Catch Hold Of The Second-Worst Restaurant In France: (Paul Stuart #2) Scripted By Alexander McCall Smith Delivered In Leaflet

halfway through this book I realized I wasn't enjoying it very much, and it didn't take long to figure out why, I think much of the delight in McCall Smith's books revolves around the odd, introspective, sometimes bizarre characters you meet in the pages.
Some are insufferable, but they usually come and go and you're off to the next chapter, Even Bertie's awful mother isn't around for the entire book, thank God, But this book has Chloe, and she's inescapable, and by halfway through the book, I was really fed up with her, There is a payoff at the end, and I was glad I put up with her and finished the book, I only hope that if this series has a third installment Chloe stays far, far away and we can get back to Paul's enjoyment of food and his travels.
Not his best. Could not finish. But I love the Mma Rowatse series, Not sure the point of this book, The title was so intriguing, but the "second worst restaurant in France" did not really even come into the story until at LEAST halfway through.
I just think it could have been so much better, The characters in this book would've been much more interesting in a less rambling story, Az első részben, a Találkozzunk Toscanában! c, kötetben megismerkedhettünk Paul Stuarttal, a zseniális skót szakáccsal, aki már sokadik könyvét írja, ezúttal a toszkán ízekről.
Bejártuk fél Itáliát, buldózerrel közlekedtünk a kicsi, hegyvidékes szűk utcákon, és közben megismertük az ottani ízeket, borokat.
A sorozat második részében ismét Paul Stuart az idegenvezetőnk, de ezúttal Franciaország szívébe, egy Poitierskörnyéki kis falucskába látogatunk, a cél pedig ismét az, hogy Paul befejezze az épp készülő könyvét, Az étel filozófiája című írást.
Persze ezúttal sem ilyen egyszerű a dolga, az útra ugyanis elkíséri Chloé, a kissé sznob, férfifaló, fura nagynénje, és mindenféle bonyodalmakba keverednek, míg végül Paul kapja a feladatot, hogy Franciaország második legrosszabb vendéglőjét gatyába rázza.


A kötet ezúttal leginkább Chloéra és a volt férjeire koncentrál, sőt, még egy sötét titok is kiderül a múltból, de mindezeknek szép és ízes keretet adnak a jobbnál jobb és rosszabbnál rosszabb ételek és receptek, amelyekkel a nyugodt francia tájon, az igazi vidéki kisvárosban ismerkedhetünk meg.
Mindig is volt bennem egyfajta vonzalom az ilyen ódon, régi, szűk, kanyargós utcácskákkal beszőtt francia városkák iránt, és reméltem, hogy itt is hasonlóan sokat kapok ebből a hangulatból, mint az előző kötet toszkán tájaiból.
Ebben nem is csalódtam,

A történet főleg a mai színes, szagos, izgalmakkal teli regénykavalkádokkal szemben régimódinak és semmitmondónak tűnik, de ez a régimódiság nem feltétlen hibája: egyben bája is.
"Visszarepít" egy sosem létező békés, nyugodt korszakba, ahol vannak titkok, bűntények és vér is, de mégis azt a fajta nyugalmat árasztja, amit egy városi kavalkádban élő ember elképzel a vidékről és a vidéki emberekről.
De ezt inkább csak a felszín, a külcsín, a nosztalgia és a régmúlt utáni vágy hajtja, semmint a valóság.
Egy kicsit ilyen ez a könyv is, El akarja feledtetni a mindennapokat, és egy szép világot kreál elénk, amely mintha egy letűnt korba repítene vissza, de ez a letűnt kor csupán a nosztalgia terméke.
Ilyen egy kicsit maga Paul is és a többi szereplő, Kissé felszínes, kissé sznob, noha tudja magáról, hogy vannak sznob gondolatai, és nem szereti a sznobságot, mégis újra és újra ebbe esik.
A szerző személyiségét és gondolatait is tükrözi talán, Alexander McCall Smithban született, A regényeiben a saját fiatalkori emlékeit és utazásait elevenítheti fel, így természetes, hogy egy szép, nosztalgikus világot kreál.


Mindezek mellett a kötet pihentető, szórakoztató, a párbeszédek furák, nem életszerűek, de játékosak és értelmesek, minden életszerűtlensége ellenére szerettem ezt a kötetet.
Semmi esztelen magasság, semmi szédítő mélység, de pontosan azt adta, amit vártam: egy kis szórakozást.
A könyvből süt, hogy a szerző nagyon szereti a jó ételeket és minden földi jót, és ezeket én is nagyon szeretem, így jó volt benne elmerülni.
Nagyon nehezen indult a történet és elég hirtelen ért véget, de hasonló volt az előző kötet is, így erre fel voltam

készülve.
McCall Smith nem egy nagyformátumú író, és mostanra, sokadik könyvére túlságosan rutinból írt, de azt hiszem, ezekkel a kötetekkel tényleg a fiatalkori éveinek, utazásainak, élményeinek állít emléket, egyfajta örömírás ez, ami tökéletlen, de pont ezért szerethető.
So sitelinkAlexander McCall Smith must have enjoyed his main character, Paul Stewart, from sitelinkMy Italian Bulldozer so much that he decided to give him a sequel.
I rather like him too and I certainly enjoyed this book,

In sitelinkThe Second Worst Restaurant in France Paul leaves behind his agent and girlfriend, Gloria, and her cats and goes to stay in France with his cousin Chloe.
I was divided in my opinion of Chloe, She was obviously there to be Paul's partner in philosophising and was also a springboard for much of the humour, However eventually she became very irritating indeed and I was quite happy in the end to see her go!

Despite that minor problem I found the story entertaining.
It is written in the author's usual style, full of information, long debates and humorous characters, A great way to spend my afternoon! I do enjoy a leisurely read through one of Andrew Mc Call Smiths books, This one is the story of the SecondWorst Restaurant in France, Is a change possible
As discussed in the book: “Theres nothing wrong with butter, Its been rehabilitatedalong with eggs, We can eat eggs again, thank goodness, ” Parenting advice: “I discovered that you can calm him a fouryearold with anger issues down by throwing a bucket of water over him.
”
Great fun! My rating is really,Stars but that doesn't work on the App so it has appeared as, But that aside

I hated the first couple of chapters and nearly abandoned it, I was asking my self why I was wasting time with a book that appeared to be pretentious overly "wordy" and then the storyline arrived in France and what a change.


I laughed till tears ran down my face with the delightful absurdity of the characters development and the emergence of the storyline.


Ridiculously fun, lighthearted and full of "those people" and food descriptions that make your mouth water,

What a charming read! This is the third Alexander McCall Smith novel I've read and I've loved them all! This one, though, set in Scotland and France engaged me from page one! Between the Scottish foodie world to the French countryside, Paul ambles through both local and international drama with seeming ease.


Sidesplitting laughter, intrigue, and family ties all combine for a truly delightful read, Wonderful In a delightful sequel to the bestselling comedic novel My Italian Bulldozer , we are in a French village where the local restaurant's haute cuisine leaves a lot to be desiredand two books into an astounding ninth series from one of our most beloved authors.


Renowned cookbook writer Paul Stuart, renewed and refreshed from his time in Tuscany, has returned to Scotland to work on his new book, The Philosophy of Food in Six Easy Chapters.
Writing, though, is complicated by Paul's changed domestic circumstances, His editor and new girlfriend, Gloria, has moved in with him despite not being specifically invited, and she's brought her two rather demanding Siamese cats.
When Paul's cousin Chloe suggests Paul visit her in the French countryside, Paul jumps at the chance, However, once he arrives, he finds his fortunes tangled up with the infamous local restaurant that gives the book its title, In this story about a man who prides himself on his taste finding delight in the most unexpected places, we have Alexander McCall Smith at his most witty and charming.
I always look forward to relaxing with a new book by Alexander McCall Smith, He shows a great understanding of human nature, His writing displays a quiet but thoughtprovoking philosophy in his witty dialogues, as well as a wry sense of humour, His characters are usually endearing,

Having read with pleasure the entire Scotland Street series and all the Ladies No,Detective Agency books, and some of his standalone novels, he has become one of my favourite authors, This is the second book in his newest series and features food writer Paul Stuart, This time he is visiting a small village in France which is said to have the second worst restaurant in France, He goes there with an older female relative in hoping for a peaceful setting to write his next book, The local restaurant lives up to its reputation for serving terrible food, The first time he eats there he becomes ill from food poisoning,

Getting caught up in the lives and problems of the villagers, Paul enjoys being of help which leaves little time for progress in writing his book.
The description of the pleasant French village, its people, and the food and market makes me want to visit,

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for this delightful ARC, “To go anywhere, with anybody, was an act of faith, You trusted in the others judgement, navigation, and sense of what they were doing, What did he know about Chloe Very little, he realised, other than that there had been a succession of husbands, that she had a mind filled with enthusiasms of one sort or another, and that she had a tendency to act on impulse.
”

The SecondWorst Restaurant in France is the second book in the Paul Stuart series by popular Scottish author, Alexander McCall Smith.
The audio version is narrated by Sir Timothy Ackroyd, Food writer Paul Stuart has another deadline coming, His book, The Philosophy of Food, is due in six months, but hes finding it difficult to work on it at home because his freelance publisher and girlfriend, Gloria has moved her two Siamese into his flat.


To the rescue comes Remarkable Cousin Chloe, a distant cousin of his fathers, who has an empty flat he can use.
That, however, leads to more problems, and Paul is grateful to accept Chloes invitation to share her rented house in the French countryside over the summer.
He enjoys her company but sometimes wonders about her outrageous tales: “Had he inadvertently stepped into a play with a fantasist as director”

St Vincent de la Colline seems like a charming French village: set within gently swaying fields of grain, it has an excellent boulangerie, some fine buildings and a restaurant.
But this, Chloe and Paul are told, is the SecondWorst Restaurant in France, Yet their twin landladies recommend it, They are greeted by the personable chef and then duly served by a rather surly and very pregnant waitress the food, unfortunately, seems to bear out the descriptor.


While Paul does get some work done on his book, he is soon involved in the dramas of the village where “nothing ever happens” but a baby is born in the restaurant kitchen, the chef falls in love with Chloe, the restaurant needs saving, a psychopath threatens a kidnap and a caravan explodes.
“How quickly, he thought, did one become part of the world of others, with all that that entailed the need to help them, and, more importantly, the desire to do so.
”

McCall Smith entertains the reader with lots of quirky characters described in charming little vignettes, Chloes pronouncements, tangential observations and mangled quotes are a constant source of humour and, after entertaining some doubts about his cousin, Paul learns an amazing truth.


Paul and Chloe muse philosophically on a vast range of topics: monarchies, the peasantry and Marie Antoinette miracles, angels and saints the ranks of dictators the superiority of cultures teacherstudent relations generosity and largesse.
Meanwhile, McCall Smiths French characters speculate, amongst other things, on what language God speaks inarguably French and the car he must drive a Citroen, of course!.
This is a delightful read and more of Paul Stuart will definitely be welcome, If it hadn't been for Chloe, I would have liked this as much as My Italian Bulldozer, She has an interesting reveal at the end of the book, but it didn't make up for annoying character, I did like the rest of the story and most of the characters, but I am hoping that there will be a third book tie up a few loose ends.
The setting was lovely, and the food, for the most part, sounded delicious, There was an unfortunate incident involving the restaurant, .