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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
I love this book, but I'm biased A Wish Upon Jasmine is still the superior installment.
So cute! I wish there wish there was a prequel short story to go along with it.
Before I start, what you need to know is this : Reading my review of [b:A Crown of Bitter Orange|17832873|A Crown of Bitter Orange (La Vie en Roses, #3)|Laura Florand|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1481641832s/17832873.jpg|24950564] might be the worst choice you could make, and here's why :
1) I am not sensible to the charms of Provence. At all. Because I'm probably a sociopath. Or something. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate going there (alright, I'm lying, I really don't) but... in my head, it's nothing special, and I'm not about to take a selfie in front of a Lavender field. Therefore the descriptions, the atmosphere, the general admiration for the countryside... fell flat to me. Sue me.
2) There's only so much repetitiveness I can take. Seriously now. There must be what, three members of Tristan's family who use the exact same method to squeeze the truth out of Marjorie, and it works every. damn. time.
Tristan's grandma : Tristan has no redeeming quality, really...
Marjorie : How DARE you? He is the sun of the sky, the expression of life itself, the chocolate chips on the freaking cookies
Me : Awwwwwww
Tristan's cousin : LMAO, Tristan? What a piece of work ugh
Marjorie : How DARE you? He is the sun of the sky, the expression of life itself, the chocolate chips on the freaking cookies
Me : Awww but look
Tristan's granddad : How could someone love Tristan I mean
Marjorie : How DARE you? He is the sun of the sky, the expression of life itself, the chocolate chips on the freaking cookies
Me : MARJORIE! ARE YOU FOR REAL?!
See, Tristan is very close to his family, and they obviously love each others. Hence why I had a hard time buying into their act the first time. On the second, well, it was still a little bit cute. The last one though? Nope.
3) The plot was... very much lacking in my opinion, with no real obstacles or progression.
At this point, you might wonder why I gave [b:A Crown of Bitter Orange|17832873|A Crown of Bitter Orange (La Vie en Roses, #3)|Laura Florand|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1481641832s/17832873.jpg|24950564] a somewhat positive three stars rating. I FEEL YOU.
That's simple, actually : I liked both characters a lot. Tristan first, because he was a nice, adorable love interest who managed to melt my heart. Marjorie, too, for her driven mind and her independence.
Plus, they have great chemistry. They work. How could I not root for them? HOW? And this comes from a reader who rarely enjoys second-chance romances. By the way, contrary to some readers, I do not think that sleeping with other women before meeting with Marjorie again 'tainted' (ugh) Tristan's love in any way. It's actually pretty realistic, in my opinion? Not to mention that he stops his player act before the beginning of the book, and that Marjorie never slut-shames said women, so... I don't quite get where the problem lies?
#AmClueless
Are you actually implying that... that... *GASP* 'true love' would be linked to chastity?
#LOL
As for the writing, if sometimes a bit cheesy, I can't deny that it was compelling and very readable. One note though : if the French parts were free of mistakes (woot!), it stayed very weird for me to read the conversations of two French characters... in English, and as a French reader I couldn't be 100% fooled. Indeed some idiomatic expressions used just... do not translate into French, lol.
Well, what can I say. Perhaps it takes a very tired and busy Anna to get a probably generous three star rating.
For more of my reviews, please visit:
3.5 Not as good as the other books in the series or most of Florand's other books, but still sweet and heartwarming. Malorie was good except for the fact that she never told Tristan she loved him, even at the end of the story. I guess they both know it, but still. She also mentions patriarchy a lot, which is good except it in no way enhances the plot, it's like Florand just wanted to throw some overt feminist language in the book. Furthermore, I don't know if it's just me noticing it in this book or not, but the excessive sentimentality over events that happened a close to century a ago and CONSTANTLY REPEATING her insecurities about it every couple pages became extremely tiresome. Still love Florand but I'm hoping for better with Lucien's story.
This took me FOREVER to read. While I did wind up enjoying the story and its characters, it moved really slow for me.
I always feel so wonderful after finishing a Laura Florand book because she has such a gift for bringing a place and its culture and people to life. Tristan is the heart and joy of his family and Malorie is the one who has always been hurt by hers. Their scenes in the bitter orange orchard are magical. Their story is intertwined with so many sensory details of life in France's rose growing and perfume industries that it just pulls you in and you never want to leave. She makes me want to make travel plans NOW!
I don't remember reading Raoul and Allegra's story-apparently it was a novella in an anthology I missed. But Lucien is next! Perhaps we will finally find out the backstories for Pepe and Tante Collette.
I don't remember reading Raoul and Allegra's story-apparently it was a novella in an anthology I missed. But Lucien is next! Perhaps we will finally find out the backstories for Pepe and Tante Collette.
I LOVED this. This series is just so good and I feel like the books keep getting better with each one.
Tristan is so very different from his cousins. He is so full of life and heart and happiness. Its his life's work to bottle of that and give it to people as gifts. Malorie is walled off, independent, and prickly. She hiked out of Grasse at the age of 19 and built a life for herself far from the disgrace of her family name and heritage. They are so perfect for each other, opposites in the ways that make them stronger together, but with commonalities in all the ways that truly matter. Tristan's care in approaching Malorie and his careful courting of her is wonderful and I thoroughly appreciated it. Because they've known each other all their lives and have recently been butting heads in the business world there was this perfect amount of tension and familiarity. This keeps from being the annoying and disturbing sort of story that many long time concealed crush stories are in how the relationship develops and the way both of them view it. It helps that they were BOTH pining for the other from afar for years and it wasn't one sided. Their final conflict, which was avoidable if Tristan had listened to good advice from just about everyone, was resolved quickly and with minimal drama because they just KNOW each other (and themselves) so well.
The family dynamics continue to be delightful and are even better in this volume than previous ones. I like how this is not a match their interfering elders could have succeeded in setting up. I really like how that aspect of the story played out. The cousins together are always some of my favorite parts of these books, as are all the parts with Tante Colette and their grandfather. I enjoyed the glimpses we got of Tristan's parents too. His father is the only male of that generation we've seen, and even though it was through Malorie's eyes and from afar, it is clear there is a reason Tristan is the cousin with the most level head when it comes to dealing with women. He managed to get out of his childhood with no parental issues. And his relationship with his mom is THE BEST.
I'm putting my thoughts on the Epilogue and Antoine behind a spoiler cut:
Okay. Now Antione. I suspected in a Wish Upon Jasmine he was going to turn out to be Damien's half brother. I think the way he acts at the end of this confirms that. He was mildly amused by Matt. He is actually friends with Tristan. Damien is the only one we've seen really draw a reaction out of him. I think there is misdirected anger there. And it makes sense given what Damien revealed about his parents' marriage in the last book too.
But let's talk about how Antoine is still friends with Tristan. Like meets with him to have drinks and actually tries to give him good advice about not messing things up with the love of his life friends. He may have been helping Colette because sticking it to the Rosiers (and her paying him) was fun. But he didn't have to pick back up his friendship with Tristan. And I like what it says about him that he did. I really can not wait for his book. (Which Laura sort of told us in a roundabout way might be happening.)
Tristan is so very different from his cousins. He is so full of life and heart and happiness. Its his life's work to bottle of that and give it to people as gifts. Malorie is walled off, independent, and prickly. She hiked out of Grasse at the age of 19 and built a life for herself far from the disgrace of her family name and heritage. They are so perfect for each other, opposites in the ways that make them stronger together, but with commonalities in all the ways that truly matter. Tristan's care in approaching Malorie and his careful courting of her is wonderful and I thoroughly appreciated it. Because they've known each other all their lives and have recently been butting heads in the business world there was this perfect amount of tension and familiarity. This keeps from being the annoying and disturbing sort of story that many long time concealed crush stories are in how the relationship develops and the way both of them view it. It helps that they were BOTH pining for the other from afar for years and it wasn't one sided. Their final conflict, which was avoidable if Tristan had listened to good advice from just about everyone, was resolved quickly and with minimal drama because they just KNOW each other (and themselves) so well.
The family dynamics continue to be delightful and are even better in this volume than previous ones. I like how this is not a match their interfering elders could have succeeded in setting up. I really like how that aspect of the story played out. The cousins together are always some of my favorite parts of these books, as are all the parts with Tante Colette and their grandfather. I enjoyed the glimpses we got of Tristan's parents too. His father is the only male of that generation we've seen, and even though it was through Malorie's eyes and from afar, it is clear there is a reason Tristan is the cousin with the most level head when it comes to dealing with women. He managed to get out of his childhood with no parental issues. And his relationship with his mom is THE BEST.
I'm putting my thoughts on the Epilogue and Antoine behind a spoiler cut:
Spoiler
THAT EPILOGUE. At first I was all wedding, sweet, romantic, blah blah blah. Then my mind was a fast moving jumble: Ohhhhh. Antione is trying to kill a particular older Rosier dead with a look. GEE I WONDER WHY. Who is this chick? Oh, some people owe her a huge THANK YOU, but notice how she paused about finding that last person. I think we've met Lucien's girl. AND OH MY GOSH THERE HE IS. Dude. You just rode into the most important moment of this wedding on the back of a motorcycle looking all badass and tortured. Drama much? Even without the DNA you are clearly very much a Rosier. And yep Elena's reaction is strengthening my suspicion that she is your heroine.Okay. Now Antione. I suspected in a Wish Upon Jasmine he was going to turn out to be Damien's half brother. I think the way he acts at the end of this confirms that. He was mildly amused by Matt. He is actually friends with Tristan. Damien is the only one we've seen really draw a reaction out of him. I think there is misdirected anger there. And it makes sense given what Damien revealed about his parents' marriage in the last book too.
But let's talk about how Antoine is still friends with Tristan. Like meets with him to have drinks and actually tries to give him good advice about not messing things up with the love of his life friends. He may have been helping Colette because sticking it to the Rosiers (and her paying him) was fun. But he didn't have to pick back up his friendship with Tristan. And I like what it says about him that he did. I really can not wait for his book. (Which Laura sort of told us in a roundabout way might be happening.)
This review was originally posted to Jen in Bookland
4.5 stars
Man Laura Florand's books are simply wonderful to read. I don't know how she does it, but she always writes the most beautiful stories that are like a balm for my soul. So soothing and make me so happy. If I need to be wrapped up in the warm and fuzzy, need some comforting, need some awakening of all of my senses, then Florand is the one to read. The way her characters see the world and think about things? I wish I had that. I wish that was the world the way I perceived it. It sounds magical and marvelous and makes me want things I don't even like. Every time I start one of her books I know I have to have the time to finish it as I get so drawn into her world I don't realize how much time has passed. I fall in love with the characters, the places, the things that are important to them. I want it all. And as the pages start dwindling I start to get sad because that means I am about out of time with these wonderful people. I am about done with their story and I never want it to end. I love Laura Florand and her books, and this one was no exception.
A Crown of Bitter Orange was a wonderful read. Tristan and Malorie have known each other their whole life. Tristan is a Rosier and Malorie a Monsard. A Monsard whose father used people all the time to try and make it seem like he had it all, who didn't care about hurting Malorie or her mother or anyone. A father who was not good, but then again a lot of her family's history is not so good. They used to be something in the region until they ruined themselves with their sordid past. Malorie feels the weight of everything those before her did. Even though she is so sweet, so kind, she can't get out from under what her relatives did. She never feels like she could fit in where she grew up, so she just left one day. She left and made something of herself, but now she is back to settle a few things. What should she do with her family's run-down storefront? Should she sell it and go back to her life far away, or should she stay and fix it up and try to make Monsard a good name again? Try to make it something to be proud of instead of a weight keeping her down?
Tristan was so wonderful. I love love loved him! He is incredibly smart, but people don't often see that as he has too much energy. He can't sit still and school was very difficult for him. He is constantly being told that the way he is is not right and he needs to try and be different, but he can't. He doesn't know how. Oh, Tristan was wonderful! He has always like Malorie, always tried to get her to notice him, but she never does. He tries and tries, but she doesn't seem to care about him at all. When she shows up in town again he is unsure at first what to do. He still likes her, maybe even loves her, but can he win her over? Can he get her to take a chance on him?
These two. Malorie has this image of Tristan that is not completely true. She always saw him as a ladies man, as someone who just wants her to like him because he needs everyone to. She never realizes what he is really trying to do. That he cares for her. She always saw them as enemies, but that is not completely true. She likes him even when she doesn't want to. Oh, these two. I loved watching them circle around what they both want. I loved watching them try to figure it all out and see if they can get to that happily ever after. Tristan and his perfumes and Malorie and her numbers. She hurts him at times when she doesn't even know, but he does the same. He doesn't know what her life and her own expectations she puts on herself is like. They both have some learning to do about the other, but I loved watching them come together. They were so sweet and wonderful!
This book was a fantastic read. Tristan and Malorie are so sweet together I loved it. They love to rile each other up, but beneath it all there is genuine care for the other. They just have to see that and figure out how to make this work between them. Another fantastic read by this author.
*Note: I received a free copy of this book for voluntary review consideration
4.5 stars
Man Laura Florand's books are simply wonderful to read. I don't know how she does it, but she always writes the most beautiful stories that are like a balm for my soul. So soothing and make me so happy. If I need to be wrapped up in the warm and fuzzy, need some comforting, need some awakening of all of my senses, then Florand is the one to read. The way her characters see the world and think about things? I wish I had that. I wish that was the world the way I perceived it. It sounds magical and marvelous and makes me want things I don't even like. Every time I start one of her books I know I have to have the time to finish it as I get so drawn into her world I don't realize how much time has passed. I fall in love with the characters, the places, the things that are important to them. I want it all. And as the pages start dwindling I start to get sad because that means I am about out of time with these wonderful people. I am about done with their story and I never want it to end. I love Laura Florand and her books, and this one was no exception.
A Crown of Bitter Orange was a wonderful read. Tristan and Malorie have known each other their whole life. Tristan is a Rosier and Malorie a Monsard. A Monsard whose father used people all the time to try and make it seem like he had it all, who didn't care about hurting Malorie or her mother or anyone. A father who was not good, but then again a lot of her family's history is not so good. They used to be something in the region until they ruined themselves with their sordid past. Malorie feels the weight of everything those before her did. Even though she is so sweet, so kind, she can't get out from under what her relatives did. She never feels like she could fit in where she grew up, so she just left one day. She left and made something of herself, but now she is back to settle a few things. What should she do with her family's run-down storefront? Should she sell it and go back to her life far away, or should she stay and fix it up and try to make Monsard a good name again? Try to make it something to be proud of instead of a weight keeping her down?
Tristan was so wonderful. I love love loved him! He is incredibly smart, but people don't often see that as he has too much energy. He can't sit still and school was very difficult for him. He is constantly being told that the way he is is not right and he needs to try and be different, but he can't. He doesn't know how. Oh, Tristan was wonderful! He has always like Malorie, always tried to get her to notice him, but she never does. He tries and tries, but she doesn't seem to care about him at all. When she shows up in town again he is unsure at first what to do. He still likes her, maybe even loves her, but can he win her over? Can he get her to take a chance on him?
These two. Malorie has this image of Tristan that is not completely true. She always saw him as a ladies man, as someone who just wants her to like him because he needs everyone to. She never realizes what he is really trying to do. That he cares for her. She always saw them as enemies, but that is not completely true. She likes him even when she doesn't want to. Oh, these two. I loved watching them circle around what they both want. I loved watching them try to figure it all out and see if they can get to that happily ever after. Tristan and his perfumes and Malorie and her numbers. She hurts him at times when she doesn't even know, but he does the same. He doesn't know what her life and her own expectations she puts on herself is like. They both have some learning to do about the other, but I loved watching them come together. They were so sweet and wonderful!
This book was a fantastic read. Tristan and Malorie are so sweet together I loved it. They love to rile each other up, but beneath it all there is genuine care for the other. They just have to see that and figure out how to make this work between them. Another fantastic read by this author.
*Note: I received a free copy of this book for voluntary review consideration
I eagerly anticipate each new Laura Florand release, and I've been especially curious to know more about the youngest cousin of the Rosier clan. As with all of this author's books, even taking the romance completely out of the picture, this story is full of beautiful writing that engages all five senses. Getting into Tristan's head as he plots out new fragrances inspired by everything around him is enchanting. The France these characters live in seems both a vibrant reality and a bit of a magical fairy land. Of course, Laura Florand has yet to write a romance that doesn't make me simultaneously swoon and melt. I absolutely love how Tristan's creative nature and Malorie's more practical side mesh together in a lovely romance. It's a little enemies-to-lovers, a little reconnection-romance, and a little something unique all on its own.
If you've enjoyed previous stories by this author, you won't be disappointed by this newest release. I would recommend starting at the beginning of this series for maximum enjoyment, but I think there is enough background provided that this could also stand on its own.
*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of A Crown of Bitter Orange*
If you've enjoyed previous stories by this author, you won't be disappointed by this newest release. I would recommend starting at the beginning of this series for maximum enjoyment, but I think there is enough background provided that this could also stand on its own.
*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of A Crown of Bitter Orange*
Reread: Sept 2017
Upping a .5 star to make it a 5 because this book deserved it, ok? Ok. I just love Tristan and Malorie so much ugh-
Also I can't believe I missed that Elena in this book is the same Elena in Lucien's book. On to A Kiss in Lavender now woooo-
First read: Jan 2017
4.5 stars
WHAT A GEM.
So Eri and I started a romance blog together early this year, and we did a dual review (our first one!) on this book <3 on Scoundrels & Seduction.
Review:
An actual transcript of the texts Lisa and I sent each other about this book would, unfortunately, be quite spoilery and would be entirely made up of many exclamation marks and all caps words. It's become quite the tradition to have enthusiastic discussions about our favorite books, and of course, A Crown of Bitter Orange became one of them. No surprise really, considering how much we both adore her books.
For this review, we've broken down things we like into bullet points of a sort:
Laura Florand's Descriptive Writing
Lisa: I think what attracts me from the beginning about Laura Florand's books is how descriptive her writing is. In Amour et Chocolat series, for example, the way the chocolate making is described in The Chocolate Thief, and macarons and hot chocolate making in The Chocolate Touch, is just so realistic it makes you hungry for them.
It's the same thing with this series; the way Laura described the rose and jasmine fields or in this book, the orange blossoms is just so picturesque. I love how the description of each scent is so vivid.
Eri: I actually picked up this series because of Lisa's very persuasive love for Laura Florand, but I definitely agree that her writing is one of the things that stood out to me when I read her books. She writes the details of desserts and fragrances so well that I can almost see or smell them. It doesn't just stay with the fragrances in this series of course, and I was able to imagine the locations so vividly, it was like I was there in person, in addition to feeling the tension and chemistry in every scene.
The Plot
Lisa: Another thing that I like about this book and also this series as a whole is how it features different flowers in different books. Like we have roses in Once Upon a Rose and jasmines in A Wish upon a Jasmine and now orange blossoms.
Also, don't forget about the mystery of the missing heirlooms! The longtime fight (or is it?) between Jean-Jacques Rosier and Colette Delatour with Jean-Jacques accusing Colette of stealing the family heirlooms are priceless, and so are the reactions of the Rosiers when they began to turn up one by one by the end of each story.
Eri: Yes to all the things that Lisa said, but I also love that each of the books focuses on a journey or quest of sorts for the heroine. In this book, it's Malorie wanting to restore her family company, and I like that in each of the books, the heroine's dreams or goals aren't secondary to the grand Rosier legacy, but balanced well.
The men in this series are all Rosier men, and they each play a different role in the family business, so that was interesting to see as well. And while they might be terrible at expressing their intent or motivations (*coughs at the thought of Damien*), they are quite supportive of the heroine and I like that both parties are on equal footing, for the most part. I never found the perfume industry to be so enticing, but this series has given me a whole new appreciation to it.
The Rosier Family
Eri: I adore the Rosier family. Laura always writes relationships well, and in her other series, there's some very strong friendships, but this one has the addition of the heroes all being part of the same family, and I love seeing how close they are to each other. They all tease and mess with each other, but underneath is that Rosier bond, holding them together, and seeing the other members of the family, like the mothers and of course, Tante Collete and Jean-Jacques, being so supportive is wonderful as well.
Lisa: Ugh, I agree, the Rosiers are the best. I envy their close-knitted relationship with each other, and how the cousins have each other's backs despite their differences. I love the distinct role that Laura set for each and every character; like how Matt is the land and Damien the warrior, and Tristan the glue that keeps everybody together.
Tristan Rosier & Malorie Monsard
Lisa: Okay, I'm always about dark and broody guys, but Tristan Rosier captures my heart so effortlessly. He intrigued me ever since we met him in Matt's book; he's so playful and full of life it's hard to not like him. I love how he dances around his cousins, teases them and gets away with it, and I love that we get to find out why he behaves that way in this book. We also get to see another side of him when he's with Malorie--he's so protective of her, and she's the only one who gets under his skin and makes him angry and frustrated, so that kind of adds another layer to Tristan.
I adore Malorie too! She kind of reminds me of Jess, the way she's so determined to make her own way and how hardworking and diligent she is. I love that she slowly learns to trust another person other than herself and that she doesn't have to do everything alone.
Eri: Honestly, I knew I would love Tristan's book just because he's so charming and playful, and with a heart of gold, but when I read the synopsis for this book I was ecstatic! The whole childhood friends/enemies type of set up is what I live for in romance books, and I knew Laura would do it justice, so I went in expecting to enjoy it, and ended up falling head over heels for Tristan. He's a little mysterious, as Lisa said, since he seems to be light-hearted about everything in the other books, so getting to see beneath that veneer and into the depth he hides behind it was great. When he's around Malorie, you see how that light-hearted attitude backfires on him a bit, and seeing him lose his cool around her just made me love him more. You get a hint from the synopsis that Tristan has feelings for Malorie for a while and seeing that longing manifest into the cloak of protectiveness and genuine caring was a delight.
Malorie is a wonderful heroine too, and I really loved her independent spirit, she tries and works so hard. She's less open than Tristan, but the way she slowly lets down her guard around him as the book goes on was so sweet, and I like how she may feel the family vendetta strongly, but it doesn't stop her from knowing who Tristan is and appreciating his good qualities. As per usual, Laura writes books where the characters are well-matched for each other, and this was no exception.
Final Thoughts
Lisa: Jess and Damien are still my ultimate couple but Tristan and Malorie come close! Well, they tie with Matt and Layla because I can't choose between those two for the second spot. I can't wait for the next book in this series; I need Lucien's book like last year.
Eri: For me, Jess and Damien probably tie with Tristan and Malorie for first spot now, though Matt and Layla are a very close second. I feel like I say this too often, but every new book of hers seems to be a favorite, they're just that good. Likewise, I want to read Lucien's book so badly but I definitely am curious to see whether Antoine will get his own book, I am dying to know more about him, and I have a lot of theories right now.
Thank you to the lovely Laura Florand for providing us with a review copy.
Upping a .5 star to make it a 5 because this book deserved it, ok? Ok. I just love Tristan and Malorie so much ugh-
Also I can't believe I missed that Elena in this book is the same Elena in Lucien's book. On to A Kiss in Lavender now woooo-
First read: Jan 2017
4.5 stars
WHAT A GEM.
So Eri and I started a romance blog together early this year, and we did a dual review (our first one!) on this book <3 on Scoundrels & Seduction.
Review:
An actual transcript of the texts Lisa and I sent each other about this book would, unfortunately, be quite spoilery and would be entirely made up of many exclamation marks and all caps words. It's become quite the tradition to have enthusiastic discussions about our favorite books, and of course, A Crown of Bitter Orange became one of them. No surprise really, considering how much we both adore her books.
For this review, we've broken down things we like into bullet points of a sort:
Laura Florand's Descriptive Writing
Lisa: I think what attracts me from the beginning about Laura Florand's books is how descriptive her writing is. In Amour et Chocolat series, for example, the way the chocolate making is described in The Chocolate Thief, and macarons and hot chocolate making in The Chocolate Touch, is just so realistic it makes you hungry for them.
It's the same thing with this series; the way Laura described the rose and jasmine fields or in this book, the orange blossoms is just so picturesque. I love how the description of each scent is so vivid.
Eri: I actually picked up this series because of Lisa's very persuasive love for Laura Florand, but I definitely agree that her writing is one of the things that stood out to me when I read her books. She writes the details of desserts and fragrances so well that I can almost see or smell them. It doesn't just stay with the fragrances in this series of course, and I was able to imagine the locations so vividly, it was like I was there in person, in addition to feeling the tension and chemistry in every scene.
The Plot
Lisa: Another thing that I like about this book and also this series as a whole is how it features different flowers in different books. Like we have roses in Once Upon a Rose and jasmines in A Wish upon a Jasmine and now orange blossoms.
Also, don't forget about the mystery of the missing heirlooms! The longtime fight (or is it?) between Jean-Jacques Rosier and Colette Delatour with Jean-Jacques accusing Colette of stealing the family heirlooms are priceless, and so are the reactions of the Rosiers when they began to turn up one by one by the end of each story.
Eri: Yes to all the things that Lisa said, but I also love that each of the books focuses on a journey or quest of sorts for the heroine. In this book, it's Malorie wanting to restore her family company, and I like that in each of the books, the heroine's dreams or goals aren't secondary to the grand Rosier legacy, but balanced well.
The men in this series are all Rosier men, and they each play a different role in the family business, so that was interesting to see as well. And while they might be terrible at expressing their intent or motivations (*coughs at the thought of Damien*), they are quite supportive of the heroine and I like that both parties are on equal footing, for the most part. I never found the perfume industry to be so enticing, but this series has given me a whole new appreciation to it.
The Rosier Family
Eri: I adore the Rosier family. Laura always writes relationships well, and in her other series, there's some very strong friendships, but this one has the addition of the heroes all being part of the same family, and I love seeing how close they are to each other. They all tease and mess with each other, but underneath is that Rosier bond, holding them together, and seeing the other members of the family, like the mothers and of course, Tante Collete and Jean-Jacques, being so supportive is wonderful as well.
Lisa: Ugh, I agree, the Rosiers are the best. I envy their close-knitted relationship with each other, and how the cousins have each other's backs despite their differences. I love the distinct role that Laura set for each and every character; like how Matt is the land and Damien the warrior, and Tristan the glue that keeps everybody together.
Tristan Rosier & Malorie Monsard
Lisa: Okay, I'm always about dark and broody guys, but Tristan Rosier captures my heart so effortlessly. He intrigued me ever since we met him in Matt's book; he's so playful and full of life it's hard to not like him. I love how he dances around his cousins, teases them and gets away with it, and I love that we get to find out why he behaves that way in this book. We also get to see another side of him when he's with Malorie--he's so protective of her, and she's the only one who gets under his skin and makes him angry and frustrated, so that kind of adds another layer to Tristan.
I adore Malorie too! She kind of reminds me of Jess, the way she's so determined to make her own way and how hardworking and diligent she is. I love that she slowly learns to trust another person other than herself and that she doesn't have to do everything alone.
Eri: Honestly, I knew I would love Tristan's book just because he's so charming and playful, and with a heart of gold, but when I read the synopsis for this book I was ecstatic! The whole childhood friends/enemies type of set up is what I live for in romance books, and I knew Laura would do it justice, so I went in expecting to enjoy it, and ended up falling head over heels for Tristan. He's a little mysterious, as Lisa said, since he seems to be light-hearted about everything in the other books, so getting to see beneath that veneer and into the depth he hides behind it was great. When he's around Malorie, you see how that light-hearted attitude backfires on him a bit, and seeing him lose his cool around her just made me love him more. You get a hint from the synopsis that Tristan has feelings for Malorie for a while and seeing that longing manifest into the cloak of protectiveness and genuine caring was a delight.
Malorie is a wonderful heroine too, and I really loved her independent spirit, she tries and works so hard. She's less open than Tristan, but the way she slowly lets down her guard around him as the book goes on was so sweet, and I like how she may feel the family vendetta strongly, but it doesn't stop her from knowing who Tristan is and appreciating his good qualities. As per usual, Laura writes books where the characters are well-matched for each other, and this was no exception.
Final Thoughts
Lisa: Jess and Damien are still my ultimate couple but Tristan and Malorie come close! Well, they tie with Matt and Layla because I can't choose between those two for the second spot. I can't wait for the next book in this series; I need Lucien's book like last year.
Eri: For me, Jess and Damien probably tie with Tristan and Malorie for first spot now, though Matt and Layla are a very close second. I feel like I say this too often, but every new book of hers seems to be a favorite, they're just that good. Likewise, I want to read Lucien's book so badly but I definitely am curious to see whether Antoine will get his own book, I am dying to know more about him, and I have a lot of theories right now.
Thank you to the lovely Laura Florand for providing us with a review copy.