting on with life suddenly push herself out of her comfort zone and start to want more for herself. Even through all her protestations and insults, I was, of course, rooting for it turning into a happily ever after for her.

I also loved Eulalie, even though she doesn’t appear too much, I loved her spirit and how determined she was that Wendy would get this experience. She was always described so well that I felt like even though we didn’t to hear from her directly, you felt like you really got to know her.

The writing is also wonderful, it was so easy to get wrapped up in this story. The descriptions were so clear that I could easily picture the Château, the land, and the village; so much so that I would be quite happy to transport myself there and try my hand at living off the land. The urge to pick up a recipe book, for cake in general and for fresh bread and butter was unbelievable. I just wish I could bake half as well as Wendy.

As well as the characters what I really admired about this book was that even though you know there is going to be some form of romance between the two of them it wasn’t as predictable in that respect as I thought it might be. It was slow and considered and seemed entirely believable which sometimes books of this genre don’t manage to pull off. The fun was seeing how it would develop, and watching as they became more and more friendly toward each other and realized that they did have to rely on each other for some things.

This is a book that I would highly recommend; it has romance and comedy in a wonderful setting with beautiful characters. Just be sure you have some tasty snacks available to you. This is an author that I will definitely be reading more from.

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There is still time to enter the giveaway so click on the link below to win…

A Paperchase Paris notebook and pen
The Chateau of Happily Ever Afters notebook
little Eiffel Tower model
Eiffel Tower Bookmark
The Chateau of Happily Ever Afters magnet
Signed postcard

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Jaimie is a 32-year-old English-sounding Welsh girl with an awkward-to-spell name. She lives in South Wales and enjoys writing, gardening, watching horror movies, and drinking tea, although she’s seriously considering marrying her coffee machine. She loves autumn and winter, and singing songs from musicals despite the fact she’s got the voice of a dying hyena. She hates spiders, hot weather, and cheese & onion crisps. She spends far too much time on Twitter and owns too many pairs of boots.

She will never have time to read all the books she wants to read.

She is the author of chick-lit romantic comedies The Chateau of Happily Ever Afters and Kismetology, and she has also written young-adult romantic comedies Afterlife Academy, Not Pretty Enough, and North Pole Reform School.

You can connect with her through her Website, Twitter and Facebook.

Reviews of other books by Jaimie Admans

The Little Wedding Island | It’s A Wonderful Night | The Little Vintage Carousel by the Sea | The Little Bookshop of Love Stories | The Little Christmas Shop on Nutcracker Lane