Letters From Paris

A New York Times bestseller For readers of Eat Pray Love, Under the Tuscan Sun, and The 4-Hour Workweek, comes a funny, romantic, and inspiring travel memoir about a woman who quits her job, moves to Paris, and finds love—and herself. Exhausted and on the verge of burnout, Janice MacLeod cuts back, saves up, and buys herself two years of freedom in Europe. In Paris, Janice meets Christophe, the cute butcher down the street—who doesn't speak English. They embark on a whirlwind Paris romance, and she soon realizes she can never return to the world of twelve-hour workdays. But her dwindling savings force her to find a way to fund her dreams again. So Janice turns to her three loves—words, art, and Christophe—to figure out a way to make her happily-ever-after in Paris last forever. Not only is this a charming nonfiction love story, but it's also filled with financial tips, including MacLeod's list of "100 Ways to Save," and other practical advice to make your dream of living abroad reality. Paris Letters invites you to experience the magic of Paris, find inspiration in Janice's journey, and perhaps, ignite your own quest for a life less ordinary. Praise for Paris Letters: "Janice MacLeod's charming Paris Letters takes us on her starry-eyed discovery of Paris, the joys of learning the French language, a unique career in art and, best of all, the romance of a lifetime! C'est bon!"—Lynne Martin, author of Home Sweet Anywhere "Written as though to a best friend telling her story over lattes—or café crème. Relatable and inspiring ... cleverly crafted with wit and unexpected wisdom"—New York Journal of Books "Aspirational fiction? No, a true story to inspire similar dreamers out there."—National Geographic's "Intelligent Travel" A wonderful gift for the armchair traveler, artist, and people who love to travel.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Key comes the story of a mysterious work of art and the woman inspired to uncover its history in the City of Light. After surviving the accident that took her mother’s life, Claire Broussard has worked hard to escape her small Louisiana hometown. But these days she feels something is lacking. Abruptly leaving her lucrative job in Chicago, Claire returns home to care for her ailing grandmother. There, she unearths a beautiful piece of artwork that her great-grandfather sent home from Paris after World War II. At her grandmother’s urging, Claire travels to Paris to track down the century-old mask-making atelier where the object, known only as “L’Inconnue”—or The Unknown Woman—was created. Under the watchful eye of a surly mask-maker, Claire discovers a cache of letters that offers insight into the life of the Belle Epoque woman immortalized in the work of art. As Claire explores the unknown woman’s tragic fate, she begins to unravel deeply buried secrets in her own life.

Twenty years, seven letters, and one long-lost love of a lifetime At age 40, Samantha Verant's life is falling apart—she's jobless, in debt, and feeling stuck... until she stumbles upon seven old love letters from Jean-Luc, the sexy Frenchman she'd met in Paris when she was 19. With a quick Google search, she finds him, and both are quick to realize that the passion they felt 20 years prior hasn't faded with time and distance. Samantha knows that jetting off to France to reconnect with a man that she only knew for one sun-drenched, passion-filled day is crazy—but it's the kind of crazy she's been waiting for her whole life.

An American in Paris navigates her family’s secret past and unlocks her own future, in this emotionally evocative novel by New York Times bestselling author Juliet Blackwell. As a girl, Genevieve Martin spent the happiest summer of her life in Paris, learning the delicate art of locksmithing at her uncle’s side. But since then, living back in the States, she has become more private, more subdued. She has been an observer of life rather than an active participant, holding herself back from those around her, including her soon-to-be-ex-husband. Paris never really left Genevieve, and, as her marriage crumbles, she finds herself faced with an incredible opportunity: return to the magical city of her youth to take over her late uncle’s shop. But as she absorbs all that Parisian culture has to offer, she realizes the city also holds secrets about her family that could change her forever, and that locked doors can protect you or imprison you, depending on which side of them you stand.

A father's long-lost letters spark a compelling tale of inheritance and creativity, loss and reunion When Louisa Deasey receives a message from a Frenchwoman called Coralie, who has found a cache of letters in an attic, written about Louisa's father, neither woman can imagine the events it will set in motion. The letters, dated 1949, detail a passionate affair between Louisa's father, Denison, and Coralie's grandmother, Michelle, in post-war London. They spark Louisa to find out more about her father, who died when she was six. From the seemingly simple question "Who was Denison Deasey?" follows a trail of discovery that leads Louisa to the streets of London, to the cafes and restaurants of Paris and a poet's villa in the south of France. From her father's secret service in World War II to his relationships with some of the most famous bohemian artists in post-war Europe, Louisa unearths a portrait of a fascinating man, both at the epicenter and the mercy of the social and political currents of his time. A Letter from Paris is about the stories we tell ourselves, and the secrets the past can uncover, showing the power of the written word to cross the bridges of time.

Part memoir and part visual journey through the streets of modern-day Paris, France, A Paris Year chronicles, day by day, one woman’s French sojourn in the world’s most beautiful city. Beginning on her first day in Paris, Janice MacLeod, the author of the best-selling book, Paris Letters, began a journal recording in illustrations and words, nearly every sight, smell, taste, and thought she experienced in the City of Light. The end result is more than a diary: it’s a detailed and colorful love letter to one of the most romantic and historically rich cities on earth. Combining personal observations and anecdotes with stories and facts about famous figures in Parisian history, this visual tale of discovery, through the eyes of an artist, is sure to delight, inspire, and charm.

In 1894, Eleanor L. Pray left her New England home to move with her merchant husband to Vladivostok in the Russian Far East. Over the next thirty-six years — from the time of Tsar Alexander III to the early years of Stalin’s rule — she wrote more than 2,000 letters chronicling her family life and the tumultuous social and political events she witnessed. Vladivostok, 5,600 miles east of Moscow, was shaped by a rich intersection of Asian cultures, and Pray’s witty and observant writing paints a vivid picture of the city and its denizens during a period of momentous social change. The book offers highlights from Pray’s letters along with illuminating historical and biographical information.