Narrated by Joel Leslie
French Fancy is the second book in Lily Morton’s Model Agency series, featuring Pip Simmonds and Olivier Durand. Pip has appeared in previous books, most notably The Sunny Side, the love story of Jonas Durand, head of Durant Modeling Agency, and supermodel Dean Jacobs, and we also briefly met Jonas’s brother Olivier, now head of the Durand Perfume business. While French Fancy could be read as a stand alone, you would miss some background on Pip and Olivier so I recommend listening to The Sunny Side first.
Pip is Jonas’s personal assistant, but was off sick for several months after a bout of scarlet fever turned into pneumonia. Even though Pip has returned to work it’s obvious he’s far from well, so Jonas decides to send him to recover at the villa in the south of France he co-owns with his younger brother, Olivier. When Pip arrives, the villa is unoccupied except for the housekeeper and a few other staff members, and Pip spends his days gaining strength by eating well, sleeping, taking daily walks and swimming in the pool. It doesn’t take long for him to fall in love with the beautiful villa, the scenery and the lovely warm weather. After a couple of weeks, Olivier shows up and the story really begins as Pip and Olivier get to know each other. Olivier takes a liking to the snarky Pip, and ends up playing tour guide and taking him around the countryside on his motorbike. Ms. Morton interlaces beautiful descriptions and some interesting history of the area into the scenes of Olivier and Pip exploring together. It’s lovely, but I didn’t really get pulled into the story until the two men start to show they’ve caught “feelings.”
Of course the trail of true love does not go smoothly, as both Olivier and Pip have some emotional baggage to overcome. Pip has had terrible luck with men, who have mostly cheated on him and left him feeling he’s somehow lacking. He covers his insecurities with brashness and bravado. Jonas and Olivier had a difficult upbringing, and while Jonas has reacted by trying to control every aspect of his life, Olivier seems bent on living wildly and keeping everyone at a distance. Both Pip and Olivier think they are being clever and detached while the reader has no doubt that both are falling hard.
Ms. Morton writes great snark, but the snarky banter here feels a bit forced or over-the-top at times. I also didn’t quite understand what Olivier finds so fascinating about Pip that he’s willing to change his habits, plus it didn’t ring true that both men could be so dense when it came to their very obvious feelings for each other.
As always, Joel Leslie delivers a high quality performance that enriches how readers experience the story. Joel is a talented voice actor, which means he doesn’t just give each character a different voice, he also brings out their individual personalities. Pip is small and snarky, and we can tell a great deal about his personality because of the sassy way Joel delivers his dialog. Olivier definitely sounds like a slightly world-weary Frenchman with his deeper voice and slow, sexy way of talking. The banter in the book requires good comedic timing on Joel’s part, and he pulls it off admirably.
I generally enjoy Lily Morton’s books, especially on audio with Joel narrating, and French Fancy is no exception. The descriptions of the scenery in the south of France are exquisite, and the banter is snarky and generally fun. There are potential set-ups for two more couples, and I’m quite curious to read the next Model Agency book. I’m pleased to recommend French Fancy for Lily Morton fans, and fans of sexy, snarky contemporary romances.
Carrie
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