Monday, January 2, 2017

Letters from #Paris - #TeaserTuesday and First Chapter / First Paragraph / Tuesday Intros

I've always hoped to visit Paris, and Letters from Paris made me want to catch the next plane to France! Juliet Blackwell tells the story of a woman who leaves a high-powered job in Chicago to take care of her grandmother in Louisiana. That decision leads to a journey to Paris to track down the history of a mask of a woman called L'Inconnue (The Unknown Woman). The story of the creation of the original mask (100 years earlier) weaves through this contemporary tale.
     I enjoyed this love story/mystery a lot and will pick up The Paris Key when I return Letters from Paris to the library.

FYI: Juliet Blackwell also writes the Witchcraft Mysteries and the Haunted Home Renovation series.


Genre: Women's Fiction

Book Length: 348 Pages (Trade Paperback)
Amazon Link: Letters from Paris
Author Website: Juliet Blackwell

First Paragraphs/Intro (Prologue):

Sabine
February 27, 1898
     He sleeps.
     Sabine creeps across the dark studio before dawn, beseeching the silent faces not to betray her. They watch her every move, mute witnesses to her crime.
     Slipping through the door, she winces at the scraping sound of metal on metal as she pauses to latch it behind her. Fog envelops her, the mist cutting through her threadbare blouse and underthings, wet needles of cold air piercing her skin.

Teaser (from Page 111):

     But no matter the author, each of the tales ended in L'Inconnue meeting her watery death in the Seine at a brutally young age. Yet no one knew who she really was. How could so many have written about her, obsessed over her - including some of the greatest minds of Europe - and yet she remained inconnue?

Synopsis (from Amazon):

     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.

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by The PurpleBooker. Post two sentences from somewhere in a book you're reading. No spoilers, please! List the author and book title too.
Link up HERE
First Chapter/First Paragraph/Tuesday Intros is hosted by Bibliophile By The Sea. To participate, share the first paragraph (or a few) from a book you're reading or thinking about reading soon.




15 comments:

  1. I like the idea of a mystery around the mask but have to say Paris doesn't do it for me as a destination. Not sure I would continue with this one. Sorry!

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  2. I'm not quite sure about this one yet, I would need to read more - hope u enjoy it though.

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  3. I like the premise, so I'd likely give this a try.

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  4. The intro didn't grab my interest as much as the teaser and synopsis did but they really did. I'd for sure keep reading and . . . I like Paris as a destination. Here's my intro and teaser for today: http://wp.me/p4DMf0-1ra

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  5. You had me with letters, art work, and Paris! It all feels so very mysterious, and I definitely want to know more.

    Thanks for sharing...and for visiting my blog.

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  6. I love novels set in Paris, which I was fortunate to visit twice. This sounds like a book I'd enjoy--where I could daydream about being back there.

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  7. Sorry, Sany, but it just didn't pull me in. I'm glad it was enjoyable for you.

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  8. This sounds lovely and Paris is such an iconic setting and that combined with the mystery of the mask certainly has my attention.

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  9. Looks like quite the moody book. Great teaser.

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  10. This sounds intriguing to me. WW2 is one of my favorite settings for historical fiction books, although I'm not sure how much WW2 plays a part in this story. Paris sounds like another perfect setting. Glad you enjoyed it!

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  11. I just picked up this book too. Glad to know that you enjoyed it. Here's Mine

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  12. Love the cover, Sandra! And I would so do something like that...fly off to somewhere to find the history about a piece of art.

    I think, being 'unknown' made it possible for a variety of people to make this woman seem the way each one of them 'saw' her.

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  13. I like books set in Paris too. Even read some that were translated. Her other series sound good too.

    My TT from Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children

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  14. It sounds really interesting. I didn't realize that I had read a novella by her involving 2 of her series before. This is so different from that. And so intriguing. I'd read on. Glad to hear you're enjoying it.

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  15. This sounds fascinating! I'm a sucker for historical mysteries so I'll have to keep an eye out for this!

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