The Marseille Caper: Book summary and reviews of The Marseille Caper by Peter Mayle

The Marseille Caper Summary

Lovable rogue and sleuth extraordinaire Sam Levitt is back in another beguiling romp through the South of France.

At the end of The Vintage Caper, Sam had just carried off a staggering feat of derring-do in the heart of Bordeaux, infiltrating the ranks of the French elite to rescue a stolen, priceless wine collection. With the questionable legality of the adventure - and the threat of some very powerful enemies! - Sam thought it'd be a while before he returned to France, especially with the charms of the beautiful Elena Morales to keep him in Los Angeles.

But when the immensely wealthy Francis Reboul - the victim of Sam's last heist but someone who knows talent when he sees it - asks our hero to take a job in Marseille, it's impossible for Sam and Elena to resist the possibility of further excitement ... to say nothing of the pleasures of the region. Soon the two are enjoying the coastal sunshine and the delectable food and wine for which Marseille is known. Yet as a competition over Marseille's valuable waterfront grows more hotly disputed, Sam, representing Reboul, finds himself in the middle of an increasingly intrigue-ridden and dangerous real-estate grab, with thuggish gangsters on one side and sharklike developers on the other.

Will Sam survive this caper unscathed? Will he live to enjoy another bowl of bouillabaisse? All will be revealed - with luck, savvy, and a lot of help from Sam's friends - in the novel's wonderfully satisfying climax. 

The Marseille Caper Reviews

"Mayle's cast of fondly crafted characters mobilize the capering elements of the title as the adventure comes to a satisfactory conclusion." - Publishers Weekly

"To compensate for the absence of plot complications, realistic dialogue or suspense, the meals sound great, the ebullient badinage is genuinely witty and Mayle wears his considerable knowledge of the area lightly." - Kirkus Reviews

"Starred Review. 'Totally fun' may not the deepest, most original way to describe the pleasure of Britisher Mayle's latest joyous novel set in his adopted homeland, the delightful French region of Provence. But it's an honest description...This is sophisticated writing without a snobby tone (and that may be a more satisfactory description)." - Booklist

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Peter Mayle Author Biography

Peter Mayle spent 15 years in the advertising business, first as a copywriter and then as a reluctant executive, before escaping Madison Avenue in 1975 to write educational books for children.

In 1990 Mayle published A Year in Provence, which became an international bestseller; his books have since been translated into more than 20 languages, Mayle has contributed to The Sunday Times, the Financial Times, The Independent, GQ, and Esquire.

He and his wife, Jennie, and their dogs live in the south of France.

Link to Peter Mayle's Website

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