The Keeper of Happy Endings

Product Information

Soline Roussel is a young woman from Paris, descended from a long line of women in her family who have an exclusive bridal shop in Paris.

The Keeper of Happy Endings by Barbara Davis, Paperback

In spite of the multiple perspectives and timelines, the story keeps every arc straight and it never gets confusing. Unlike some multi-pov books that change characters in every chapter, the author here seems to have a clear purpose for each perspective change, and makes sure she completes that plot point before moving on to the next pov, even if it takes multiple chapters. This is so much better than abrupt pov shifts just for the sake of it. This approach also ensures that all the timelines are given equal attention. Soline Roussel is well schooled in the business of happy endings. For generations her family has kept an exclusive bridal salon in Paris, where magic is worked with needle and thread. It's said that the bride who wears a Roussel gown is guaranteed a lifetime of joy. But devastating losses during World War II leave Soline's world and heart in ruins and her faith in love shaken. She boxes up her memories, stowing them away, along with her broken dreams, determined to forget. What forms is a special friendship between the women despite the forty year age difference. Fate has brought them together, it was their destiny. In France we say, tu me manques. It means ‘you are missing from me.’ Not I miss you—the way Americans say it—but you are missing from me. The part of you that is a part of me . . . is gone. This is how it is for her. There’s a void in her life where you used to be, and she doesn’t know how to fill it.”Dreams are like waves . . . You have to wait for the right one to come along, the one that has your name on it . . . This dream has your name all over it.”

The Keeper of Happy Endings - Barbara Davis

However, war torn Europe left Soline with a heart ache. Soline was planning to marry the handsome Anson William Purcell when he was killed in the war. Hmmm it appears that her own wedding dress was not made with the magic of “happily ever after stitches” or was it? Forty years later, after a great career, circumstances force Soline to retire and she leases the shop space to Rory Grant who wants to open an art gallery. Rory is a trust fund baby who doesn’t want that life. In conflict with her mother, she maintains her heart set on launching artists just starting their career and names the shop, “Unheard of.” While renovating the space, she finds a cardboard box containing a vintage wedding dress and a pile of old thank you letters from former brides who wore Roussel gowns, detailing their ‘happy endings.’ This is the catalyst for Rory to diligently seek her own happy ending. You’ll be mesmerized as soon as you notice the timelines overlapping! She goes on to work as a volunteer in a hospital and meets an American man Ansen who is helping the war effort …. That’s all I will say.The story is beautiful and heartbreaking. At about 59%, I connected the dots, but then the author threw in a twist. Of course, my guess was right, but the way she revealed it worked better than my expectations.

The Keeper of Happy Endings Book Club Questions The Keeper of Happy Endings Book Club Questions

Although I’ve read a lot of books about that period in history, I always feel I learn something new about the events that happened at that time. In France we say, tu me manques. It means ‘you are missing from me.’ Not I miss you—the way Americans say it—but you are missing from me. The part of you that is a part of me . . . is gone. This is how it is for her. There’s a void in her life where you used to be, and she doesn’t know how to fill it.” Rory”Her personal tagline of “A little history. A little mystery. A little romance” is actually perfect and exactly sums up her writing style. La Tisserand de sort are not only dressmakers, but Spell Weavers that craft spells and sew them into wedding dresses. When Rory sees Soline’s dress shop for lease, she feels it has been waiting for her to open her art gallery. Another winner from Barbara Davis, THE KEEPER OF HAPPY ENDINGS is the perfect read for anyone who believes in happy endings, whether they come from magic, fate, or the perseverance of strong women. Is this a book about second chances, fate, how something lost and then found could make a difference maybe?