Review: Meet Me In Monaco by Hazel Gaynor & Heather Webb

Title: Meet Me in Monaco

Author: Hazel Gaynor & Heather Webb

Published: July 2019, William Morrow

Format: ARC Paperback, 384 pages

Source: Publisher via Author

Summary: 

Set in the 1950s
against the backdrop of Grace Kelly’s whirlwind romance and glamourous
wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco, New York Times bestselling author
Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb take the reader on an evocative
sun-drenched journey along the Côte d’Azur in this page-turning novel of
passion, fate, and second-chances.

Movie stars and paparazzi
flock to Cannes for the glamorous film festival, but Grace Kelly, the
biggest star of all, wants only to escape from the flash-bulbs. When
struggling perfumer Sophie Duval shelters Miss Kelly in her boutique,
fending off a persistent British press photographer, James Henderson, a
bond is forged between the two women and sets in motion a chain of
events that stretches across thirty years of friendship, love, and
tragedy.

James Henderson cannot forget his brief encounter with
Sophie Duval. Despite his guilt at being away from his daughter, he
takes an assignment to cover the wedding of the century, sailing with
Grace Kelly’s wedding party on the SS Constitution from New York. In
Monaco, as wedding fever soars and passions and tempers escalate, James
and Sophie—like Princess Grace—must ultimately decide what they are
prepared to give up for love.

My thoughts: This was one of my most anticipating summer books and I absolutely adored it. I’m a big fan of the writing duo of Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb and was thrilled to have been able to meet them on tour for this book. 

I admit to not knowing much about Grace Kelly prior to reading this book, but that in no way detracted me from enjoying this book. In fact, it has only heightened my thirst for wanting to read more…something I love about reading historical fiction.

I loved the way this book was told, narrated by perfumer Sophie Duval and press photographer James Henderson. We view Grace through their eyes and I found this to be such a fascinating way to tell the story. Grace, while trying to avoid the paparazzi at the Cannes Film Festival, sneaks into Sophie’s perfume shop one afternoon and a bond forms between these two ladies that lasts over thirty years. The one paparazzi that Grace happens to be trying to outrun is no other than James Henderson, who Sophie ends up befriending.

I love the way these authors write…it is so seamless that there is never a hint that there are two authors writing this book. I’m a fan of their books that they have written individually and collectively and even with a larger group, and know that their research is impeccable, and their voice is genuine. This latest one completely transported me to Monaco. The scents and descriptions were so vivid and I completely lost myself in the words. I adored the love story we get and know this is a book I won’t be forgetting anytime soon.