Peter Mayle 1939-2018
Sadly, Peter Mayle, best known for A Year in Provence, his 1989 best seller about relocating to Provence, died recently at a hospital near his home there. He was 78.
Mr. Mayle and his wife, Jennie, moved to Provence in 1987, with Mr. Mayle intending to write a novel. But with renovations to the 18th-century stone farmhouse they had bought in full swing, he kept getting distracted. Instead he turned his daily journal of the exploits of the local builders, French lawyers, truffle hunters, local boar hunters and the marvelous food into A Year In Provence. 
The book became an instant bestseller and was such a phenom, that fans searched out his home.
There was soon a surge in British folks relocating to villages in France and buying and renovating old French houses.
The Telegraph attributed this to Mr. Mayle:
“[He] somehow tapped deep into a slumbering, latent, hitherto unknown British desire for sunshine and fine wine, for peeling shutters and croissants, for distressed armoires and saucisson and the good life in the French countryside.”
Husband and I did a home exchange with such a British couple. They admitted they had fallen under Mr. Mayle’s spell. Their house was wonderful, but fairly remote, located in French farm country. The couple worked for years on the renovations, learned fluent french, but later sold up and moved to Australia– they’d lived their dream. 
We got to stay in this — their lovely ‘mazet’.
But I digress..
Mr. Mayle went on to write many other books and, while many criticized his writing and his stereotypical casting of French locals, I found many of his books a treat. They reflect his his love of fine food, wine, culture and a little bit (okay a great deal of) of tongue-in-cheek fun with the locals.
My favorites were his later issues, in which his beloved Southern France became the setting for many a crazy caper. Recommended: Hotel Pastis.
Now, for those of you stuck in frigid climes, I suggest you make yourself a nice café au lait and escape to sunny, lavender-filled Provence with Mr. Mayle It’s fairly easy to find his books at the library or a used book store. A list of his publications can be found HERE.
Meanwhile, still shaken from now cancelled Tsunami warnings*, I may grab one of his books and escape myself — I have this one on my shelves, as yet unread… 
*We live just up the hill from the Pacific Ocean. Warning sirens are installed down on the beach, but they never went off. So actually not as scary as the morning news made it sound.
Catching up to the New Year
Every year I look forward to a quiet week between Christmas and New Years. The holiday feeling is still in the air, the house is cozy and perfect for some major league reading.
Happily, once again, the week was jammed with fun events — entertaining friends, a belated Christmas celebration with others…and even a BBQ with some other friends (sorry to those on the East Coast, but we did eat indoors).
Given all this merriment, I’ve yet to catch up with the New Year and have neglected Book Barmy.
So my New Year starts today. Putting away Christmas things, the last of the treats have been eaten (except for some very yummy peppermint fudge ice cream which only comes out once at year from our favorite ice cream place), and I’m back here to tell you about a book I did get to read last week.
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Last Christmas In Paris
by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb
In spite of the cheesy cover, this novel grabbed me from the opening pages — and why not? It’s written in my favorite epistolary style, set during WWI, and somewhat about Christmas.
From the blurb:
August 1914. England is at war. As Evie Elliott watches her brother, Will, and his best friend, Thomas Harding, depart for the front, she believes—as everyone does—that it will be over by Christmas, when the trio plan to celebrate the holiday among the romantic cafes of Paris. But as history tells us, it all happened so differently…
Evie, is a British society girl who yearns to do more for the war effort than rolling bandages and knitting socks. Her best friend Alice, her brother, and her brother’s best friend Thomas are all on the front line and having seemingly exciting adventures.
Last Christmas in Paris was co-written by two authors Ms. Gaynor wrote as Evie, and Ms. Webb wrote as Thomas, Evie’s brother’s best friend, a scholar who sees the war as a chance to escape from running the family newspaper. This results in two distinct voices, which through their letters reveal their personalities, hopes, and ultimately their fears during this ‘war to end all wars’.
Initially the letters are full of lighthearted banter as this young group is carried along by the excitement of war, but as the battlefields of France become a nightmare, the letters become start to contain raw emotions, fear and wistfulness for a lost youth.
This is a correspondence of friends evolving- learning war is no great adventure after all, falling in love, and the uncertainly of the future. Ultimately this is a romance, but set against the backdrop of a brutal war. The psychological shell shock that beset many soldiers and how they were treated. The ravages of the Spanish Flu epidemic and the hardships for woman — both involved in the war and at home in Britain.
I devoured Last Christmas in Paris and was drawn in by the fascinating and sometimes haunting letters. There are telegrams interspersed which give the reader the urgency of communicating life-changing words and feelings all during the brutality of war.
There is a timelessness about these letters back and forth — because the expressions of friendship, misgivings, fear, and ultimately, love are indeed timeless. Our mode of communication may have changed in the modern day – but not the heart-felt human emotions.
Because Last Christmas in Paris is not really about Christmas, I recommend this fascinating novel any time of the year.
A digital advanced readers copy was provided by HarperCollins via Edelweiss.
North Wind Manor by T. L. Chasse
My mother in law hailed from Maine and years ago we read and exchanged a series of books by Elizabeth Ogilive — romantic mysteries set in the small villages and islands of Maine. Ever since then, and because she was one of my favorite people, I have a soft spot towards anything set in Maine.
So when North Wind Manor came across my radar — just look at that cover — I broke my own rule and asked the author for a copy of this self-published debut to review here on Book Barmy. Happily, Ms. Chasse agreed and I closed the last chapter just the other night with a sigh of contentment.
Turns out this was a lovely first read for my holiday reading season.
Katie escapes her abusive step-father, to live with her long-lost grandparents in New Hampshire. On her way, she gets off the bus at a rest stop and mistakenly gets back on a different bus headed to Maine. Confused, without any belongings, and sick with flu, she arrives in the village of Vintage, Maine and is rescued by Bobby, who himself was rescued by an elderly man named Harry.
Harry has recently died and left his home, North Wind Manor to Bobby who befriended him. Bobby now has a large home and opens up a private room and bath to Katie as she recovers her health.
Bobby and Katie form a sweet friendship and Bobby’s funny and gentle manner slowly wins Katie’s cautious affection. With Katie, we are taken into the comforting arms of small town Vintage, Maine and Bobby’s friends and relatives. Once recovered, Katie finds a job at the local diner where she slowly starts to feel part of the village.
Beneath all this happiness, Katie knows she can’t stay forever, so she contacts her grandparents in New Hampshire. Arrangements are made for her to go and stay with them for a bit. Here the story takes an unexpected turn. I will tell you no more — other than there’s a heroic rescue, interesting characters, and some exiting events.
North Wind Manor is a delightful, non-violent story, populated with real characters. It is a credit to Ms. Chasse’s pacing that I found myself turning the pages, just as with a thriller, to be sure everything turned out alright – and you can trust me, everything does.
Some of my favorite bits were the descriptions of the Maine weather and the lovely coziness of being snowed-in (as if snowed in myself, I cuddled up with a cup of cocoa). I liked the characters and enjoyed their dialogue which is sprinkled with gentle humor and insight. There’s a wonderful homage to Beauty and the Beast when Bobby shows Katie his library. But the best thing about North Wind Manor is the storyline — love found, then lost, the value of friends and community — and finding one’s real family in an unexpected place.
If there are any editors or publishers reading this, you’ll want to keep an eye on Ms. Chasse. While still a bit raw around the edges, she has excellent pacing and is a natural storyteller. In my humble opinion, Ms. Chasse and her Vintage, Maine books have the potential of becoming a best-selling series.
Thank you to the author for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest and non-compensated review.
Packages are mailed, cards sent, and now I’m able to get to my holiday reading, so stay tuned…
Us by David Nicholls
You can rest assured Book Barmy followers, we’re done with dark thrillers for awhile.
Time for something completely different.
I read another book by Mr. Nicholls (One Day) a long time ago and was not enthralled. I found it one-dimensional and it often trespassed into a sticky-sweet romance.
So, when one of my favorite booktubers, Wilde Reads raved about Us by Mr. Nicholls I was skeptical, but in dire need of a break from dark thrillers – I borrowed it from the library for our recent trip down south.
Douglas and Connie, a British couple have planned a vacation through Europe, but it’s nearly called off when Connie wakes up and says “I think I want to leave you.”
Douglas forges ahead and cajoles his wife to enjoy one last hurrah with their teenage son, who is soon off to college. And thus begins a bittersweet and awkward journey through Europe.
The past and present are told in many short chapters. The family is on a forced march through Europe following Douglas’s precise itinerary, carefully laid out in numerous spread sheets.
Douglas and Connie’s past relationship is slowly revealed — how they met and fell in love, despite being complete opposites. Connie is an uninhibited artist, while Douglas is an introverted biochemist – they marry, inhabit a bohemian London apartment, have a child. We see Douglas struggle with Connie’s artistic and unconventional upbringing of their son, and watch as Connie gives up her art and they move out of London to a larger house with a garden. All seems to be going well – or is it?
These are real people — Douglas, well-meaning but suffering from a lack of spontaneity; Connie, beautiful, charming, and artistic — and their son, Albie, a typical teenager filled with scorn for adult conservatism.
The dynamic between Douglas and Connie is funny and genuinely touching.
’I was looking forward to us growing old together. Me and you, growing old and dying together.’
‘Douglas, who in their right mind would look forward to that?’”
So they’re off to Europe. There are painful scenes when Douglas is trying desperately to ensure everyone is having a good time, but these are contrasted with laugh out loud funny incidents, such as when it turns out Douglas has mistakenly booked the three of them into a questionable hotel in Amsterdam…
“Dad”, asked Albie “have you booked us into a sex hotel?” and they began to laugh. It’s not a sex hotel, it’s boutique, I insisted. “Douglas”, said Connie, “tapping the print of the bound Japanese lady, is that a half hitch or a bowline?” I did not answer, through it was a bowline.
What I most enjoyed about Us was the subtle, bittersweet, and unflinchingly honest writing.
I think our marriage has run its course. I think I want to leave you. It was like trying to go about my business with an axe embedded in my skull.
I could especially relate to this, about Douglas’s ability to appreciate modern art
It’s not about what you liked and didn’t like, Connie would reply, it’s about what it made you feel. More often than not, it made me feel foolish and conventional.
And I had to nod in agreement with this about parties;
Because parties, dinner parties in particular, had always seemed to be a pitiless form of gladiatorial combat, with laurel garlands bestowed to the most witty, successful and attractive, and the corpses of the defeated lying bleeding on the painted floorboards.
This is a cynical, bittersweet, yet loving portrait of a love — of a relationship. A reminder that not every couple can be happy, no matter how much they love each other. These are real and familiar characters; especially the befuddled Douglas, certain he can fix something unfixable if only he applied enough logic, pragmatism, and unfailing optimism.
Mr. Nicholls does not give us a happily ever after ending, no perfect tying up of loose ends. This is a civilized yet loving portrait of the slipping away of a marriage. Like Nora Ephron’s, “Heartburn”, this a funny and touching novel about a situation which, I’m certain, living through would not be at all funny.
Page Habit
I’ve been hearing about special interest book subscription services ~~ where you sign up, pay a monthly subscription fee, and receive a surprise book box each month. Much like a book of the month club, except you don’t choose the book, the service does.
Hmmm, I thought — Just the perfect monthly fix for this book addict lover.
Surprise, Surprise… I signed up for such a service, namely PageHabit and have received two deliveries. Such delight, to get a box in the mail without knowing what’s inside (except that’s it sure be a book of some sort).
I can’t contain my excitement when the box arrives on my doorstep…
(even better when Husband is out and I can sneak it in the house without the ritual – hey here’s a package for you, what did you get – say whaaa more books – really?).*
My first sign up was for Mystery and once opened, there’s all sorts of nifty book nerd lover surprises. (Click to make larger)
In the first photo you see a few tchotchkes — a fox coaster, a patch relating to time travel (the book’s subject) and a pin. There’s a letter from the author of the book — but best of all (third photo) the book itself is annotated with lots and lots of post-its with the author’s reflections and insights as you read along.
Now really, how cool is that?
PageHabit lets you switch genres at the click of a button, so for October, I switched to Literary Fiction, and that box revealed two (!) books and the following fun stuff.
The second photo shows the swag this month — a library card pillow case (I know who knew?) a Halloween key chain, a cool bookmark, and (another?) fox coaster.
Again, there’s a letter from the author and here’s a close-up of one of the author annotations in the book.
Also, each month, there is also a little booklet, containing a short story commissioned by PageHabit just for that mailing. I’m keeping them in my bag for when I’m stuck in some long line or waiting in the car outside Home Depot (it happens fairly regularly for some reason).
But the best rationalization bit is, that with every mailing, PageHabit partners with a different organization around the world and supports their efforts in spreading literacy throughout their community. These donations help support building schools, public libraries, and community centers to ensure that every child has access to books.
You can match your PageHabit subscription to your favorite genre, there’s also Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult, Science Fiction, and many more.
So far, PageHabit has done itself proud – no duplicates to my book warehouse library.
I’ve got my eye on Historical Fiction for January… and the beat goes on…
The subscription is sort of expensive, so I may move to a quarterly subscription but for the near future, I’ll raid my piggy bank.
Brown packages, surprise books, fun swag, and author notes – –
Priceless.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
* I’m being mean, Husband is actually very tolerant of my book habit collecting and never grumbles ~~ too much.
The Widow’s House by Carol Goodman
The Widow’s House is so much richer than the current spate of modern thrillers (my previous book included). This book has it all. There’s a crumbling estate, family secrets, haunting ghosts, a vulnerable heroine, a couple of murders, and lots and lots of atmosphere.
Sound confusing — like it may be too much? Fear not, Ms. Goodman weaves all these elements together into an enthralling and well-crafted Gothic tale.
I’m going to cheat and quote the back cover blurb, just because it’s that good:
When Jess and Clare Martin move from Williamsburg, Brooklyn, to their former college town in the Hudson River valley, they are hoping for rejuvenation–of their marriage, their savings, and Jess’s writing career.
They take a caretaker’s job at Riven House, a crumbling estate and the home of their old college writing professor. While Clare once had dreams of being a writer, those plans fell by the wayside when Jess made a big, splashy literary debut in their twenties. It’s been years, now, since his first novel. The advance has long been spent. Clare’s hope is that the pastoral beauty and nostalgia of the Hudson Valley will offer some inspiration.
But their new life isn’t all quaint town libraries and fragrant apple orchards. There is a haunting pall that hangs over Riven House like a funeral veil. Something is just not right. Soon, Clare begins to hear babies crying at night, see strange figures in fog at the edge of their property. Diving into the history of the area, she realizes that Riven House has a dark and anguished past. And whatever this thing is–this menacing force that destroys the inhabitants of the estate–it seems to be after Clare next…
Riven House is indeed falling down, has an unusual pentagon shape, and is haunted by ghosts — according to the locals.
As Clare delves into the history of the house, she uncovers a series of tragic deaths. The ghosts are said to be those of Mary Foley and her baby, both of whom lost their lives at the creepy estate. Then there’s the tale of the Apple Blossom Queen, a local beauty who came to a horrific end at Riven House.
Were these just random accidents or the actions of the reputed ghosts in the house? Clare decides to try and uncover some answers, and with the help of her former professor, starts to expand this work into her novel. Jess’s writing also seems to be doing well.
At contrast to the ghosts and creepy estate, Ms. Goodman weaves a sensual beauty into the idyllic setting of the Hudson Valley apple country — we can smell the apple blossoms, see the ripening apples in the orchards, and then as fall approaches we can taste the area’s special apples:
The first time you bit into one your mouth was flooded with caramel, but when you took another bite, looking for that taste again, you got plain apple. You had to sneak up on it. The taste was elusive, but when you caught it you wanted to suck that sticky sweetness right of its flesh.
But, cue ghostly sound effects – nothing is quite right. There’s trouble in Clare and Jess’s marriage, an old boyfriend is with the local police, there’s clandestine meetings between Jess and their sexy real estate agent, and a parade of local characters who range from slightly odd to the definitely strange.
Soon Clare starts to actually see the ghosts and experience the haunting of Riven House. She comes close to accidental death, and tries desperately to figure out what is real versus her imagination.
Just picture me, in the chilly dark nights of Lake Tahoe, as I snuggled tighter in bed and happily kept reading. 
Fair warning dear readers, there is a fairly complicated family tree, babies switched at birth, and family secrets kept for many years — all of which are key to the unraveling of the story line. So, as much as The Widow’s House is a proverbial page turner — you should slow down and savor the unraveling of a wonderful suspenseful story.
Ms. Goodman is a master at plotting and building tension as she take the reader through her twists and turns. The ending of the tale will haunt you with this lingering thought — “was any of this real”?
A perfect read for Halloween 
Ms. Goodman has a long list of well-received novels. A new author to add to my list, given this one was so good.
Thank you to William Morrow/Harper Collins for an Advanced Readers Copy.
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