<div>The international bestselling story collection. &ldquo;Truth and beauty are here brought together with all the visual beauty and power of a major literary work&rdquo; (Lire Magazine, France). A cast of extravagant and affecting characters lovingly portrayed by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt animates these eight contemporary fables about people in search of happiness. One of Europe&#39;s most popular and bestselling authors, Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt captivates the reader with his spirited style and enchanting stories that move effortlessly from the everyday to the fantastical. The eight stories in this collection, his first to be published in English, represent his best and most imaginative storylines: from the touching and surprising love story between Balthazar, a wealthy author, and Odette, a shop clerk, to the tale of a barefooted princess; from the moving title story about a group of female prisoners in a Soviet gulag to the entertaining portrait of a perennially disgruntled perfectionist. Behind each story lies a simple, if elusive, truth: though we may be frequently blind to it, happiness is often right in front of our eyes.</div>

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The Most Beautiful Book in the World

<div>Three friends meet weekly to commiserate over romantic disasters in &ldquo;a marvelous novel&mdash;light, funny and genuine, while still being quite emotional&rdquo; (Kirkus Reviews). Every Thursday night at seven o&rsquo;clock, three men meet in Paris. Each man&rsquo;s life, story, and situation is as different from the others&rsquo; as can be. What unites them is heartache. Trouble, that is, with women. The meetings are held in a spirit of openness and tolerance. In an almost religious silence each man confesses while the others listen. Philippe is a philosopher of repute. Since the woman he considered to be his perfect mate left him, he&rsquo;s been dating one of the world&rsquo;s most famous models in an effort to forget. Denis has been working as a waiter for years. Women have lost interest in him entirely and he is in a deep funk because of it. But one day a mysterious woman with a suitcase appears on his doorstep and moves into his living room without explanation, throwing his life into turmoil. Yves is a husband who, after having discovered his wife&rsquo;s betrayal, refuses to honor any and all forms of faithfulness. He is spending a lifetime&rsquo;s worth of savings in search of pleasure. In The Thursday Night Men, Tonino Benacquista gives readers a variety of unexpected and amusing perspectives on romance, the relationship between the sexes, and male friendships.</div>

The Thursday Night Men

<div>A “propulsive” historical novel about the battles—won, lost, and ongoing—that define us, from a winner of the Goncourt Prize (Library Journal, starred review). Assem, a French intelligence officer, is tasked with tracking down a former member of the US Special Forces suspected of drug trafficking during the war in Afghanistan. En route to Beirut, he shares a night with Mariam, an Iraqi archaeologist, who is in a race against time to save ancient artifacts across the Middle East from the destruction wreaked by ISIS. Woven into these two forceful, gripping storylines are meditations on humankind’s bellicose history—Hannibal’s failed march on Rome and the burning of his fleet on the waters of the Mediterranean; Grant’s pursuit of the Confederates into rural Virginia; Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Courthouse; and Emp. Haile Selassie’s swift retreat from Ethiopia: all turning points in world history, each showing a different facet of how nations and individuals face defeat. This novel is filled with both a philosophical sensibility and a riveting immediacy, seamlessly taking us across the battlefields of our past to reflect on the implications of conflicts being waged today. “Hear Our Defeats is not a conventional historical novel, in the sense of trying to recreate the past imaginatively. Rather, it draws on a series of past episodes, from four discrete epochs—deliberately separated in time and place—to convey a message about time, violence and humanity.” —The Times Literary Supplement</div>

Hear Our Defeats

<div>“Rufin offers his readers a return . . . to a time when the wildest dreamer could be a wealthy merchant—Jacques Coeur, the treasurer poet” (Les Echos). After a brilliant career as a trader, Jacques Coeur was summoned to the court of Charles VII and appointed Master of the Mint in 1436. He rose to become the King of France’s visionary First Banker who, with his tours of the Far East, his opposition to the crusades, and his efforts to develop trade, brought France out of the darkness toward the Renaissance and modernity. At the height of his success, his ill-considered infatuation with Agnès Sorel, King Charles VII’s favorite mistress, precipitated Coeur’s fall from grace. In Rufin’s delectable prose this true story becomes a gripping tale of adventure, a novel of ideas, and a moving love story. “The Dream Maker blends with skill and efficiency politics, business, travel and love. All of this written in a classic, elegant prose, of which Jean-Christophe Rufin has long had a command.” —Le JDD “Rufin bestows such immediacy to this artist of finance, such vitality that we hear the sound of Coeur’s own voice telling us his life.” —Télérama “Rufin has re-established his eloquence and spirit, that of the great novelist of the people. . . . His new novel is both a chivalric odyssey and a brilliant reflection on power.” —Lire “The vivid portraits of Charles VII and Agnès Sorel give readers an intimate glimpse into court intrigue in 15th-century France.” —Washington Independent Review of Books “A fascinating novel.” —Historical Novel Society</div>

The Dream Maker

<div>A &ldquo;fierce literary thriller&rdquo; about an exiled woman confronting her past as a prisoner of a repressive theocracy (Kirkus Reviews). She was known as &ldquo;Bait 455,&rdquo; the most famous prisoner in a ruthless theological republic. He was one of the colonels closest to the supreme commander. When they meet, years later, far from their country of birth, a strange, equivocal relationship develops between them. Both their shared past of suffering and old romantic passions come rushing back&mdash;accompanied by recollections of the perverse logic of violence that dominated the dictatorship under which they lived. French Iranian author Fariba Hachtroudi&rsquo;s prize-winning, &ldquo;tightly plotted&rdquo; novel &ldquo;packs complex emotions in a small space, tackling difficult and essential questions about power and our responsibilities to one another&rdquo; (Kirkus Reviews). &ldquo;The story leaves us chilled by the tyrannical culture that created this macabre bond. But at the end, it&rsquo;s just as much a tale of the capacity of love.&rdquo; &mdash;Minneapolis Star-Tribune &ldquo;Timeless in its meditations on totalitarianism and the toll it takes on even those who physically escape its clutches.&rdquo; &mdash;Shelf Awareness (starred review)</div>

The Man Who Snapped His Fingers

<div>Stories from the bestselling author of The Most Beautiful Book in the World, “a prodigious storyteller with a style both elegant and assured” (Les Echos). In this collection’s opening story, a woman with more skeletons in the closet than most falls in love with a parish priest, to whom she confesses her sins. But her motives and her intentions are anything but honorable or pious. The title story is the tale of two friends and rivals whose differences will at first lead to a terrifying and near fatal accident, and then to a vendetta lasting a lifetime. In “The Return,” while away at sea, a father is told that one of his four daughters has died but not which. He will ask himself the question no father should have to ask: which child would he want dead? His long ruminations will lead him to a realization of his failings as a man and a father and ultimately toward a touching transformation. “Love at the Elysée Palace” is as fine a short story as any in contemporary literature, and one that treats the themes of love, marriage, and forgiveness with superb delicacy and remarkable tenderness. In this vivid collection, Schmitt writes about regret and redemption, about the roles of love and memory in our lives, all with a lightness and compassion that is as rare as it is inspiring. “A wonderful book of remarkable everyday heroes who will haunt readers for a long time to come.” —L’Express “A small masterpiece.” —Le Parisien</div>

Concerto to the Memory of an Angel

<div>Four adult siblings reconnect on a brief adventure through the Loire Valley in this international-bestselling novel by the beloved French author of Billie. Simon and his two sisters, Garance and Lola, flee their cousin&rsquo;s dull wedding&mdash;and Simon&rsquo;s judgmental wife&mdash;to visit their younger brother, Vincent, who is working as a guide at a ch&acirc;teau in the heart of the enchanting Tours countryside. For a few hours, they forget about kids, spouses, and work, and lose themselves in a day of laughter, teasing, and memories. Then, as simply and as spontaneously as the adventure began, it ends. All four return to their everyday lives, carrying with them the magic of their brief reunion. They are stronger now, and happier, for having rediscovered the ties that bind them. Anna Gavalda&rsquo;s international-bestselling novel has been published in more than forty languages. A lighthearted and funny parable about escaping the past to find the future, French Leave is a tribute to sibling relationships, local Loire wines, and the art of being together.</div>

French Leave

<div>The phenomenal New York Times bestseller that “explores the upstairs-downstairs goings-on of a posh Parisian apartment building” (Publishers Weekly). In an elegant hôtel particulier in Paris, Renée, the concierge, is all but invisible—short, plump, middle-aged, with bunions on her feet and an addiction to television soaps. Her only genuine attachment is to her cat, Leo. In short, she’s everything society expects from a concierge at a bourgeois building in an upscale neighborhood. But Renée has a secret: She furtively, ferociously devours art, philosophy, music, and Japanese culture. With biting humor, she scrutinizes the lives of the tenants—her inferiors in every way except that of material wealth. Paloma is a twelve-year-old who lives on the fifth floor. Talented and precocious, she’s come to terms with life’s seeming futility and decided to end her own on her thirteenth birthday. Until then, she will continue hiding her extraordinary intelligence behind a mask of mediocrity, acting the part of an average pre-teen high on pop culture, a good but not outstanding student, an obedient if obstinate daughter. Paloma and Renée hide their true talents and finest qualities from a world they believe cannot or will not appreciate them. But after a wealthy Japanese man named Ozu arrives in the building, they will begin to recognize each other as kindred souls, in a novel that exalts the quiet victories of the inconspicuous among us, and “teaches philosophical lessons by shrewdly exposing rich secret lives hidden beneath conventional exteriors” (Kirkus Reviews). “The narrators’ kinetic minds and engaging voices (in Alison Anderson’s fluent translation) propel us ahead.” —The New York Times Book Review “Barbery’s sly wit . . . bestows lightness on the most ponderous cogitations.” —The New Yorker</div>

The Elegance of the Hedgehog

<div>This coming of age novel by the acclaimed Belgian author is “a disarmingly simple yet deeply complex study of a mother-daughter relationship” (The Washington Post). One of the Washington Post’s 50 Notable Works of fiction in 2018 Marie is the prettiest girl in her provincial high school, and dating the most popular boy in town. She is the envy of all her peers—and she loves it. But when she gives birth to Diane, things begin to change. Diane steals the hearts of all who meet her, inciting nothing but jealousy in her mother. This is Diane’s story. Young and brilliant, she grows up learning about life through her relationships with other women: her best friend, the sweet Élisabeth; her mentor, the selfish Olivia; her sister, the beloved Célia; and, of course, her mother. It is a story about the baser sentiments that often animate human relations: rivalry, jealousy, distrust. Revered throughout Europe, Belgian novelist Amélie Nothomb has won numerous prizes, including the French Academy’s Grand Prix. In Strike Your Heart, she offers a telling adult fable about womanhood and the mother-daughter bond.</div>

Strike Your Heart

<div>An “enthralling” novel of growing up amid the terrors of World War II that offers “a superb lesson in resilience and the importance of imagination” (La Presse). Julek has assumed countless identities, lived with numerous families, and worked as a secret agent for the Resistance. He was raised in an orphanage (despite having two mothers) and he knows how to speak the language of dogs. All this at the tender age of fourteen! Julek’s story begins in Warsaw on the eve of World War II and ends in Paris after the city’s triumphant liberation. We witness the darkest hours of the past century and the effects of war through the eyes of an extraordinary boy who never loses his sense of wonder. Julek’s adventure becomes an incredible lesson in survival and a testament to the power of a child’s heart.</div>

Revolution Baby

<div>A French food critic faces his mortality in an “entertaining [and] witty” novel by the New York Times–bestselling author of The Elegance of the Hedgehog (Newsday). In the heart of Paris, in the same posh building made famous in The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Pierre Arthens, the greatest food critic in the world, is dying. Revered by some and reviled by many, Monsieur Arthens has been lording it over the world’s most esteemed chefs for years, passing judgment on their creations, deciding their fates with a stroke of his pen, destroying and building reputations on a whim. But now, during his final hours, his mind has turned to simpler things. He is desperately searching for that singular flavor, that sublime something once sampled, never forgotten, the flavor par excellence. Indeed, this flamboyant and self-absorbed man desires only one thing before he dies: one last taste. Thus begins a charming voyage that traces the career of Monsieur Arthens from childhood to maturity across a celebration of all manner of culinary delights. Alternating with the voice of the supercilious Arthens is a chorus belonging to his acquaintances and familiars—relatives, lovers, a would-be protégé, even a cat. Each will have his or her say about M. Arthens, a man who has inspired only extreme emotions in people. Here, as in The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Muriel Barbery’s story celebrates life’s simple pleasures and sublime moments while condemning the arrogance and vulgarity of power. “Lush and satisfying prose.” —Publishers Weekly</div>

Gourmet Rhapsody

<div>A &ldquo;beguiling fairy tale&rdquo; by the bestselling author of The Elegance of the Hedgehog (The New York Times). The villagers had never seen anything like it: dense white curtains of snow that instantly transformed the landscape. Not in autumn, not here in Burgundy. And on the same night a baby was discovered, dark-eyed little Maria, who would transform all their lives. Hundreds of miles away in the mountains of Abruzzo, another foundling, Clara, astonishes everyone with her extraordinary talent for piano playing. But her gifts go far beyond simple musicianship. As a time of great danger looms, though the girls know nothing of each other, it is the bond that unites them and others like them which will ultimately offer the only chance for good to prevail in the world. &ldquo;Vivid imagery and a thread of mystery draw readers into the timeless and ethereal world of these young girls with a destiny to fulfill.&rdquo; &mdash;Booklist &ldquo;The novel is essentially a parable about the power both of art, which abolishes the &lsquo;border between earth and mind,&rsquo; and of women.&rdquo; &mdash;The New Yorker &ldquo;Fans of both Barbery and fantasy from writers like Alice Hoffman and Sarah Addison Allen will be enchanted.&rdquo; &mdash;Library Journal</div>

The Life of Elves

<div>A young woman enters a fantastically strange family in this “luminous and alarming lesson on desire” by the international-bestselling author (La Stampa, Italy). A young woman is promised to the scion of a noble family. While her betrothed is away traveling, she is sent to the family’s villa to make her marriage preparations. There, the woman discovers that her future in-laws fear the coming of night, each and every night, and seem to never sleep. As the days pass, the atmosphere turns increasingly surreal, and the young bride’s interactions with the family turn increasingly erotic. In this “virtuoso literary performance,” Alessandro Baricco portrays a cast of mysterious characters who exist outside of the normal rules of causation. The Young Bride is an adult fable about fate, otherness, and the author’s own act of creation (European Literature Network). “Baricco spins it all together into a work of elegance, eroticism and playful make-believe.” —The Wall Street Journal</div>

The Young Bride

<div>A &ldquo;sharply satirical&rdquo; novel about an oppressive religious dictatorship and one man&rsquo;s discovery of an underground resistance (Library Journal). 2015 Winner of the Le Grand Prix du Roman de l&rsquo;Acad&eacute;mie fran&ccedil;aise A tribute to George Orwell&rsquo;s dystopian classic 1984 and a cry of protest against totalitarianism of all kinds, Boualem Sansal&rsquo;s 2084 tells the story of a near future in which religious extremists have established a caliphate that forbids autonomous thought. In the year 2084, in the kingdom of Abistan&mdash;named after the prophet Abi, earthly messenger of the god Y&ouml;lah&mdash;citizens submit to a single god, demonstrating their devotion by kneeling in prayer nine times a day. Remembering the past is forbidden, and an omnipresent surveillance system instantly informs the authorities of every deviant act, thought, or idea. The kingdom is blessed and its citizens are happy, filled with purpose and piety. Those who are not&mdash;the heretics&mdash;are put to death by stoning or beheading in city squares. But Ati has met people who think differently: In ghettos and caves, hidden from the authorities, exist the last living heretics and free-thinkers of Abistan. Under their influence, Ati begins to doubt. He begins to think. Now, he will have to defend his thoughts with his life. 2084 is &ldquo;a rare, powerful book, at the intersection of fable and lampoon, of satire and science fiction,&rdquo; a cry of freedom, a gripping novel of ideas, and an indictment of the kind of closed-minded fundamentalism that threatens our democracies and the ideals on which they are founded (Lire). &ldquo;Alison Anderson&rsquo;s deft and intelligent translation [conveys] Sansal&rsquo;s abhorrence of a system that controls people&rsquo;s minds, while explaining that the religion was not originally evil but has been corrupted. A moving and cautionary story.&rdquo; &mdash;The Times Literary Supplement &ldquo;A powerful novel that celebrates resistance.&rdquo; &mdash;The Guardian</div>

2084

<div>“The August 31, 1997, car crash that claimed the life of Princess Diana propels Cossé’s gripping psychological thriller.” —Publishers Weekly Fourteen years after the accident that cost the lives of Lady Diana, Dodi al Fayed, and Henri Paul, one person involved in the tragedy remains unidentified: the driver of a white Fiat Uno that was in the Alma tunnel at the time of the accident. In Cossé’s spellbinding novel, the driver of this car, a young French woman on her way home from work that fatal night, sees her life thrown into turmoil when, scared and alone, she flees the scene. While there are no immediate repercussions resulting from her flight, as news of the event spreads and TV stations, papers and radio talk of nothing else for weeks, she is assailed by a growing sense of guilt. Terrified of being found out, questioned, arrested, and thrown headfirst into a media whirlwind, she finds herself paralyzed by fear, paranoia, and a growing sense of remorse. When finally it seems she has evaded both the police and the media spotlights, a mysterious man appears who will force her into a decision that will dramatically change her life. Wonderfully paced, suspenseful and dramatic, An Accident in August is the story of an ordinary person radically altered by her chance involvement in an extraordinary event. “The psychological issues [Cossé] raises are telling and true.” —Kirkus Reviews “Cossé springs a nice ironic twist as a final flourish. Readers who enjoy the woman-in-peril genre may find themselves biting a few nails in delicious anguish.” —MostlyFiction Book Reviews</div>

An Accident in August

<div>Surviving the environmental apocalypse has its own consequences in this novel of &ldquo;tense, tightly controlled, and genuinely devastating prose&rdquo; (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). When a volcano collapses in the ocean and generates a tidal wave of biblical proportions, the world disappears around Louie, his parents and his eight siblings. Their house, perched on what was once the top of a hill, now stands on a tiny island. As far as the eye can see there is only silver water. Their survival is nothing short of miraculous. But with that miracle come devastating new dilemmas. The vast waters around them are routinely shaken by violent storms, like jolts of rage. As the waters continue to rise. Higher ground must be found, and calculations must be made: How much longer until their little island is gone? How far is the next refuge? And how many members of the family can fit in their tiny rowboat? From the acclaimed author of Nothing But Dust comes &ldquo;a breathtaking novel that tells a tale of resilience, love, and all the invisible but powerful ties that bind a family together&rdquo; (France Bleu).</div>

Just After the Wave

<div>An erudite mystery that “makes a good argument for literature as a sensual pleasure surpassing even sex and fine wine” (The Washington Post). Ivan and Francesca decide to open a bookstore devoted solely to good literature and their love of books. Frustrated by the glut of mediocre books printed every month and envisioning a true literary paradise, they offer a selection of literary masterpieces chosen by a top-secret committee of like-minded literary connoisseurs. To their amazement, after only a few months, their vision proves popular. Very popular. Tucked away in a corner of Paris, the bookstore quickly becomes a haven for bibliophiles. Indeed, it becomes so successful that the great majority of Parisian readers are now buying their books only at Ivan and Francesca’s store, and other stores in the city are starting to change how they order and display books too. Now big publishing’s powerful elite are desperately trying to adapt their business model to the demand for quality above all else. As the store’s success grows, venomous comments begin circulating online and the owners, and their selection committee, become the target of vicious editorials and threats. A Novel Bookstore blends book love and bookstore love with a brilliantly conceived and entertaining mystery and is a delight for readers of all tastes. “Marvelous and stimulating.” —San Francisco Chronicle “A deeply satisfying manifesto of book love and a sharp indictment of those who would use such love for their own evil purposes.” —The Huffington Post “Packed with sublime, enthusiastic descriptions of reading and literature.” —Minneapolis Star Tribune “A hymn to fine literature.” —Le Figaro</div>

A Novel Bookstore

<div>This “urgent, epic” poem exploring the history of Europe “encourages both lucidity and humility, to try and save what beauty is left in the world” (Les Echos, FR). “For some time now, Europe seems to have forgotten it is the daughter of epics and utopia. It has been drained by its inability to remind its citizens of this. Too distant, disembodied, the concept often arouses nothing more than disillusioned boredom. And yet, the history of Europe is one of constant upheaval. So much fire and death; inventions and art, too. Literature, perhaps, can remind us of this: that the European history is one of muscle, vigour, passion, anger and joy.”—Laurent Gaude, from the introduction In Our Europe, Prix Goncourt-winning author Laurent Gaude makes an impassioned plea for Europeans to remember their history and heritage. From the industrial revolution through two world wars and to the birth of the European Union, Our Europe sets in free verse the story of 150 years of growth, confrontation, hope, defeat and passion. It is both “an Iliad for our times” and a heartfelt appeal for a Europe that celebrates difference, solidarity, and freedom (L’Echo de Bruxelles, FR).</div>

Our Europe

<div>Two female authors share adventures and champagne in this witty novel about friendship by the celebrated author of Hygeine and the Assassin. With wry humor and a deceptively simple style, Pétronille tells an unusual story about twin abiding passions: one for champagne, and the other for a riotous friendship between her protagonist and Pétronille Fanto, a woman who refuses to drink alone. This is a funny, moving, exotic novel about travel, France, champagne, and, above all, women's friendship. The on-again/off-again friendship between Pétronille and the main character in the book, who happens to be a writer by the name of Amélie Nothomb, gives the story its verve and the novel its heart. This is literary Thelma &amp; Louise, with a little bit of French panache and a whole lot of champagne thrown in. Praise for Pétronille “Rich, truly funny, and as inappropriate as a glass of Dom Pérignon at ten in the morning.” —Elle (France) “Nothomb’s novel is full of energy.” —Publishers Weekly “A slight, frothy bubble of a book, in Amélie Nothomb’s signature lighthearted style.” —Shelf Awareness</div>

Petronille

<div>An epic fantasy of poetry, imagination, and the eternal conflict between good and evil, from the New York Times-bestselling author of The Life of Elves. Alejandro de Yepes and Jesús Rocamora, young officers in the Spanish regular army, are stationed alone at Castillo when, out of nowhere, a friendly redhead appears to them in the cellar. There is something magnetic and deeply mysterious about this Petrus. Alejandro and Jesús are bewitched, and, in the middle of the sixth year of the longest war humankind has ever endured, they abandon their post to follow him across a bridge only he can see. Petrus brings them to a world of lingering fog, strange beings, poetry, music, natural wonders, harmony, and extraordinary beauty. This is where the fate of the world and all its living creatures is decided. Yet this world too is under threat. A long battle against the forces of disenchantment is drawing to a climactic close. Will poetry and beauty prevail over darkness and death? And what role will Alejandro and Jesús play? Muriel Barbery’s richly imagined novel, the sequel to The Life of Elves, will transport readers to a lost world exposed to the constant churn of civilizations and remind them of the power of poetry and imagination. Praise for The Life of Elves “A truly enchanting story, beautifully told and rich in meaning.” —Irish Times “A beguiling fairy tale.” —The New York Times</div>

A Strange Country

<div>A collection of stories from the internationally bestselling author of The Most Beautiful Book in the World. “They read like modern fairy tales.” —Foreword Reviews In this collection of stories, Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt probes the paradox that the events that shape our lives are often the stuff of dreams, yet nonetheless true. Humor, tenderness, irony and exquisite writing have always been the hallmarks of Schmitt’s work. Here, he adds a pinch of philosophy. In one story, a lovelorn writer seeks refuge in Ostende, a remote and charming town on the North Sea. His host is a solitary and eccentric octogenarian. The fairy-tale setting starts to work its magic and the old woman begins to tell her tale—an extraordinary story of passion. Bewitched by what he hears, the writer can no longer distinguish what is real from what is not, and in the woman’s account he will finally find a response to his own deep-seated grief. Here, as in the other stories in this collection, Schmitt displays the combination of stylishness and insight into the human condition that prompted Kirkus Reviews to write of his tales that they “echo Maupassant’s with their lean narratives, surprise endings, mordant humor and psychological acuity.” An exceptional collection by one of Europe’s most beloved authors. <a href="https://www.europaeditions.com/review/869">“Schmitt works some powerful magic in these slim stories, proving that sincerity isn’t the only route to truth.”</a> —NPR “One of Mr. Schmitt’s chief strengths is the ability to precisely chronicle the shifts in his characters’ mental and emotional states, a skill he employs to illuminate the changeable nature of the mind and heart.” —Electric Literature</div>

The Woman with the Bouquet

<div>What if Anton Chekhov, undisputed master of the short story, actually wrote a novel&#8212;and the manuscript still existed? This tantalizing possibility drives The Summer Guest, a spellbinding narrative that draws together, across two centuries, the lives of three women through the discovery of a diary.During the long, hot summer of 1888, an extraordinary friendship blossoms between Anton Chekhov and Zinaida Lintvaryova, a young doctor. Recently blinded by illness, Zinaida has retreated to her family&#8217;s estate in the lush countryside of Eastern Ukraine, where she is keeping a diary to record her memories of her earlier life. But when the Chekhov family arrives to spend the summer at a dacha on the estate, and she meets the middle son Anton Pavlovich, her quiet existence is transformed by the connection they share. What begins as a journal kept simply to pass the time becomes an intimate, introspective narrative of Zinaida&#8217;s singular relationship with this doctor and writer of growing fame.More than a century later, in 2014, the unexpected discovery of this diary represents Katya Kendall&#8217;s last chance to save her struggling London publishing house. Zinaida&#8217;s description of a gifted young man still coming to terms with his talent offers profound insight into a literary legend, but it also raises a tantalizing question: Did Chekhov, known only as a short story writer and playwright, write a novel over the course of their friendship that has since disappeared? The answer could change history, and finding it proves an irresistible challenge for Ana Harding, the translator Katya hires. Increasingly drawn into Zinaida and Chekhov&#8217;s world, Ana is consumed by her desire to find the &#8220;lost&#8221; book. As she delves deeper into the moving account of two lives changed by a meeting on a warm May night, she discovers that the manuscript is not the only mystery contained within the diary&#8217;s pages.Inspired by the real friendship between Chekhov and the Lintvaryov family, landowners in the Ukraine, The Summer Guest is a masterful and utterly compelling literary novel that breathes life into a vanished world, while exploring the transformative power of art and the complexity of love and friendship.</div>

The Summer Guest

<div>&ldquo;Art, love and longing, the French way . . . an emotionally taut portrayal of late-in-life, post-marriage drift&rdquo; from the author of The 6:41 to Paris (The New York Times Book Review). A French teacher on the verge of retirement is invited to a glittering opening that showcases the artwork of his former student, who has since become a celebrated painter. This unexpected encounter leads to the older man posing for his portrait. Possibly in the nude. Such personal exposure at close range entails a strange and troubling pact between artist and sitter that prompts both to reevaluate their lives. Blondel, author of the hugely popular novel The 6:41 to Paris, evokes an intimacy of dangerous intensity in a tale marked by profound nostalgia and a reckoning with the past that allows its two characters to move ahead into the future. &ldquo;A striking variation on the theme of the muse, this novel probes overlapping varieties of attraction . . . It veers toward the erotic, quickening the painter&rsquo;s search for the model&rsquo;s soul&mdash;&lsquo;a term that disintegrates the moment you try to define it.&rsquo;&rdquo;&#8213;The New Yorker &ldquo;Captivating . . . The novel flies by with gentle humor, but it also poses complex questions about the meaning of art and sexuality, and offers an elegiac look at late middle age . . . Irresistible, and the story&rsquo;s fundamental kindness sets it apart.&rdquo;&#8213;Publishers Weekly (starred review) &ldquo;A novel of tender, shy wisdom whose characters remind each other that memory lives in the body, loosened like knots by the right touch.&rdquo; &mdash;Patrick Nathan, author of Image Control</div>

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The Summer Guest

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