Wednesday, September 19, 2018

REVIEW of The Lost Carousel of Provence by Juliet Blackwell

Kindle Edition, 368 pages
Expected publication: September 18th 2018 by Berkley


An artist lost to history, a family abandoned to its secrets, and the woman whose search for meaning unearths it all in a sweeping and expressive story from the New York Times bestselling author of Letters from Paris . 

Present day, San Francisco. During her free time, professional photographer Cady Drake shoots local carousels, a hobby inspired by a gift that transformed her childhood: a wooden rabbit supposedly created by master French carver Gustave Bayol a century ago. And when she's offered a freelance assignment for a book on the antique merry-go-rounds of Paris, Cady can't refuse the opportunity to visit the famous carousels for the first time....

1900s, France. In a small town outside of Avignon, a husband and young wife struggle to keep up their ancestral chateau--and start the family they so desperately desire. For the children they hope to have, the Clements hire the famous Bayol to build a carousel, but as the carver and his apprentice work on the beautiful and whimsical creation, fate will entwine them all in unseen ways--for generations to come...

Present day, Provence. As Cady's research leads her to the dilapidated Chateau Clement and its fabled carousel that was lost to the ravages of World War II, she will uncover a shocking truth in a set of one-hundred-year-old photographs that could guide her in reuniting a family torn apart by petty jealousies over several generations.

My Thoughts…

Juliet Blackwell tells the story of Cady, present time, and the 1900’s in France using a dual timeline format.     While it can sometimes get confusing which time you are reading, Juliet does an amazing job keeping the two storylines separate while weaving them together a little bit at a time.   I liked finding out how Gus, the carousel rabbit, Cady, and the Clements would all come together.   I wasn’t surprised at how it all ended up but I did enjoy seeing how it all worked out.  

Usually, I find myself connecting to a certain character or a certain storyline but with this one  I was thrilled with the descriptions and the characters of the 1900’s.   I am also curious about wartime living and many of the characters were active in the war efforts.       The present storyline was just as amazing.   The food Cady ate, the towns she visited, the carousels she photographed, and the people she met were alive to me.   I could taste, see, and enjoy all that she did.  

I really enjoyed The Lost Carousel of Provence.  I learned about the making of carousels and all the tedious precision work that goes into their making.    There was enough fact that I felt informed but not overwhelmed with facts that I didn’t need or want to know.       Pick up your own copy and travel to Paris, visit the carousels, eat the food, and meet the wonderful characters.  

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