A review by camila_caminioca
Rosie's Little Café on the Riviera by Jennifer Bohnet
1.0
*This book was given to me by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review – all opinions are my own.*
This short novel follows the life of mostly three women (all English?) who live in the French Riviera. I really wish I liked this book, I'm always rooting for the author, but I just can't find anything positive to say about this book - except perhaps that it makes me wish I was in a cafe on the French Riviera right about now.
While the book did a good job interweaving the different story lines, it was irritating. It was irritating to see the main character Rosie pretend she's a strong independent woman when she can't say no to her ex-boyfriend when he blatantly stalks her. It was irritating to see blame put on her when she decides as a teenager to stop speaking to her father who abandoned her as a child. It was irritating to read mostly dialogue and not description, of how it feels to be on the Riviera, of the cafe, of the hot air, etc. It was irritating to get an idea of so many characters but none of them felt like rounded characters because they were all explored on the surface. Above all, I was irritated by the ending where everything seemed revolved without any effort or realism.
I think the idea was interesting but it wasn't explored enough to make a well-rounded book.
This short novel follows the life of mostly three women (all English?) who live in the French Riviera. I really wish I liked this book, I'm always rooting for the author, but I just can't find anything positive to say about this book - except perhaps that it makes me wish I was in a cafe on the French Riviera right about now.
While the book did a good job interweaving the different story lines, it was irritating. It was irritating to see the main character Rosie pretend she's a strong independent woman when she can't say no to her ex-boyfriend when he blatantly stalks her. It was irritating to see blame put on her when she decides as a teenager to stop speaking to her father who abandoned her as a child. It was irritating to read mostly dialogue and not description, of how it feels to be on the Riviera, of the cafe, of the hot air, etc. It was irritating to get an idea of so many characters but none of them felt like rounded characters because they were all explored on the surface. Above all, I was irritated by the ending where everything seemed revolved without any effort or realism.
I think the idea was interesting but it wasn't explored enough to make a well-rounded book.