REVIEW : I See London, I See France by Paulita Kincer

I See London I See France

By Paulita Kincer

Publisher: Oblique Presse

Release Date: December 13, 2013

Genre:  Women’s Fiction

Length: 246 Pages

ISBN: 978-1-304698-88-9

ASIN: B00HBY90M2

Buy Links:  Amazon │Barnes & Noble 

About the book: 

When her husband of a dozen years walks out in a huff, Caroline Sommers walks out too – to Europe, with her kids after impulsively selling her minivan for travel money. Tired of being the perfect wife, she escapes to rediscover herself, and possibly rekindle the unrequited love of a Frenchman from her college days.  While shepherding her kids from London to Scotland then Paris to Provence, she finds herself at a crossroads. Does she choose love, or lust, in the arms of a European man, or should she try again with the father of her children and the man she truly loved, once?

 

With a marriage on the rocks and a family in need of an intervention, a woman at a crossroads in her life is the key player in Paulita Kincer’s I See London, I See France. The well-developed characters, engaging dialog and the perfect level of emotional angst grabbed my attention from the beginning, and kept me involved in the story, waiting for what was to come. The well-paced plot, the depiction of her characters experiences abroad and the excellent character development all combine to make Ms. Kincer’s book an enjoyable reading experience.

When Caroline Sommers husband Scott walks out in the middle of an argument after twelve years of marriage and three children, Caroline is confused and wonders when she lost her identity and her value as a woman.  Deciding to take control of her life again, Caroline sells her van and plans to take her three children, Jack, Maggie and Henry, to Europe, where she travelled as a young woman and knew who she was.  She hopes to rediscover who she is as a woman and a mother on their journey.   

Scott Sommers doesn’t understand how things in his life have gotten so out of control.  After all he goes to work every day and brings his paycheck home to his family.  What more could they want?  When Caroline takes the children to Europe, without telling him her plans, Scott will have to decide what comes first – his career and a life without his wife and children or a chance to get things back on track and become the father and husband he’s always wanted to be.

Using flashbacks to Caroline’s past as a young woman, Ms. Kincer takes us on Caroline’s journey with her children as they travel throughout Western Europe.  Beginning in London, with the obligatory visit to the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace, Caroline thinks back to how much energy and life she had as a young woman and remembers her infatuation with Jean Marc, a Frenchman she met while working as a nanny for his best friend’s children.  Ms. Kincer does a wonderful job contrasting the single Caroline against the woman she is today, a mother with three children and the responsibilities of running her own household.  As she remembers who she was, Caroline realizes her insecurity is partly to blame for how she feels today.  As Caroline begins her self-examination, she’ll discover she’s never really lost her identity; she’s grown and changed from who she was when she was single. 

Ms. Kincer does a great job using Caroline’s children, and their experiences as they travel to help Caroline remember the wonder of new discovery, the love she has for home and family and even her husband Scott.  Ms. Kincer also does a good job developing Jack, Maggie and Henry as their own characters; they are inquisitive, thoughtful and likeable on their own.  Their experiences on the trip, and their devotion to their father, help Caroline keep things centered as she rediscovers who she is.

The secondary characters throughout the book are well developed and I especially liked Caroline’s two girlfriends at home, they help keep her grounded and encourage her to remember the good and the bad in her marriage.  I also enjoyed meeting the people Caroline and her children encounter on their trip; it was especially fun watching Caroline as she gets to meet her French friends again and realizes how they’ve changed and grown, or not, throughout the years. 

Will Caroline realize she needs to give her marriage a second chance and that Scott isn’t the only one who made mistakes?  Will Scott and Caroline confront their problems and deal with them as they need to in order to make their marriage stronger and save the family they both love?  You’ll have to read I See London, I See France to find out.  I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of Ms. Kincer’s work.

My Rating:  5 out of 5 Crowns

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley as a part of a book tour in exchange for a fair and honest review.