Review: The Lost Carousel of Provence by Juliet Blackwell

The Lost Carousel of Provence

by Juliet Blackwell

Publisher: Berkley

Pages: 384

Format: book

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Long, lonely years have passed for the crumbling Château Clement, nestled well beyond the rolling lavender fields and popular tourist attractions of Provence. Once a bustling and dignified ancestral estate, now all that remains is the château's gruff, elderly owner and the softly whispered secrets of generations buried and forgotten.
 
But time has a way of exposing history's dark stains, and when American photographer Cady Drake finds herself drawn to the château and its antique carousel, she longs to explore the relic's shadowy origins beyond the small scope of her freelance assignment. As Cady digs deeper into the past, unearthing century-old photographs of the Clement carousel and its creators, she might be the one person who can bring the past to light and reunite a family torn apart.

Kritters Thoughts: A book with two storylines that converge at just the right spot.  The current storyline is about an American photographer named Cady Drake that has hit a few snags in life and is given the opportunity of a lifetime to go to Paris and France to photograph carousels.  Interspersed throughout that narrative are chapters from the past from a few view points and they tell the story of the inhabitants of this chateau in Provence.  Cady learns a lot of life lessons from this chateau and the older man currently living in it.

What a beautiful story.  I love when a small piece of history, in this instance a carousel is the catalyst for a whole bigger story of the time and the place and life in the present day.  I loved how Cady became a researcher and journalist through her photography and I loved hearing about how taking photos informed her life and made her literally see things differently.  

This book made me google carousels and Paris and watch youtube videos and sent me down a few rabbit holes!  I absolutely love it when books prompt me to do the google searching.  I always find I learn more when a book sends me into research mode.  

This was my first Juliet Blackwell book and will most definitely not be the last.  I will be on the hunt for her other books and will have to read and review them here.


Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from Berkley.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.