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Published Nov 2012
224 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
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.
"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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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Peter Mayle (born June 14, 1939 in Brighton) was a British author famous for his series of books detailing life in Provence, France. He spent fifteen years in the advertising industry before leaving the business in 1975 to write educational books, including a series on sex education for children and young people. His 1989 book A Year in Provence became an international bestseller; it chronicled a year in his life as a British expatriate in Ménerbes, a village in the southern département Vaucluse.
His books have been translated into more than twenty languages. He writes for magazines and newspapers. A Year in Provence was produced as a TV series starring John Thaw and screened in 1993. His novel A Good Year was the basis for the 2006 film of the same name directed by Ridley Scott...
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