Saw your post last night, but wasn't able to get back into the forum to reply. Also saw that, due to your husband's work, you are probably going back soon anyhow.

I can sympathize with your experience. When I came to live in France, it took me a good seven years before I stopped wondering if I had made a huge mistake. (I'm married to a Frenchman, and was having a number of unrelated problems at the time that just made things worse.)

France is a tough country to love as a foreigner. The culture is such that it isn't easy to get to know people, especially if you don't speak French reasonably well. What ultimately worked for me was finding my own niche - with help from an association for newcomers that had a comfortable (for me) mix of French and foreigners, including the anglophones.

But finding and joining associations is tough, too, if you aren't around for "La Rentrée" - the big back to school and work tradition in September. But as you say, it may just have been the wrong time and place for you. It's also tough being the trailing spouse in any expat situation, as the working partner has a sort of automatic entrée into the social scene whereas you're stuck at home during the day.

Not everyone is cut out for the expat life. And you are hardly the first person to not be enamored of France. I know exactly how you feel when you hear folks going on about how much they "love" France... grrr. But now I have French nationality, which over here gives me the right to gripe about things I don't like in France.

Anyhow, good luck in making the move back. And stop by now and then to let us know how you're getting on.
Cheers,
Bev