Lazy Sunday in France, Book review of Stolen Summer by Jane Dunning

Lazy Sunday in France starts with croissant and coffee

Welcome to the first of my #LazySundayinFrance posts. These will be a regular feature on the blog and will include books to relax into on a Sunday, food to tempt your taste buds, places to visit and much more. 

My Sunday mornings always begin with a warm, buttery croissant from our village boulangerie, a moment of indulgence I look forward to all week, but with the prospect of real work looming on my horizon, I am determined to make the most of my Sundays this year and you are welcome to join me.

Stolen Summer by Jane Dunning

First up, it’s a book review; Stolen Summer, the sequel to Thirty-five minutes from St Tropez by Jane Dunning. You can read my review of book one here.

It was good to be back with the Ferguson family and their glamourous life in their Mas in the Provence hills, picking up on their story from book one. Life for Richard and Helen should be idyllic; they live in beautiful house, in an area where the weather is perfect, and they are at a time in their lives when work-wise things are slowing down as they approach their retirement and look forward to taking it easier. However, the sparkle is missing from their opulent lives and where once fun and laughter echoed from their terrace, where their own domaine wine is shared with family, this summer, fear hangs over them all.

We join the family as some are beginning a new life in France, while others have a wedding to plan, and we follow the tentative steps in new love for the younger family members, who are working hard in the Riviera tourist industry, but there is no escaping the shadow hanging over them all. An intruder, mysterious happenings on their land and the unease of not knowing what will come next, dulls their celebrations and the stress this causes, especially for Helen, is evident.

In their stolen summer can the family pull together, or will they end up divided? The scene has been set, the mystery needs to be solved and all you need do is settle back in the sun, I’d advise a poolside location and a chilled glass of Provançal rosé, if possible, and immerse yourself between the pages. Vineyards, fine wine, warm summer evenings, luxury yachts and penthouses in Monaco are ready and waiting for you.

Stolen Summer and Thirty-five minutes from St Tropez are available in ebook format and links to Amazon can be found below.

You can follow Jane on Facebook and Twitter and read my France et Moi interview with her here.

If you are a writer, blogger or run an independent business in France and have something you think would be ideal to be included in a future Lazy Sunday in France post, you can contact me here.