Russian-born, raised in Germany influencer Xenia Adonts moved to Paris recently and has been slowly releasing small glimpses of her new apartment on her Instagram account @xeniaadonts. And while the space the classically good bones of a Paris apartment with its juliet balconies and chevron wood floors …

It’s funny how it happens every year at exactly the same time: the moment the autumnal equinox occurs, instantly the temperatures drop and the rain takes over the city. There’s a slow pace in Paris now, the parks are empty and peaceful, the golden light is fleeting.

In the prelude to Martin Amis’s latest book Inside Story, the author not only speaks directly to the reader, but warmly invites us into his home, offers us a drink, shares the latest tidbits about his wife and children who will be join- ing for dinner, and assures us that the upstairs bedroom is ours to enjoy. “Oh, don’t mention it—de nada,” Amis insists.