I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review for my stop on the blog tour at Donnie Darko Girl.
I fell head over heels in love with Melanie Harlow's writing when I read her debut novel, Speak Easy. I loved that novel so much I knew I'd pick up any book she wrote afterward. I'm just as in love with her latest release, Frenched, if not a bit more so - this novel was an absolute pleasure to read!
In Frenched, we meet Mia who has just been jilted by her ex-fiance, Tucker, A WEEK BEFORE THE WEDDING (!) and is convinced by her friends, Coco and Erin to take the honeymoon trip to Paris by herself. They reasoned it would give her time and space to think, and she may as well get away from it all for a while. Coco and Erin were such great friends to Mia in her time of need. Every girl needs friends like them.
Right away it was apparent to me that Mia was more upset about the wedding not taking place rather than the loss of the relationship itself. It's easy to get caught up in the wedding planning and forget about the actual marriage itself, and that's what Mia did. Not that I blame her - she does plan weddings for a living! As painful as it was for her, Tucker calling off the wedding ended up allowing her to reexamine who she is and the choices she's made up to now.
One of my favorite scenes in Frenched (and there are many!) is when she flies into the sports bar where Lucas works with an expression on her face almost daring any couples there to be openly affectionate - the last thing she wants to see right now in the city of love. She's spunky, beautiful, and intelligent, and there is no reason she wouldn't be able to pick herself back up and carry on.
Lucas was oh-so-deliciously-good for her in many ways - not only was their chemistry off the charts, but he taught her how to live in the present without planning out every detail of the future. I think Mia was so busy worrying about what she wanted to happen that she wasn't appreciating life as it came. The here and the now.
Isn't that something we all can relate to? I definitely can. One of the biggest challenges in life is to slow down and enjoy what you have while you have it, but fear gets in our way. Mia had huge fears she ended up coming face to face with...fears she had kept buried for so long that it was painful to face them but also necessary in order for her to find happiness.
The sexual chemistry between Mia and Lucas certainly didn't hurt matters, wink wink. He is smoking hot and compassionate and caring. Their sex scenes were intense! The feelings I could see developing between them made the sex even hotter. They couldn't breathe around each other. They needed each other and couldn't get enough, and it was just, wow!
Overall, I can't recommend Frenched enough. I'm a huge fan of Melanie Harlow and the characters she creates. Her name alone is all I need to know what to read next.
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