Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Happy People Read and Drink Coffee #1

Õnnelikud inimesed loevad raamatuid ja joovad kohvi

Rate this book
Diane on 31-aastane, kui kaotab oma abikaasa ja tütre. Aasta hiljem võitleb ta ikka veel leinaga, mis matab kõik muu. Ta süda lööb, aga ta ei ela. Et pääseda valusatest mälestustest, mõistmatutest vanematest ja liiga abivalmis sõbra pealetükkivusest, otsustab ta teostada oma surnud mehe unistuse ning pageb kodulinnast Pariisist kolkakülla Iirimaa rannal. Kas on võimalik, et just seal, tuulest ja vihmast räsitud üksildases maakohas näeb ta tunneli lõpus jälle valgust? Agnes Martin-Lugand (snd 1979) töötas enne kirjutamisele pühendumist kliinilise psühholoogina. Oma esimese raamatu „Õnnelikud inimesed loevad raamatuid ja joovad kohvi” avaldas ta ise e-raamatuna. Sellest sai Prantsusmaal kiiresti menuk ja see kirjastati ka paberraamatuna. Nüüdseks on raamat avaldatud juba mitmekümnes riigis.

152 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2013

442 people are currently reading
10789 people want to read

About the author

Agnès Martin-Lugand

34 books1,251 followers
Agnès Martin-Lugand (born Saint-Malo) is a French writer of novels. A psychology major, she turned towards writing and published her first novel, Les gens heureux lisent et boivent du café (Happy People Read and Drink Coffee), as a self-edition via Amazon's Kindle platform on December 2012. Rapidly noticed by literary bloggers close to the self-publishing medium, she was approached by Florian Lafani, responsible for the digital development of Michel Lafon editions, proposing her to enter the traditional publishing world. Once the novel was among Michel Lafon's catalog, the publisher assured the translations to multiple European languages, particularly to Spanish, Italian, Polish and Turkish.
Her second novel, Entre mes mains le bonheur se faufile , was published by the same company in June 2014.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
6,219 (23%)
4 stars
7,012 (26%)
3 stars
7,338 (27%)
2 stars
3,933 (14%)
1 star
1,966 (7%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,968 reviews
Profile Image for Caroline Jenkins.
2 reviews2 followers
September 26, 2014
The book cover and title (and some rave reviews) were what appealled to me. It started so well... on a very dramatic note for the main character (Parisian librarian who lost husband and young daughter in a car crash...). The story line was promising (she decided to go and live in Ireland to grieve). When she gets there, you start to hope that there won't be too many clichés... But it's all there: cottage on the seaside, wind and rain, (over)friendly landlords, the tall, dark stranger with rugged looks (hello Heathcliff). He hates her from the word go (just because she's there), she tries to stand up to him, then gives up, then they sort of hit it off, but just as things are about to heat up, there turns up the former girlfriend (with whom there has been no closure apparently). She too is a caricature (the worst one?) of an executive woman, with her claws on "her" man. It just gets from bad to worse from then on... jealous cat fights included. Until the happy ending? no, not the one you would expect. With a strange twist, the ending is rushed.
And I still have no idea what the title is about, as they go through more packs of fags than cups of coffee in this book... or does it refer to the character's bookshop as being the only place where she can be happy?? Oh well, I give up...
Profile Image for Caro the Helmet Lady.
828 reviews457 followers
July 10, 2017
This review is dedicated to Sad Sunday. Let our torches burn bright!

Who let the Bad Bitch out? Agnès Martin-Lugand did! Well, she definitely shouldn't, because now her book will be burned with napalm. Mwahaha!

Ok, I'm not really in the mood to rip it to pieces as I was yesterday (sad, huh?), so I will just put a more or less objective review here and explain why I'm giving it just 1 star (hey, lets call it Death Star), when there's already basically Audrey Tautou on the cover (which is absolutely unrelated to how any character looked in the book, btw) and the film rights in some Hollywood producer's drawer, hence the cover, most likely. It feels like this story was actually designed for the big screen from the beginning. Which is not even a bad thing, I guess. Because with movie you will waste less time with this simple, oh how simple, I wish it wasn't that simple story.

You can already feel the love, right? ;) OK, bear with me for a bit longer please, cuz now I'm going to name all the pros & cons for realz!

It has a nice title. That's how it lured me. That's a pro. And we're done with pros. Now onto cons!

So description says it all about plot, written like any harlequin romance story sort of following "taming of the shrew" trope a bit, it's nothing more to add, plus some dull meaningless conversations and so so many cliches that it hurt - traumatic past on both sides, some cardboard characters like cheery gay friend taking care of everything, cheery best I-see-you-for-the-first-time-in-my-life girl friend, cheery dog friend, love interest in denial, love in denial, villain-ish ex-not-so-ex, lovely cafe with books nobody works at but also zero money problems, uh-huh, ok, Ireland-so-lovely-ah-you-all-you-know-how-lovely-Ireland-is-with-all-those-nameless-Irish! and some more, I'm just too lazy to think of it, to be honest.

The whole thing feels like it was a YA written by teen, talented one, but a teen nonetheless and it's shocking to learn that the author wasn't actually a teen at all. A psychologists, the blurb says. But it's all so teenage angsty! In a bad way! The main character is so immature and egocentric, that it's basically hard to have any sympathy for her in her situation and you don't expect her to be 31 y.o. instead of 16. Also, her parents were described in a way only teen in a phase "I hate grown ups!" would do.

Oiii... I won't even start with how - and it's gonna be a bit spoilery but I don't care! - our heroine one day wants to lay dead in a grave together with her husband and daughter and next day can only think of banging her rude but also handsome neighbour, who also acts as 17 y.o. boy with psychological problems. Luckily, there was no banging, but I'm sure there's gonna be one in the movie. One more point goes for the future movie!

Why did I read it, you'll ask? Why did I finish it? OK, I don't know, I guess I naively expected that at some point there's gonna be something that will surprise me? Some wit will bloom? Something interesting will happen? Some plot twist? Cthulhu will emerge from sea and snatch Diane and/or Edward and it's finally gonna be bloody fun? Honestly, I don't know.

And now I'm happy to announce the end of this review!
Profile Image for Loredana (Bookinista08).
766 reviews334 followers
September 11, 2022
Recenzie video: https://youtu.be/s3CHKT4C5sc

***

O zic cu toată seriozitatea de care sunt în stare, și fără nicio urmă de răutate: ce carte proastă!
Povestea este clișeică până la Ăl de Sus, personajele sunt complet neconvingătoare, relația dintre Diane și Edward e foarte toxică (fiindcă ambii se aruncă în brațele celuilalt fără a-și rezolva mai întâi propriile traume), iar sfârșitul e tras de păr la maximum.
Ok, ok, m-am bucurat pentru revenirea la viață a lui Diane, dar aș putea și eu ști cum anume s-a întâmplat? Când? Așa brusc? Pur și simplu s-a trezit într-o zi și a zis, mno, tre' să mă vindec, mă întorc la Paris, bye bitches?!?
Serios. Un om cu o traumă dificilă ca a ei și aflat în starea de depresie în care este ea descrisă la începutul cărții nu își revine așa, pac pac, gata I am back. ☹️
Urât. M-a cam enervat cartea asta, dar măcar am avut "ambiț" s-o duc până la capăt. 😆
Profile Image for Suz.
1,549 reviews844 followers
April 1, 2019
This was a very indulgent easy read, which I enjoyed on a long weekend interstate. I enjoyed the story of Diane and her overcoming of grief after her husband and only child die in a car accident. Diane owns a literary cafe and this is where the title comes in to play. The sentences are very short, this was noticeable in the translation, but in a way it was suited to the easy read. Diane takes off to Ireland on a whim after suffering at home for a year after the tragedy, using this time to try and come to terms with the loss of her family. There was nothing earth shattering about this book but it did suit me for a long weekend I spent visiting family with my mum, and I seemed to fly through it such was the ease of reading.
Profile Image for Sylvie.
473 reviews5 followers
June 12, 2016
Ok on va être honnête ... j'ai tellement pas aimé ce livre.
Je ne le recommande pas du tout!
C'est même pas aussi bon qu'un mauvais roman Harlequin!
Je suis désolée.
Profile Image for Veronica ⭐️.
1,314 reviews287 followers
June 27, 2016
2.5 stars I think something got lost in translation.

When Diane loses her husband and daughter in a tragic accident her world is shattered. On year on she is still a complete wreck. Felix, her oldest friend, comes everyday to clean up around her and try and coax her back to some semblance of life. Diane decides to go to Ireland as her husband Colin once mentioned he would like to go there. Her idea is to get away from family and friends and to be left alone to wallow in her grief. However the people she meets in Ireland are so welcoming and warm that she cannot resist their invitations. Diane soon becomes fascinated with the sombre and handsome man next door.

I loved the title of this book and the cover is beautiful. The story had great potential. Shattered woman runs off to remote area of Ireland to wallow in her grief but finds love where she least expects it; but the story just didn’t deliver. Diane was crazy. I can understand depressed but her actions were bordering on deranged.
The story, mostly written in dialogue, was stilted and unnatural. Scenes and characters were under-described.

I did enjoy Diane’s slow growth from needy depressive to a woman that was trying to get her life back on track.

Happy People Read & Drink Coffee is one woman’s struggle from the depths of despair to start living again.

With my thanks to the publisher for my copy to read and review.

Profile Image for Dale Harcombe.
Author 14 books420 followers
July 24, 2017
I loved the title of this book and was so looking forward to reading it. The title comes from the name of the literary café in Paris which Diane, the main character owns. I started the book eagerly and by page eight I was teary, sympathising with Diane after the death of her husband and daughter. I looked forward to seeing how she would handle this tragic double loss. Sadly, this is where the story started to go downhill for me. Diane cocoons herself in grief, ignoring loved ones who try to help her. She moves to a small Irish coastal town. Despite not really wanting to have anything to do with anyone she meets Edward. Although they clash the reader suspects that will change. Does It? You will have to read the book if you want to know as I am not going to tell you.
Sone people have really liked this book but I am not one of them. My main problem was with the characters. Diane, Edward, Edward’s sister Judith and Felix who works with Diane, none of them came across to me as believable characters. I kept reading waiting for this book to grab me and draw me back in. But it never did. The main characters behaved erratically and unrealistically.
Still I persisted, though I was not sure why. I came to the end thoroughly disappointed that I had taken the time to continue to read this book. Others have enjoyed this book, so I will just say it didn’t work at all for me after the first few pages.
Profile Image for Fran.
227 reviews115 followers
July 1, 2014
Orrore rosa. Errore mio.

Comunque veramente illeggibile.
Stereotipi e banalità.
Sicuramente ne faranno un film.
Profile Image for Mohadese.
418 reviews1,141 followers
August 4, 2019
توجه: این کتاب ژانر عاشقانه دارد! عشقی که دایان رو از باتلاق زندگی‌ مُرده‌وارش نجات میده و محرکی میشه برای شروع دوباره‌ی زندگیش!
راستش، با توجه به مقدمه مترجم من توقع داشتم داستان کمی روانشناسی‌تر باشه، حدود صفحه ۶۰ حدس زدم تم عاشقانه داره، بعد اومدم تو سایت گودریدز چک کردم، دیدم کاربرا اکثرا یک یا دو ستاره دادن چون توقع داشتند ژانر فلسفی داشته باشه با توجه به جلد و اسم کتاب (بله غلط اندازه! اما این به نظرم از زیرکی نویسنده بوده)، راستش من همچین توقعی نداشتم و با توجه به اینکه حدس میزدم کتاب عاشقانه باشه، تو ذوقم نزد.
اگر بخواهم کتاب رو با هم ژانرهای خودش مقایسه کنم، باید بگم داستان کشش لازم رو داره، من کتاب رو در حدود سه ساعت مطالعه کردم، ترجمه روان و خوبی داره. ولی اگه نویسنده در دسترسم بود بهشون یک ایراد میگرفتم! اونم اینکه به نظر من جا داشت یکم بیشتر به شخصیت‌ها و وقایع کتاب بپردازه. البته باید در نظر گرفت این اولین اثر نویسنده بوده و امیدوارم در جلد بعدی پیشرفت کرده باشه.
به نظرم اگه کتاب خوب تبلیغ شه، شاید مثل "من پیش از تو" و بقیه کتاب‌های جوجو مویز و امثالهم بتونه خیلی خوب بفروشه!
کتاب رو به کسانی توصیه میکنم که عاشقانه‌خوان هستند و یا طرفدار یک رمان شسته رُفته عامه پسند برای دور شدن از روزمرگیها!
Profile Image for Pauline.
50 reviews4 followers
August 1, 2013
Je n'ai rien lu d'aussi mauvais depuis " du temps qu'on existait " ! Tellement pathétique et affligeant ! Si seulement c'était bien écrit mais là ça n'atteint même pas le niveau de rédaction d'un élève de 6e ! Je suis vraiment déçue après tout le tapage médiatique qu'on a fait autour de ce livre !
Profile Image for Juliette Jahm.
83 reviews502 followers
July 3, 2025
J'ai commencé ce livre avec je dois le dire, de grandes attentes.

En effet, partout où je l'ai présenté on ne m'en a fait que de grands et élogieux retours.
Je préviens en avance, bien sûr, j'ai apprécié ce livre. Je l'ai lu quasi d'une traite, à dévorer les pages sans en voir le numéro en bas une seule fois. Et ça ne m'était pas arrivé depuis longtemps.

Néanmoins, je dois avouer deux choses qui m'ont perturbées :
- 1 : au vu du début de l'histoire, et des premières 20 pages, denses, fortes en émotions et faisant appel à une tragédie familiale qui on le sent, va être au coeur de ce roman, j'ai trouvé que plus les pages défilaient moins ce noyau dur y avait du sens, ou du moins j'en suis navrée, de réelle profondeur.
- 2 : la romance créée m'a semblée du niveau de certaines romance Young Adult que j'avais pu aimer à 14-15 ans. Ce que je veux dire par là, c'est que je me suis demandée à un moment si on était pas sur une mauvaise traduction (et non, l'autrice est française), tant les phrases faisaient clichées, ou tout droit sorties d'un After ou 50 nuances de Grey version film. Le bad boy, la femme qui lui court après, l'ex un peu trop présente venue de nulle part quand leur amour commence à peine à prendre forme, déclarant une sorte de gueguerre de possessivité.. Des liens amicaux très en surface liés en un quart de seconde avec de parfaits étrangers.. Extrêmement peu de description (et dieu sait que j'en ai HORREUR quand c'est trop, mais là il n'y en avait juste que TROP peu) un vocabulaire de plus en plus répétitif...

J'ai lu d'une traite et j'aime bien ce genre bien sur ! Je lirai le tome 2 accolé à l'édition que j'ai, parce que je n'arrive pas à croire qu'il y ait si peu d'informations sur plein de pistes abordées en début d'ouvrage...
Je dois dire que j'ai été assez décontenancée par cette "facilité" scénaristique de fin, quand on voit à quoi le début, poignant et riche ressemble. Aussi parce qu'on me la tant décrit comme "THE lecture", je reste peut etre sur ma fin, avec des attentes trop démesurées.. Bref, je vous tiens au courant de la suite ! Peut être que de décanter aussi un peu tout ça me fera voir la lecture autrement..

En tout cas j'ai passé un bon moment, ça c'est sûr !!
Profile Image for Flor ♡.
221 reviews59 followers
October 26, 2017
3,5 ⭐️

En esta historia nos encontramos con Diane, una mujer que vive en París y dirige un café literario llamado “La gente feliz lee y toma café”, junto a su socio y mejor amigo Felix.

Su vida va muy bien hasta que (y esto no es spoiler porque ocurre en la primera página) su esposo y su hija de seis años mueren en un accidente.

Luego de un año del trágico suceso, y sin progresos para salir adelante, Diane decide irse a vivir a Irlanda para intentar superar su presente, y por obra del destino termina en un pequeño pueblo llamado Mulranny.
Allí conocerá a alguien que logrará despertarla de su larga melancolía.

La historia de amor me gustó porque es diferente a las que he leído antes, y no peca de instalove que es algo que detesto encontrar en un libro.

No le puse más estrellas porque hubo algunos detalles que no me gustaron, como el cambio drástico de actitud de cierto personaje, y más que nada por el final, al que sentí bastante brusco. Quizás con un epílogo hubiera sido más alto mi puntaje. A pesar de eso, disfruté mucho leyendo esta novela, y la recomiendo para pasar un buen rato, es bastante corta y amena. 👌🏼
Profile Image for Aleksandra.
192 reviews37 followers
June 7, 2018
Plitko, toliko klišeja i površne radnje i likova da sam bolje čitala u ljubavnim vikend romanima, doduše lako i brzo se čita ali to je karakteristika i pomenutih romana od kojih se ne razlikuje previše ni po broju stranica, stoga ide loša ocjena, a što se mene tiče nastavak je bespotreban jer ga nemam namjeru čitati.
Profile Image for Morana Mazor.
466 reviews95 followers
June 9, 2018
NAjbolji je naslov... Priča je jedna od onih koje smo već puno puta čitali.. Očekivala sam puno više..
Profile Image for Silver Lining.
302 reviews16 followers
January 9, 2019
Well i don't even know what the fuck i've just read. The whole package of clichés?? Probably. An awful attempt to make me feel sympaphy for a non-logical selfish female lead with tragic past?? Definetely. A story centered on a poorly developed romantic relationship i had no fucking chance to care about since it was a rushed piece of garbage?? No doubt. Oh plus the ending sucks too 'cause the author tried SO HARD to push the idea that the female lead had to accept her past and let go and only after that learn to love again. That message would be great if the whole story didn't revolve around douchy but super hot neighbours and having poorly written hate-to-love stories with them.
Profile Image for Abril Camino.
Author 32 books1,850 followers
April 21, 2017
Me lo leí del tirón porque me fascinó la trama, los personajes y el estilo... hasta el 80%. No entiendo todavía en qué momento a alguien le pareció buena idea toda la trama de . El final volvió a retomar el tono inicial y me gustó, pero el mal ya estaba hecho. Una pena. Era un 5 estrellas de manual y se queda en esto por apenas 20 páginas.
Profile Image for Lady-R.
344 reviews137 followers
October 27, 2021
Qué bonito título. La gente feliz lee libros y toma café. Sabía que ese título era una trampa. Lo sabía. Pero da igual, porque es una puta trampa que cumple muy bien su función, hacer que una gilipollas como yo lo compre. Y total, lo pillé en una librería de segunda mano, así que pensé... si es malo tampoco me voy a morir por 2€, que soy gilipollas, pero no tanto.

Pero es que el libro no sólo es malo. Es un engaño. El título podría ser éste o podría ser... "La gente feliz tiene un gato y un sofá rojo" porque la trama del libro tiene que ver CERO con el título.

Como he dicho, el libro es malo, malísimo. Menos mal que al menos es corto y es ligero y rápido de leer, pero aunque pierdas poco tiempo no vas a sacar nada, ni entretenimiento. Puede que sea un poco agradable, sí (si tienes el ñoño subido) pero es que el libro es plano, aburrido, los personajes son muy simples, el desarrollo de la trama no es sólo previsible, es ridículo e infantil. Y hay algunas conversaciones que directamente son patéticas. Parece que en lugar de 30 y pico años tengan 15.

En fin, que te tomes un café pero no leas este libro porque no te va a hacer feliz.
Profile Image for Andrei Bădică.
392 reviews10 followers
March 23, 2019
Drăguță.

"- Tată, nu are rost. Plec mâine. Încă n-ați înțeles că nu vreau să mai locuiesc cu voi. Sunt om în toată firea, am treizeci și doi de ani, la vârsta asta nu mai locuiești cu părinții."
Profile Image for Fahime.
329 reviews255 followers
April 30, 2018
یک رمان زرد، خیلی خیلی زرد که احتمالا تنها به دلیل مناسب بودن عنوان و طرح جلدش برای پست‌های اینستاگرام پرفروش شده...
داستان از این قراره: دایان که شوهر و دخترش رو در یک تصادف رانندگی از دست داده، در اوج فروپاشی روحی و روانی به شهری در ایرلند نقل مکان می‌کنه. در اونجا همسا‌یه‌ی بی ادبی داره به نام ادوارد که در لحظه ازش متنفر میشه، اما در اثر اتفاقاتی -درست حدس زدید- نهایتا عاشقش می‌شه. شبی که تصمیم می‌گیره با ادوارد باشه -درست حدس زدید- سر و کله‌ی زنی پیدا میشه به نام مگان که قبلا معشوقه‌ی ادوارد بوده. دایان و مگان به فیلم‌فارسی‌ترین شکل ممکن وارد رقابت می‌شن و نهایتا ادوارد دایان رو انتخاب می‌کنه، اما -درست حدس زدید- دایان ادوارد رو رد می‌کنه، چون نمی‌تونه جوری که ادوارد سزاوارشه دوستش داشته باشه!!! نهایتا دایان برمی‌گرده به پاریس، به کافه کتابش!
تمام داستان بالا هم آغشته‌ست به پاکت پاکت سیگار و تا خرخره الکل خوردن!
Profile Image for Susana.
1,013 reviews193 followers
February 20, 2014
Con un título así, era imposible no leerlo, aún cuando la sinopsis ya me hacía sospechar que se trataría de una superficial historia de amor ... y efectivamente es una superficial historia de amor, con todos los elementos predecibles: mujer que pierde un gran amor de manera imprevista y ¿trata de reconstruir su vida? o más bien huye de su realidad para continuar con su duelo infinito (un año después de la muerte del esposo se va a un pequeño y perdido pueblo en Irlanda para continuar llorando); un hombre duro y tierno, cerrado y querido, con una historia secreta, que evidentemente apunta a un profundo despecho amoroso; paisajes hermosos, personajes simpáticos y una pizca de humor.
Lo único sorprendente del libro es la pacatería de la protagonista, el horror que siente cuando piensa que iba a cometer ese pecado extremo de acostarse con un hombre casado. Según me cuentan, los franceses son así, tradicionalistas.
Me recordó a las novelas de Corín Tellado.
Lo único que me hace ponerle 2 estrellas es que se lee de un tirón y resulta entretenido, con el sentimiento de culpa a flor de piel por haber desperdiciado mi tiempo en este libro, con tantos buenos libros pendientes por leer.
Profile Image for Eti .
535 reviews51 followers
February 18, 2022
НЕ! СТОЙ ДАЛЕЧ ОТ ТАЗИ КНИГА!

Какво беше това? Какво прочетох току-що?! Нищо. Едно голямо, тъпо нищо.

Тази книга е толкова плоска, че даже не знам какво да напиша за нея... Героите - повърхностни; сюжетът - нелеп; диалозите - елементарни; стил на писане - неопределен.

В историята има толкова много пробойни, че не знам дали въобще да ги обсъждам. Ще е безсмислено.

Принципно чета и преживявам книги за семейни драми, по някакъв начин ми помагат да се справя с моите житейски предизвикателства... Но тук просто няма какво да харесам. Нито едно. Жалко. Разочароващо.

Иииии името няма абсолютно нищо общо с текста! Вътре нямаше ни щастливи хора, ни такива дето четат, ни пиещи кафе.
По-скоро трябваше да се казва НЕЩАСТНИТЕ ЖЕНИ ЗАМИНАВАТ И ПУШАТ ЦИГАРИ.
Profile Image for Deborah (debbishdotcom).
1,439 reviews133 followers
May 18, 2016
I'd heard some not-good things about this book but decided to brave it nonetheless. And enjoyed the beginning.

Diane's pain following the death of her husband and daughter felt very real. I liked Felix - her longtime bestie and rather-slack bookshop colleague.

Although Diane's 32, we get the message very clearly - she's been pampered and has no idea how life works. She moved from her parent's to her husband. And he did everything. Except buy her a shop. And her parents did that.

When Diane headed off to Ireland to 'recover' I hoped the book wouldn't deteriorate into a cliche. And it didn't... at least not in the way I expected.

However... I think the author went WAY over the top with Edward. Far from broody he came across as rude and a little violent. No Mr Darcy, it wasn't just pride and prejudice projecting from his surly countenance. Indeed... he was a shocker. And the switch in his behaviour - from threatening to kindly attentive was sudden and weird - as was the switch back.

And Diane's interest was equally sudden and surprising.

As for the ending... WTF?! Seriously WTF?!

After a promising beginning everything about this book felt kinda immature and underdone - including the characters and plot. I'm not sure if something was lost in translation because - like I said... this book had potential.

2.5 stars from me - and mostly for the beginning.
Profile Image for Cordélia Cordélia.
Author 47 books299 followers
November 27, 2014
Je ferais un article dédié à ce livre, mais je tenais à écrire une petite note ici. J'ai l'impression de m'être faite... arnaquée par ce livre. J'en avais entendu beaucoup de bien, j'étais un peu sceptique, mais passons. Quand j'ai commencé ma lecture, j'ai été surprise dans le bon sens. C'était l'histoire d'une femme brisée, qui a perdu son mari et sa fille dans un tragique accident. J'imaginais alors que ça allait être l'histoire de sa reconstruction. En plus elle a un café littéraire appelé "Les gens heureux lisent et boivent du café" en plein Paris. Je pensais que l'histoire allait se passer là.

Et là... c'est le drame. En quelques pages, le roman vire au mauvais Harlequin (sans la scène croustillante en plus !). Elle part en Ecosse, a un voisin rustre qu'elle commence par détester avant de... oh surprise, lui tomber dans les bras ! J'ai lu jusqu'au bout en espérant un rebondissement et... non rien. Rien ! Je me suis rarement sentie aussi trompée de ma vie ! On m'avait vendu (presque) du rêve pendant les deux premiers chapitres et... ET NON MA GRANDE ! Comprenez que j'ai du mal à m'en remettre.
67 reviews
Read
December 18, 2017
انتظار بیشتری از کتاب داشتم. دنبال تفاوتی می گشتم بین سوژه این کتاب با داستان هایی مشابه از این دست. داستان با یک فاجعه آغاز میشه .دایان همسر و دختر خردسالش رو در یک حادثه رانندگی از دست میده. او کافه ای به نام آدمهای خوشبخت کتاب میخوانند و قهوه می نوشند در پاریس داره و کافه رو رها میکنه و به ایرلند میره در آنجا با خانواده ای آشنا میشه و عشق راهی برای درمان زخم هایش میشه و برای شروعی دوباره به پاریس برمی گرده و کافه اش را دوباره راه اندازی می کنه
Profile Image for Razvan Banciu.
1,844 reviews153 followers
July 10, 2024
AND UNHAPPY PEOPLE WRITE VERY POOR BOOKS.

I didn't like this one, not even for a second. The plot is thin and namby-pamby, the characters (of course, Diane fits that description) are rough and unconvincing, the final is more than stupid. And, if you ask me, the author had a sad childhood, as her heroines don't EVEN BOTHER to mention their parents' first names...
Profile Image for Furrawn.
649 reviews57 followers
October 8, 2021
I very much enjoyed this book. It’s a beautifully-written book that lets you inhabit the character. Excellent translation. I’m going to speak in generalities but if that counts as a spoiler to you, you should stop reading this review. Now. Are you gone? Ok.

Those of you who stayed…

I read this book in one sitting. I was captivated from page one on. The story pulled me from page to page. It even made me want to go to Ireland.

At first, I didn’t understand about the reading and coffee… but they show up later in the book… Really they’re the answer to what the protagonist needs in the end.

It’s a positive honest book. It might not have the ending everyone wants, but it’s a good ending. Optimistic. Hope-filled. Healing is happening.

I see many reviews where people complain about a sudden change in the protagonist around chapter 7 & 8. I disagree. It IS a jarring change in the book, but truth, recovering from grief can be like that.

After my dad died, that summer I got his house in order etc. After that, I really don’t remember the next nine months. I remember crying almost all the time. If my husband hadn’t put food in front of me, I would have died. Truth. One day in late spring, I looked up and was aware. I said, “I have to get away and get better.” I rented a tiny guesthouse on someone’s property in Hawaii, flew there a few days later, and stayed for months.

Grief is itself. There’s no rhyme or reason. People grieve in their own way. My husband would tell you that he was floored by my sudden insistence on going far away. On a beach in Hawaii, I cried. I laughed. I remembered. I decided to live again.

If the book suddenly seems to change gears, stick with it. Know that maybe your grief isn’t like that but for some it is.

I see there’s another book. I’m going to start reading it next.
Profile Image for Melissa.
Author 37 books37 followers
November 12, 2016
This book caught my eye because of the cover - even though I don't drink coffee, I do read and it makes me happy!

This was an interesting story about healing after loss. Diane loses her husband and daughter in a car accident and is lost in a deep depression. A year after their deaths, Diane decides to move to Ireland. There she meets Edward, and fighting with him starts the healing process.

This book wasn't what I expected, and I'm glad that it didn't end up in the way most of the "finding herself" style books end up.

It was also a quick and easy read, so I was able to read it in a few days while waiting for doctor's appointments and during kids lessons!

This is my "A book translated to English" for the Popsugar reading challenge.
Profile Image for MAPS - Booktube.
1,185 reviews390 followers
Read
March 1, 2022
Petite surprise qu’est ce roman!

Il n’est pas parfait. J’ai trouvé ça déplacé que les gens veuillent tellement faire parler Diane et prétendre ce qui est arrivé avec son mari. La péripétie finale de chicane de tigresses, j’m’en serais passé aussi. 😅

Sinon, c’était délicieux. C’était tout ce que j’avais besoin à ce moment. Une femme qui est en deuil, qui essaye de se retrouver, qui retrouve un peu de passion dans une romance? qu’on pourrait possiblement qualifier d’ennemies to lovers.

Ça s’est lu vraiment très bien, je tournais les pages sans me poser de questions et j’ai aimé le moment que j’ai passé.

Je ne sais pas si en termes puristes ont pourrait dire que c’est une romance compte tenu de la fin un peu flou, mais sinon un peu contemporain avec touche romantique.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,968 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.