When Vianne Rocher receives a letter from beyond the grave, she allows the wind to blow her back to the village in south-west France where, eight years ago, she opened up a chocolate shop. But Lansquenet is different now: women veiled in black, the scent of spices and peppermint tea, and, on the bank of the river Tannes, facing the church: a minaret.
Nor is it only the incomers from North Africa that have brought change. Father Reynaud, Vianne's erstwhile adversary, is disgraced and under threat. Could it be that Vianne is the only one who can save him now?
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[SOMEONE ONCE TOLD me that, in France alone, a quarter of a million letters are delivered every year to the dead]***
(@TransworldBooks, 24 May 2012, 464 pages, e-book, #popsugarreadingchallenge 2020, a book by an author who has written more than 20 books, bought from @AmazonKindle)
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The author is one of my favourites so I knew I was going to love this. I did. It took me a ridiculous time to realise Monsieur le Curé of the title is the Priest who was Vianne's nemesis in Chocolat. I loved being back in Lansquenet, the perfect village, in my humble opinion and a place the author brings alive. Although this is a sequel of sorts to Chocolat and The Lollipop Shoes it's a stand-alone book and you don't need to have read either of the other books to enjoy this. This is a darker book than the other two. Vianne wonders why she's come back to this village and who needs her help. Roux, her lover wonders the same thing and tells her it's not her responsibility to save anyone. Vianne's daughters are upset with her because they like Lansquenet and know she will make them leave again just as they start to feel at home. Vianne wonders who Ines is, a woman who wears a black veil and who the locals believe is a dark spirit bringing fear and unset. I had so many questions reading this and didn't know where the story would go. Another treat from my favourite author.
