Title: Love Requires Chocolate (Love in Translation #1)
Author: Ravynn K. Stringfield
Genres: Contemporary/Romance
Pages: 288
Publisher: Joy Revolution
Review Copy: ARC by publisher
Availability: Available now
Summary: Whitney Curry is primed to have an epic semester abroad. She’s created the perfect itinerary and many, many to-do lists after collecting every detail possible about Paris, France. Thus, she anticipates a grand adventure filled with vintage boutiques, her idol Josephine Baker’s old stomping grounds, and endless plays sure to inspire the ones she writes and—ahem—directs!
But all is not as she imagined when she’s dropped off at her prestigious new Parisian lycée. A fish out of water, Whitney struggles to juggle schoolwork, homesickness, and mastering the French language. Luckily, she lives for the drama. Literally.
Cue French tutor Thierry Magnon, a grumpy yet très handsome soccer star, who’s determined to show Whitney the real Paris. Is this type-A theater nerd ready to see how lessons on the City of Lights can turn into lessons on love?
Review: Having been to Paris a few years ago and fell in love with the city myself, I was so excited to read this novel because after all…Paris is the City of Love. And like Whitney, when I first went I had the fantasy of Paris and quickly learned about the real Paris (not that it was bad…I’m still in love with the city). I feel like Ravynn Stringfield captured this feeling perfectly through Whitney’s experience as she arrived all sunshine and full of expectation, but soon learns about the difference between fantasy and reality.
I will admit that at first Whitney’s character kind of annoyed me. She is very “high-maintenance” in that she is overly cheerful, has a set list of expectations for her stay in Paris, and does come on a bit strong to folks as she’s very over-eager. This behavior got on my nerves but then I reminded myself that Whitney is on a journey and the point of the story. Throughout her friendship and eventual relationship with Thierry, she learns to be open to new experiences that are not a set list and to view the world in absolutes. She had a list of places she wanted to visit, all touristy places (which there is nothing wrong with), but Theirry shows her the real Paris and those interactions are where Whitney begins to understand that there is so much more to Paris than the city in her fantasies. It is a thriving city with real people living real complicated lives. She branches out of her bubble and really begins to live in Paris rather than be an extended tourist. One of my favorite moments is when she realizes she has to refresh her braids and she uses the network of friends she’s made among Black Parisians. Having an experience that is so much like home really hits for Whitney what the true city of Paris is.
Love Requires Chocolate is of course a romance and I would be remiss if I didn’t write about the romance in the story. It is a nice slow build because Whitney is resistant to wanting to start a relationship with Theirry because she’s there to focus on her senior project and her time in Paris is limited. As Theirry encourages her to try new experiences, her heart opens to him and when they finally admit they feel something for each other, it really is sweet at chocolate. I liked Theirry as a character and he was a great balance for Whitney as he was a little more laid back but had his own issues that Whitney helped him through as well. I really liked them as a couple and hope to see glimpses of them in the upcoming novels.