Losing the Light

When recently engaged Brooke Thompson unexpectedly runs into someone from her past at an art showing, she is blasted back into remembering the one summer that changed everything to her This is how we first get to know Brooke in Andrea Dunlop s debut novel, Losing The Light Whether it was her new best friend, Sophie, whom she found she couldn t get enough of, the mysterious man they befriended, Alex, whom she also can t get enough of, or just the fact that she found herself in France in the first [...]

This debut by Andrea Dunlop is a fascinating tale of friendship, first love and nostalgia The three main protagonists Brooke, Sophie and Alex are all compelling and complex characters We first meet the narrator Brooke when she runs into someone from her past Alex is now a well known photographer and he played a pivotal role in Brooke s life when she was in college studying abroad in France.Not quite fluent in French, Brooke finds herself struggling with the language when she first arrives I love [...]

On the surface, there s really nothing so wrong with this book It s just another story about American women in France, reading too much into European culture as usual Personally, I m tired of these representations I m tired of how somehow every American depicted in a book loses his her shit the second they land in France Be it Paris, Nice, Nanteswhatever France is this massive, full cream culture that awakens the typical American It shocks them back to a real life as opposed to their cardboard, [...]

Fine wine, dark chocolate, a French love triangle, and the perfect best friend at first are only a handful of the decadences awaiting you in Losing the Light not to mention the shocking twist that keeps this succulent debut lingering long after the final page.

Losing the Light is a story of betrayal and manipulative friendships Brooke finds herself in trouble with the dean of her California University when word gets out she s sleeping with one of her professors In order to keep the scandal to a minimum they offer to send her to France for a semester, where she ll study French and other subjects in Nantes Another girl, Sophie, is also going and though she and Brooke don t know each other, they become fast friends prior to leaving the U.S The girls are [...]

ugh so good

4.5 I can t wait to read from Andrea

I received this book in a First Reads giveaway, and never have I ever been happier with a book I received The characters in this book are perfectly gripping, and even though you can see how the drama will unfold from a mile away, you can t help but get pulled into it and have faith with Brooke that everything will work out In a way, everything does play out different than expected, but you don t realize it until the very end.The characters really build in this The timeline of the book takes plac [...]

Beautifully written, evocative, and with a sense of place like no book I ve read in recent memory I m twenty years out of college and wasn t sure I d remember the angst of finding myself in a foreign country Yep, I did it too But wow, I was taken right back to those years, when love seemed all consuming, when the world and my place in felt so uncertain I loved all the characters and the writing took my breath away But the real hidden gem of this book, which presents like a travelogue but is so m [...]

Copy provided for an honest review Andrea Dunlop s debut novel is tale of youth, love and the seductive allure of the new and unknown Losing the Light is about a woman remembering the friendship and betrayal of her days abroad.Brooke Thompson runs in to someone from her past that brings back memories from a time in her life that she has tried hard to forget This is a novel about friendship and the many nuances of the complexity of what exactly that is I was intrigued right from the start as I ha [...]

I absolutely LOVE interacting with authorsey are my not so secret rock stars Imagine my delight when Andrea Dunlop herself reached out to me to see if I would be interested in reading her booksqueee It felt like the perfect book for summer and I was excited to read it as my last official summer read of the year While not quite what I was expecting from the synopsis and quotes on the cover, it ended up being an immersive and interesting peek into what it s like as a study abroad student in a worl [...]

While I had never heard of Andrea Dunlop, I loved the title of the book and I loved the look of the cover of this book, so that was enough to agree to read it and give you my review Before I give you my opinion, let me tell you a little about the story So there are two main characters here Sophie Martin and Brooke Thompson Sophie is an outward appearing all American golden blonde California girl Inwardly, however, Sophie struggles with some emotional issues that Brooke comes to learn along the w [...]

What drew me to this book was the beautiful cover Once I read it was set in France, I knew I had to read it I took several years of French in school, and was lucky enough to travel to France, but only for a short ten days So this book was perfect for me I absolutely loved it Brooke was such a great character, and I loved viewing France through her eyes There are several times in the book where French words and phrases are used The context generally explains what was said, but I was definitely th [...]

In a desire to leave their troubles behind and escape what they consider provincial California lives, Brooke Thompson and Sophie Martin enroll in a study abroad program in Nantes, France Only acquaintances in California, they find themselves forming a deep and consuming friendship in Nantes There they meet Veronique, a charming French student and her beguiling and wealthy cousin Alex Study and school cease to be a priority, as Brooke and Sophie become entranced with France and obsessed with thei [...]

Losing the Light is a charming novel about two friends who move to France for a semester abroad Each girl left behind troubles of their own, and they hope to forget about their problems for a while and explore a new country The novel begins in present time and leaves the reader on a bit of a cliff hanger in the first chapter as the author takes a turn back in time to the semester abroad in France Throughout the entire novel, I was waiting for something totally crazy to happen Dunlop kept me on m [...]

I found Losing the Light on some blog as 10 best contemporary novels read in 2017 But this novel was average and nothing special.The main character, Brooke, remembers an event from her past Story is told from her POV and many important details are missing She was not very observant at the time, so don t expect for much about other characters and their reactions Brooke is very self centered.I think Losing the Light would have been much better with at least another point of view, to complete the s [...]

The story told from Brooke s point of view leaves unanswered questions and emotions What really happened to Sophie and if Brook had returned to France would the outcome have been different Dunlop transports the reader into the world of a naive college exchange student introduced to the life of the rich and self absorbed Read my reviewnnyformythoughts nonasp

Losing The Light is the story of how one year studying abroad can change everything It s present day in New York City, 30 year old Brooke has just ran into a old friend from her time spent abroad in France As Brooke remembers being young and in a city that is full of romance, something will happen to her and her friends that will change her life forever.Brooke is coming from a disastrous affair with a college professor when it is suggested that she studies abroad for a year to get people off the [...]

We all have experienced finding a debut author who has surpassed our expectations A rare find it is when we finish a novel, and sit a moment, reflect, and send a little prayer upward asking that the author hurry up with their next book Ms Dunlop has done this to me with Losing the Light This is not my typical read, and to be honest, I cannot even recall how or when I added this to my to read list I m thankful something made me add it Her writing is lovely She has written such an emotional novel [...]

I wasn t sure how I was going to feel about this book even while I was reading it I felt that at any moment something could happen to make me hate itbut the opposite happened The twist at the end made me LOVE this book I smiled somewhat of a nasty little smile because it would appear that Sophie got the best of everyone I didn t like her character at all but she was nothing compared to how pathetic I found Brooke to be and I reacted to the ending with a guilty little pleasure However, I do think [...]

Review on blog bookbaristas 2016 03 rI m currently drinking merlot and listening to La Vie Rose as I write this review because it only seems fitting If I could be sitting in Nantes, France, I d be there in a hot second but this is as French as I can get under the circumstances.This book was the perfect dose of dreamy and whimsical, carefully tinged with sorrow and heartbreak It was about the possibility of everything the feeling before the storm, and I loved every second of it.Brooke is the kind [...]

I picked this book up on sale not knowing what to expect I am not a reader of light, romantic fiction as a general rule, but the description attracted me due to its indication that the story revolves around life abroad and had some level of mystery I think they used the descriptors intrigue and web If you are expecting mystery don t buy it There is a twist at the end, but not enough to classify it as mysterious If you are a lover of contemporary fiction with some humor and some romance then you [...]

Young college students, Sophie and Brooke, find themselves spending part of their college studies, for different reasons, in France Beautiful and wealthy Sophie is attached to Brooke and emotionally fragile Brooke finds herself attached to Sophie, American students in France They begin to share their deepest secrets Early on, both Sophie and Brooke, befriend Veronique and her older cousin Alex Sophie and Brooke become caught up in their new friends world However, at the end of their time in Fran [...]

3.5 starsWhat drew me to this book first was the cover it s stunning and what kept me reading was the compelling story within it s pages You have two college girls going to France for an entire year what could happen, right Yea, right What happens is worlds collide and reshape redefine the lives of those two girls One is from privilege and who, from all appearances, has the world at her feet and the other, not much privilege at all, yet she is pulled into dare I say lulled by this grand extravag [...]

No SpoilersI received this book from Simon Schuster Canada and I am so grateful for getting it It was absolutely captivating the way the author wrote the book I loved everything about it I am not one to write a 2 page review about a book that is why I am not a blogger but this book was mind blowing especially the ending, I never would of suspected the author would do such a twist and make you think what really happened I really hope there is a book 2 in this or at least an alternative POV from S [...]

This book was right up my alley from the beginning, as I love stories about Americans going abroad and immersing themselves in different cultures Losing the Light tells the story of two American students, Sophie and Brooke, who while they were not really friends in their normal lives, develop an intense and all consuming relationship quite quickly I couldn t help imagining how well this story would translate onto the screen and I think any film distributor would be lucky to snatch it up There s [...]

Entertaining with a slow burn.Most of this story is a look into the study abroad experience for two students in a small town in France The daily living and bonding of two young American women in France mostly Nantes and Paris are described in lengthy flashback scenes I would love to taste the hot fresh sandwich au jambon mentioned.The character growth was also slow going as it takes awhile for the protagonist to come to terms with her issues of the past and present.Friendship, love, holiday roma [...]

The debut novel by Andrea Dunlop is a compelling story about friendship abroad She weaves three strong protagonists together in a way that is unexpected and challenging The ending comes as surprise after hours of suspenseful page turning gripping, haunting and yet, somehow sweet The book conveys what its like to study abroad, to be embraced in a consuming romance with friends and the seemingly incoherent way that worlds can be built, fade and fall away.

Not exactly sure why everyone is raving about this one Yes, the characters are somewhat believable and the setting is beautiful However, I never found myself feeling attached to Brooke or Sophie Brooke tended to get on my nerves and Sophie was an enigma the entire time I wasn t quite sure how the author wanted me to feel about them which is a bad sign for me The ending also felt predictable and didn t leave me reeling like some other reviews have said This is a solid 3 out of 5 for me.

I didn t love the writing but the book ended up giving my Bookgroup a lot to talk about Young love or crushes, living abroad, etc were written about in a way that felt very authentic.