Sophia Rose Review: Five French Hens by Judy Leigh

Five French Hens by Judy Leigh
Series: Standalone
Published by Boldwood Books on December 10, 2019
Genres: Womens Fiction
Pages: 344
Format: Kindle Edition
Source: Publisher
Buy on Amazon
Rating:

I received this book for free from Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The best days of your life might be still to come…
When 73 year old Jen announces that she is going to marry Eddie, a man she met just a few months previously on a beach on Boxing Day, her four best friends from aqua aerobics are flabbergasted.
The wedding is booked and, when the groom decides to have a stag trip to Las Vegas, the ladies arrange a hen party to beat all others -a week in the city of love, Paris.
From misadventures at the Louvre, outrageous Parisian cabarets, to drinking champagne with a dashing millionaire at the casino, Paris lives up to all their hopes and dreams. But a week can change everything, and the women that come home have very different dreams from the ones who got on the plane just days ago.
Funny, fearless and with a joie de vivre that reminds you to live every day like it’s your last. Judy Leigh has once again written the perfect feel-good novel for all fans of Cathy Hopkins, Dawn French and Fiona Gibson.Praise for Judy Leigh’s books:
‘Brilliantly funny, emotional and uplifting’ Miranda Dickinson
'Lovely . . . a book that assures that life is far from over at seventy' Cathy Hopkins bestselling author of The Kicking the Bucket List
'Brimming with warmth, humour and a love of life… a wonderful escapade’ Fiona Gibson, bestselling author of The Woman Who Upped and Left

When Jen says ‘yes!’, that is the catalyst for five golden girl friends to go on a tour of discovery about themselves and each other in the city of lights. I loved the idea of gals in their seventies finding adventure with their friends, healing, understanding, and even love so I gladly picked this one up and settled in for a coze with the Five French Hens.

Jen is a widow in her seventies who already found love and the good life, but now she is lonely so when proper gentleman Eddie courts her and proposes, she says yes. But, Eddie is headed to Vegas for his bachelor festivities and that decides her that she and her best buds should do something just as spectacular for her hen party. So off they go to Paris.

Jen is accompanied by four friends with their own life struggles and need for this friendship and this trip. Pam, Rose, Tess, and Della. Della is happily married to Sylvester the love of her life, but she worries about him working in that drafty food truck on the coast and looking more worn out each day. Pam is happily single except for Elvis her dog companion, but she is holding in a secret that eats at her and holds her back from life. Rose is a widower and accomplished musician. She was content in her marriage, but not fulfilled when she gave up her career for home and family to a husband who never respected her own talents. And, then there is lively and colorful Tess who is marginalized in her own home behind golf and the golf game on TV. She is determined to live a little and maybe rethink how she has been holding onto something that just isn’t there and never was.

This standalone women’s fiction started out slow as it passed the narration around rapidly between the five women. At first, I got confused as to who was who and it was a struggle to get interested. They all seemed like real people with real life problems, but I wasn’t feeling a spark of connection.

But, I hung in there because I wanted to get to Paris with them and that’s when the book started to come to life. Each woman was distinct now and I grew vested in a few of their stories and then more and more as the book progressed through their lively and fun time in Paris. It was Paris through the eyes of tourists like visiting the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, jazz club, casino, and more. I was loving it.

What I really loved, though, was when the layers were peeled back on these women’s lives and I could get to know their pain and their dreams. It took a while, but the book got there so that when it ended, I wasn’t ready to leave the gals behind. They each had something to face whether from their past, their present, or a decision about their future. I was totally rooting for them just like they were rooting for each other.

I had never heard of this author before, but now I’m interested in reading more of her niche stories about folks with silver hair and most of their life behind them, but still have some adventures left to live. There is a little romance in this, but the focus is definitely on their personal growth and friendship so it’s very much women’s fiction and I’d recommend it as such.

I rec’d this book through Net Galley to read in exchange for an honest review.