Gerard Stembridge

Lana Turner Gibson is bored in her marriage. Her husband, Brian, is very busy with work, and she feels neglected. Brian and Lana are currently living in Dublin, transplants from Seattle, and she decides to go off to Paris for an evening. An old flame, Nathan, lives in Paris. Lana is not planning to reconnect with Nathan, but rather, she decides to go to an art exhibit. While at her hotel, she is curious about who is staying in the Imperial Suite. She happens to worm her way into the private show more elevator going to the suite, and sees something that she should not have seen, involving a very influential politician. The next 24 hours become an adventure with thugs following Lana to determine what she saw. It is a bit outlandish, but a quick read. show less

The "Nora" of the film is the mistress and muse, and eventual wife, of James Joyce. This film follows their early years from 1904 to 1914 when Dubliners was published. Many critics believe Nora was the model for Molly Bloom in Ulysses--that even the stream-of-consciousness technique in that almost unpunctuated closing monologue was modeled on her letters to him. I'm no fan of James Joyce--in fact, having read Ulysses definitely made me feel the man was a misogynist--and details of his show more biography I'd heard before this didn't change that picture. If I were more of a fan, maybe I would have enjoyed it.

It was my aunt's purchase, made because of Ewan Ewan McGregor in the role of Joyce and because she loves period films. She hated this one, and I didn't like it either. I was particularly grossed out by one scene and stopped before the end. Mind you, Ulysses similarly grossed me out early and often--I finished to the end because it's considered one of the great novels (even if I disagree). There was hardly the same incentive to continue with this film. True Joyce fans may feel differently about the film. show less

What She Saw by Gerard Stembridge is a so-so novel that follows a woman through 24 hours in Paris.

Lana Gibson has decided to travel to Paris to see the Edward Hopper retrospective. She stays at the expensive Hotel Le Chevalier located on the Right Bank and assures her unknowing husband after-the-fact that she will be fine and take her meds to control her manic phases. She does see the Hopper exhibition, but she also becomes increasingly obsessed with seeing who is using the private elevator show more to the exclusive penthouse suite on the top floor. As happenstance and curiosity collide, she actually gets on the elevator when the door is open and is whisked to the top floor. When the door opens she sees quickly observes that an orgy is taking place, but she also witnesses a young woman trying to escape from a naked older man. She quickly snaps a few pictures with her cell phone before the elevator doors close again.

It turns out that the older man is Jean-Luc Fournier, an important French politician. Lana is already on the radar of his security detail, who have noticed her interest in the private elevator. Now she is on the run from the security men and needs to figure out what exactly is going on and who she can trust before her time runs out. The narrative follows Lana's perspective and that of a chauffeur for Fournier, Ferdinand (Ferdie). Ferdie has his own stakes in the outcome.

I really wanted to like her simply due to her desire to travel to see the Hopper retrospective, but Lana is a hard character to relate to or find any empathy for. She is also not a very well-developed character. Mainly you learn she doesn't seem to really even like her husband, she's on meds (apparently for bipolar disorder), and she's way-too-weirdly-curious about the penthouse elevator door. This makes it a challenge to feel invested in what happens to her, especially when she's repeatedly and consistently making some rather stupid actions and decisions.

The writing is good, but the 24 hour format seemed to just drag out the action and didn't work for me. Those who love novels set in Paris and Francophiles will likely appreciate the setting. I had a difficult time immersing myself in this novel, probably due to my increasing annoyance with Lana.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of HarperCollins.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2017/05/what-she-saw.html
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2006435369 show less

I received this book for free through Goodreads' First Reads.

This book gets bad reviews but I liked it a lot. Some people say that the characters are not likable but honestly I've read way worse. Lana was not that bad and I understood why she acted the way she did.

I also loved the setting and thought it was utilized well. It makes me want to go to Paris.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a thriller set in a foreign country.