The Paris Affair: A brand new unforgettable and emotional historical novel

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Flowers invoke nothing but joy in the giver and the receiver. They are not a luxury item at all. They are a necessity.” After the media hints to a serial killer being on the loose, Harper finds herself uncovering secrets that could solve the murders and give Harper the story she desperately needs - if she isn't caught by the killer first! Two things that will stay with me for a very long time: (1) the assassin’s teapot and (2) Christoph’s advice to carry on playing and not waste time waiting for the bell to ring. Scarred by his experiences in World War One, German doctor, Sebastian Braun lives a quiet life tending to his patients and his beloved garden. Until Sophie Hathaway bursts into his life and challenges his dearly-held beliefs. And just at the moment Sebastian discovers love for the first time war is on the horizon once again, threatening not just his peace of mind... Quite simply epic! It should be made into a film, as the writing is so beautifully visual and presses all the emotional buttons’ Mandy

But there is good and evil to all of us. It is more likely that I have striven to be good because I have witnessed evil on the battlefield and I have seen that good men can do bad things—I was such a man. We are all of us only a moment away from choosing to dance with the devil, and if I have striven for anything in life it has been to keep the unpleasant man that I am aware in could be at bay.” When a young female art model goes missing, Harper realises she was one of the last people to see her alive, at that party, but is conflicted, as the woman has something that has the potential to threated her career. When the body turns up, Harper begins to suspect the person who compromised her situation. This book was not exactly what I expected, but it wasn’t bad—just different. It was more about Sebastian (43/47) than it was about Sophie (35/39) and Sebastian. Because of the cover, I had expected more of the book to be from Sophie’s perspective than just the little bit at the beginning. Again, not a big deal, just not what I expected. I liked both of them. An interesting sidebar to the story is the attitude of the French police to missing persons: “in France, the police won’t search for you unless there are clear signs of foul play or you’re a minor. Which means that approximately one thousand unidentified bodies are found in France each year, compared with around sixty-six in Britain, which has a similar population. Most of the time the DNA from those bodies isn’t recorded either.” Lesson: don’t go missing in France, unless you want to. The Paris based setting was the big drawcard for me and this novel. I am a huge Francophile, so anything set in Paris is going to immediately reel me in! Drysdale does a fine job with her setting, offering the reader a glimpse into another side of Paris. Drysdale removes the mask of love, lights and allure and she takes an abrasive look at one of the world’s most beautiful cities. Drysdale’s Paris is a place of violence, murder and mystery. I liked this alternative focus on the ominous side to a city I adore with all my heart. Thanks to Drysdale’s well-placed descriptions within her novel, the audience is completely immersed in this vivid setting base.

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Harper was such a fun character to read. She was so bold and brazen, and I found my heart racing many times as she found herself in various situations and then talked - or broke - her way out of them. I think my biggest deferment for really enjoying it more than average was the writing. It wasn’t bad. It just tended to skirt the edges of stream of consciousness, which has never been my thing. Sentences were very long and rambling, with Sebastian interrupting himself to share side details, even multiple times in the same sentence. The longest sentence I counted was 113 words (a close second was 109). I suppose it was fitting for his character, though. The book is well-paced with some twists adding more authenticity and warmth that will keep you reading to the beautifully drawn ending. Although worlds of the two women were different, they have a shared history, and they did not mind the distance between them. The books is full of emotions that we can all relate and inspire you to treasure your friends because you never know what life may bring. While out and about, a person Harper has a run-in with is murdered. Harper is drawn into the investigation in the hopes of solving what happens, not because she wants to be an amateur sleuth, but because she wants the scoop and has an interesting angle, one that perhaps no one else has. Harper Brown is a British journalist in her late 20s, working as an arts-culture columnist for a Paris online magazine, The Paris Observer. Her ambition is to succeed as an investigative crime journalist, a goal she's pursuing doggedly after wasting years supporting a former partner, a musician, who dumped her as soon as his band found success. Her love of true-crime podcasts has enabled her to amass an intriguing armoury of self-preservation and crime-busting skills, detailed through her blog How Not to Get Murdered.

The plot is well paced and structured and it pulled me into the deception, suspense and tension...I hope to see this on the silver screen one day’ Norma The plot is well-paced and structured and it pulled me into the deception, suspense and tension and, my sigh of relief was welcome when things seemed to be working out for the characters. I appreciated the great balance between showing and telling as well as the reminder that we become someone else when we do things simply to be accepted by others. Sascha was a perfect example of this on more than one occasion. What once brought so much joy, peace and a sense of completeness, was lost to me, perhaps because I knew–oh how I knew–that my little place of paradise would be lost to me soon, and that one way or another, my freedom and my absolute sense of being home would be gone.’ Having landed a dream job as an arts and culture journalist for The Paris Observer, Harper Brown is enjoying her new life in the City of Love, though love is last thing she’s interested in. Still nursing a broken heart after the demise of an eight year relationship, Harper doesn’t want normal - she just wants to impress her new boss, work her way onto the features desk, and has just one rule- do no harm. I was absolutely hooked with The Paris Affair, what an intriguing thriller, you won’t want to put this one down until the end! The author has nailed it!

Customer reviews

Drysdale’s mystery plot was multi-layered and complex. She managed to link everything together. A lot of the scenes I thought she’d written to merely highlight some character trait of Harper’s, ended up being integral to the main plot in the end. Very clever indeed. She is relegated to the “girl about town” and “how-to” articles, and she is good at these articles, but she is looking for more. She bides her time with meaningless sex, and nights out at events. Until the story of a lifetime falls into her lap. Enter Noah X…..

The Paris Affair is enthralling, a compelling read that you won’t be able to put down. The action takes place from 1940 – 1945 and rotates among Paris, the Sark Channel Islands, and La Sante Prison where Sebastian is awaiting execution. The transitions are clear and understandable, and just enough information is provided each time to keep your interest peaked. This is the second book I’ve read by author Melanie Hudson and the writing is as excellent as ever. The characters are multi-layered and interesting, the descriptions of the Sark Channel Islands convey their beauty and the horror of war and the feeling of impending doom awaiting the German Army’s arrival feels real. The suspense waiting for Sebastian to be executed – or for there to be a miraculous reunion with Sophie – is nearly excruciating. But well worth the read. Having read both of Pip Drysdale's previous books, The Sunday Girl and Strangers We Know, I had high expectations going into this and I was not disappointed. The Paris Affair delivers a fast-paced, heart-racing psychological thriller that I've come to expect this author but with the charming addition of a Paris setting. As the Germans approach the Channel Islands, Sebastian has to make choices: be the peace-loving man he has become or stand up and fight for his principles? When he and Sophie are separated, Sebastian is left realising love may have eluded him forever. Until a chance meeting in Paris sets the wheels in motion for a dangerously devastating love affair. The friendship feels real, and there are much joy and hope as well as devastating pain. The story focuses on friendship, love, fresh family beginnings, and second chances. The story shows how some people value friendship despite their past. It is emotional and charming with different feelings making it incredible to read. She's arrived in Paris to work at The Paris Observer and not yet trusted with stories of any particular gravitas. A previous exposure to art however means she's sent to cover a new art show with an edgy up-and-coming artist, the annoyingly named Noah X.The Paris Affair is the first Melanie Hudson novel that I have read. How I have missed previous Hudson novels surprises me, but I am glad to have discovered such a talented and interesting author. The Paris Affair is compress and multilayered. The characters have depth and a quirkiness to them that held my attention to the end of the book, which I was disappointed to finally reach. I wanted to keep reading about these characters. Rosie goes through many incidents that leave her heartbroken. She faces the horror of the war and struggles as she is among the few women living in the camp. Even though the letters between the two ladies were brief, they contain a lot of information about the two women. The letters make the book easy to read and chatty. The first letter Aggie writes to Rosie shows something magical about their second chance of friendship and makes realize that their relationship ended on bad terms.