The French Honeymoon

Through the alternating viewpoints of the newlyweds and someone who’s watching them, we follow the unhappy Paris honeymoon of Olivier and Cassie and the time before and after it. Olivier’s time in Paris is a reluctant trip home, given that his tenuous immigration status means that he shouldn’t have left the U.S. But spoiled Cassie, who seems mainly to enjoy the trip as a chance to look glamorous on Instagram, insisted. What Cassie wants, Cassie gets, especially since their marriage is Olivier’s ticket to a life outside France and his gigantic debts there. The person following their every move and Cassie’s every social-media post can see that things aren’t as perfect as Cassie would have her followers believe and delights in the obvious discord. This look at the Paris sojourn alternates with the story of the couple’s short time dating and the aftermath of their immigration-fueled decision to wed, when they live with Cassie’s sister in the family’s former inn. It’s far from the cozy getaway spot and possible moneymaker that Cassie described, adding to the feeling that both parties here have been had. The crime-filled ending of the honeymoon, a twist readers won’t see coming, and life back home deliver on the promise of the increasingly dark relationship and save tantalizing reveals until the very end. Try The Paris Apartment while you wait for this absorbing thriller.