A Definite Amusement

Maggie Finds Her Muse by Dee Ernst
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This delicious bit of froth is perfect for a blissful escape read. Maggie Bliss is a romance author who's on the verge of achieving Nora Roberts level success. Except her latest book is due in two months, and she hasn't written a word of it—she's been covering up for herself quite well, but if she doesn't turn the book in, the third book in the trilogy—the book tour for volume two is off, the important cable deal is definitely off, and fans will be disappointed and angry. The stress!

At least she's finally motivated to dump her latest beau after seven years of growing obnoxiousness. When she finally fesses up about the writer's block to her agent, he offers her an apartment in Paris, complete with hereditary housekeeper, to pull off a miracle—a book in two months. What better city for romance writing than Paris, after all. Also good for meeting her daughter, who appears to be going to stay in Brittany forever.

It really is a pleasure to read a book with many likable characters, and who can resist Paris, home of food, fashion, and romance? Of course in this book the romance is not all in the novels Maggie writes. Her daughter has met someone, and also has dreams that her parents will reconnect as lovers, since they've remained friendly in the 20-plus years since their divorce. He's over on an after-breakup visit, as well.

And then there's Max, who she finds in her bathtub one morning, the perfect example of swoon-worthy Frenchmen. Max shows her all the wonders of Paris.

One of the things I love is that it's not all about the romance; the family & friends come off as real people, not mere place-holders. It's a hard thing to pull off a rom-com about a writer writing a book, and about women of a certain age finding love, and Ernst has done a masterful job. If you've been to Paris, you'll know if she pulled that off, but the lovely city she describes is certainly the Paris I've read about in other books. Good humor is the overall flavor of this book and I was left with the warm fuzzies. I look forward to future books!



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