A gripping page-turner set in occupied France from international multi-million copy seller Joanne Harris. With the sensuous writing we come to expect from her, this book has a darker core. Perfect for fans of Victoria Hislop, Fiona Valpy, Maggie O'Farrell and Rachel Joyce, this fascinating and vivid journey through human cruelty and kindness is a gripping and compelling read.

'Her strongest writing yet: as tangy and sometimes bitter as Chocolat was smooth' -- Independent
'Harris indulges her love of rich and mouthwatering descriptive passages, appealing to the senses... Thoroughly enjoyable' -- Observer
'Outstanding...beautifully written' -- Daily Mail
'Very thought provoking. I read the book in two days and am still thinking about it a few days down the line' -- ***** Reader review
'Absolutely gripping from the very first page' -- ***** Reader review
'Joanne Harris at her very best!'-- ***** Reader review
'Superb' -- ***** Reader review
'I just couldn't put this one down'-- ***** Reader review 2

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THE PAST WILL ALWAYS CATCH UP WITH YOU...

Beyond the main street of Les Laveuses runs the Loire: smooth and brown as a sunning snake - but hiding a deadly undertow beneath its moving surface. This is where Framboise, a secretive widow, plies her culinary trade at the creperie - and lets her memory play strange games.

As her nephew attempts to exploit the growing success of the country recipes Framboise has inherited from her mother - a woman remembered with contempt by the villagers - memories of a disturbed childhood during the German Occupation flood back, and expose a past full of betrayal, blackmail and lies...

From the bestselling author of Chocolat, a powerful drama about the dark repercussions of Nazi occupation in a rural French village.

About the Author
Joanne Harris is the internationally renowned and award-winning author of over twenty novels. Her Whitbread-shortlisted novel Chocolat was adapted to the screen, starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. She is the author of several other bestsellers, including The Lollipop Shoes, Peaches for Monsieur Le Cure and The Strawberry Thief. She has also written acclaimed novels in such diverse genres as fantasy based on Norse myth (Runemarks, Runelight, The Gospel of Loki), and the Malbry cycle of dark psychological thrillers (Gentlemen & Players, Blueeyedboy, and Different Class). Born in Barnsley, of an English father and a French mother, she spent fifteen years as a teacher before (somewhat reluctantly) becoming a full-time writer. In 2013, she was awarded an MBE, and in 2022 an OBE. She lives in Yorkshire, plays bass and flute in a band first formed when she was sixteen, and works in a shed in her garden. She is an honorary Fellow of St Catharine's College, Cambridge, and served for four years as Chair of the Society of Authors. She also has a form of synaesthesia which enables her to smell colours. Red, she says, smells of chocolate.

Reviews
Her strongest writing yet: as tangy and sometimes bitter as Chocolat was smooth * Independent *
Outstanding ... beautifully written * Daily Mail *
Joanne Harris a naturally sensuous writer, but her latest book has a dark core...Her descriptive and narrative talents are put to a profounder use...This gripping tale is bound to be made into a film. It's as vivid a journey through human cruelty and kindness as I've read this year * Daily Telegraph *
Harris indulges her love of rich and mouthwatering descriptive passages, appealing to the senses ... Thoroughly enjoyable * Observer *
Just as she did in Chocolat, Harris indulges her love of rich and mouth-watering descriptive passages, appealing to the senses with seductively foreign names, and evoking the textures and smells of food. These descriptions are suffused with a child's wide-eyed wonder that lends the story a magical quality, almost like a folk tale or a children's story. Even having the Occupation as a backdrop, Harris sets out to tell a story that proves, like her previous books, to be thoroughly enjoyable... * Guardian *


Awards
Short-listed for Parker Romantic Novel of the Year Award 2002 and WH Smith Book Awards (Fiction) 2002 and Romantic Novel of the Year Award 2002 and WH Smith Book Awards: Fiction 2002.



Book Information
ISBN 9780552998833
Author Joanne Harris
Format Paperback
Page Count 432
Imprint Black Swan
Publisher Transworld Publishers Ltd
Weight(grams) 293g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 127mm * 26mm