Paris Trance: A Romance Book

5 "robust, joyous, romantic" stars !!!

5th Favorite Read of 2018

This is a novel that made my heart hurt. Hurled me into my twenties where carefree days were the norm and jaded attitudes toward the world and others were still not met on my life journey.

Mr. Dyer has created a work of both of the simplicity of an amorous romance and the complexity of how both romantic relationships and platonic friendships begin, develop and perhaps dissipate. Two Englishmen meet as casual laborers at a Paris depot and form a fast and close bromance where they play soccer, talk movies and drink lots of beers to pick up girls. Before each other, they are desperately lonely for both male bonding and female companionship. They are competitive yet so very kind and loving towards each other. They are Luke and Alex and over time they meet Nicole and Sahra and the twosome become a foursome and inseparable in friendship, love and frolic.

You enter their lives and wish that you could join them, wish they could be your friend, perhaps one or more will appeal to you as a lover. Through their vivid conversations, intimate encounters, loud drug addled partying, weekend jaunts and at times bitter arguments you enter not just their stories but deeper into their heart, their bone, their marrow. More importantly if you are older, they take you back in time to your own youth, your own frolics, your own previous kisses, your own past adventures. Perhaps not in Paris but in a small town in Kentucky or a large Asian metropolis.

There are parts of this that are so immensely sad that you might (like me) actually stifle a bawl in a public coffee shop and yet this makes the joy and laughter in this book sacred and transcendent.

I adored this romance and have Mr. Steven G to thank for his introduction to this mesmerizing and life infused novel.