What do readers think of I'll See You in Paris by Michelle Gable? Write your own review.

This book came at the perfect time. It grabbed me from the beginning and kept me going until the final page. I was embroiled in the mystery of who Mrs. Spencer might actually have been. I was intrigued by who Pru might turn out to be, (I was right!) and how Gus fit into the picture. And then there was Annie's tie to the Grange. I loved the intrigue and the romance. I found this book to be a compulsive page turner and was sad when I had to bid the inhabitants a farewell. I'll See You in Paris was a delightfully enjoyable trip through the 1920s, '30s, and '60s, as well as the present. I've already purchased Michelle Gable's first novel because of how taken I was with this one.

A very entertaining read, with laugh-out-loud moments and others of sorrow and loss. The setting is Banbury, Oxfordshire, England, where Annie and her mother, Lauren, are to stay while Lauren conducts some mysterious business. Annie, left to her own devices, discovers that the later years of Gladys Spenser-Churchill, the Duchess of Marlborough, were spent at the Grange, a decrepit old manse located in Banbury. Annie, intrigued, begins to investigate, even breaking into the Grange, and is shocked by what she discovers concerning her own mother's earlier years. The story takes the reader into a book-within-the-book, regaling the reader with the adventures of Mrs.Spencer, who has no qualms about appearing half-dressed with rifle in hand, in a home filled with spaniels and chickens. The story reaches its conclusion in Paris where Annie learns the truth about her father and leads Lauren to her long-lost lover, who was there all the time. And they find that Mrs Spencer, knew exactly what needed to be done. You will love this character!

I loved reading this book! The author's writing style is outstanding....both literary and approachable. The characters are well developed and likable and the story is interesting and complex. Set mostly in both 1972 and 2001, the story is historical and contemporary.

It involves wars, romance, and love: between mother and daughter, elderly and young. Love of literature and art also play a role as well as love for the city of Paris.

I highly recommend this book!

Wow! In this reader's opinion Gable's second novel deserves a strong 5 rating. The author loosely based the story on a real person she discovered while doing research for her first novel. The story develops thru alternating narrative of a mother and daughter. Gable skillfully has the main characters divulge a story that unfolds in present day Paris but has it's roots in Paris of yesteryear. The Author moves the novel along with to the point narrative and short chapters which kept me reading long into the night. In my opinion Ms. Gabel has created a unique storyline. interesting characters and unexpected plot twists which makes for a great read. I am hoping for a sequel !

I will start off this review where I usually end my reviews -- this is a great book and you need to read it! The author does a fantastic job with her main characters and with a story line that keeps you guessing until the very end. I thought that I had it figured out about 3/4 of the way through but I was way off. Its a page turner that is part mystery, part love story with some laughs in between.

The main characters are Annie, a recent college graduate, just engaged to Eric who is deployed to the Middle East and doesn't seem to know quite what to do with her life; her Mom Laurel, a very straight laced lawyer who also teaches horse back riding to handicapped students and Gladys Spencer-Churchill who may or may not be the Duchess of Marlborough. The story takes place in the early 70s, in 2001 and in the late 1800s. As difficult as it may sound to weave those time periods and women together, the author does a fantastic job of doing just that in a very entertaining way. The main setting of the book is not Paris as the title would have you believe but a run down estate in England but Paris plays a very large role in the ultimate outcome of the story. There is so much more that I could say about this novel but I don't want to give anything away so I will just say again - its a terrific book and you're going to love it!

What was the intrigue and what was the secret about the book Annie always wanted to read but never did?

Why was her mother so evasive about that book?, The Missing Duchess,? and who was the Duchess of Marlborough?

Why did she and her mother really go to London?

Would the book and their trip to London reveal secrets in Annie's life?

?We follow Annie in present day and Pru, Win, and The Duchess (Mrs. Spencer) in the not so distant past.

Annie meets a British citizen who knew The Duchess, Pru?, and Win. Pru is the caregiver for the feisty Duchess. Win is the author who wrote the book about The Duchess who claims she really isn't a Duchess. Getting the story for his book was difficult for Win because The Duchess kept her life under wraps.

Annie gets the low down about all three characters from a British citizen, Gus, and she also trespasses into the house The Duchess lived in.

I enjoyed Annie's trips into the the house. I always love finding secrets and finding treasures from the past.

I enjoyed the back and forth in time and the "real time" story from Pru, The Duchess, and Win.

The characters in I'LL SEE YOU IN PARIS were quirky and fun. I loved The Duchess...she was a character.

I like this quote that was inside the book:

"Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." Marcel Proust

I'LL SEE YOU IN PARIS was very light and enjoyable with memorable characters and was well researched. I love the cover and the revelations at the end.

I do have to say the book was a bit confusing at times, but it is oh so good and so very creative.

ENJOY!! 4/5

This book was given to me free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.

Finding the truth about Gladys Spencer-Churchill is the premise of the book and that section begins in the early 1970s. The parallel part is finding the 1970s research in the early 2000s by Annie and we are off on a dual discovery trek. The book was well researched and the second half was difficult to put down. The first section was a bit confusing as characters and timelines were sorted. Hopefully readers will persevere through the early parts and will enjoy a compelling story about an eccentric woman and the fictional people who researched her life. Perfect for Anglophiles, historical fiction readers and book clubs.

Annie, young, newly engaged, unemployed discovers an old biography of Gladys Spencer-Churchill, the Duchess of Marlborough among her mother's things as they pack to travel to England. Annie becomes fascinated with the larger-than-life Duchess' story, and in the small English village where she and her mother stay, she discovers that there may be a link to her mother and answers to her lifelong quest to find out who her father was. The story of these three women, born generations apart, makes for an interesting read. I not only enjoyed reading I'll See You in Paris, I finished wanting to know more about the real Duchess who inspired this book. I think readers who enjoy English mysteries and like books set in two or more periods will also enjoy this book.