Peaches for Monsieur le Curé: A Novel (A Vianne Rocher Novel)

I have not read Chocolat. So, the novel took me totally by surprise as it's set in modern day France. The little village, Lansquenet still has all of it's charm! Luc sends Vianne Rocher a letter that he was instructed to send when he finally takes possession of his grandmother's house and the chocolat shop. She knew that Vianne would leave. But, she also knew.. that Vianne must return to assist various old friends. Including the priest, Francis Reynaud.Down by the river, many immigrants have moved into the area. They have established a community that is self-contained and outsiders are not really welcome. They build a mosque. So many secrets. The village resists outsiders. Poor old Father Reynaud.. he has been blamed for setting fire to the old chocolat shop. The shop was turned into a girl's school for the new community members. All of the girls wear the traditional garments of Muslim women. Their teacher is a woman in black who never is seen without her burka.It took me a while to get into the story as I love the movie. I was expecting certain characters to be acting a certain way. And, that just wasn't possible with the new time era. The characters are basically the same. Just modernized. I finally had to just mentally set aside the movie in my head.. and allow the book to take on it's own tale. Then, I was able to enjoy the book totally.The story is a good old who done it. Small town gossip and intrigue. Doesn't matter if it's set in France or the middle of no where USA. Small minds are always present. If they're born there.. they can never accept a new member. Even after decades.. the natives will still treat them as outsiders. The priest takes on the personality traits of both the priest and the movie's "Count". He is at "war" with the newly arrived immigrants and their religion.It always boils down to pride. Neither side is willing to see the beauty of others.. until the whirlwind of Vianne arrives to the little village to assist both sides to find the "community" once again. She lives in her old friend's house. Making both chocolate and peach jam. She arrives just in time for the peach tree harvest! A little sunshine in every jar!A lovely read! Just mentally discard the movie and read the story as a standalone. Then, it'll be a joyful experience!

I enjoyed this third Chocolat book more than the second book because it returned to Lansquenet and all of the original characters from the first book. I’m excited to start the Strawberry Thief.

Joanne Harris' latest novel is the third installment in the "Chocolat" series, and like the first two books, it does not disappoint. Like Vianne Rocher, I was looking forward to coming back to Lansquenet, which had become very real to me after reading Chocolat several times (I never tire of it). Re-visiting its people was like meeting old friends, and the changes Vianne found in the village realistically reflected the experience of someone returning back to a place of the past and finding that nothing has remained quite the same.Harris has a wonderfully insightful way of describing her characters and what makes them tick. Weaving her magic, this tale of a clash of cultures comes alive in the many colours Vianne sees in people - there never is a black-and-white. The complexities of human nature explored in this novel open the reader's eyes and mind to the human element in every conflict and remind us that nothing is ever as it seems - and that we need to stay open-minded and accepting of people's differences. Harris does so without ever sounding preaching or lecturing - which makes it such a lovely read. With her magical ways and her food (oh, how I would love to be able to taste the feasts cooked up in this novel!), Vianne soon overcomes the obstacles of narrow minded thinking and bridges the gaps between the two very different cultures living in the village. I love Vianne's spirit and her ability to remain non-judgmental, even in the face of such adversity. And yet she, too, always stays human, with all her many flaws, which makes her likeable and lets the reader relate to her. By giving Reynaud (Monsieur le Curé) a voice again, Harris lets us see his human side and how he, too, has grown as a human being. Because this Reynaud is very different from his younger version in Chocolat - and I found myself liking him.All in all, Harris' latest novel is a wonderful, pleasurable read, with a rich cast that will tug on your heartstrings and make you feel as if you are there amongst them. I was sad to turn the last page - I could have stayed in Lansquenet a little longer yet.

I have enjoyed most of Joanne Harris' work and this one, the third book to feature characters introduced in "Chocolat," started out with great promise. Harris has not lost her ability to bring us to a place and time and make us taste it, feel it and smell it - like the wind of a pre-Lenten carnival in rural France.This time it is the tail end of summer in Lansquenet, and Vianne Rocher and her daughters are back in town, for a time, at least, and in a time of tension and change. The story is contemporary, while "Chocolat" was placed in the late 1950s, as I recall, which was a bit unsettling. But since I'd read the second Vianne story, "The Girl With No Shadow" ("The Lollypop Shoes"), I was prepared for this.I won't spoil the story for those who have not yet read it, but I will say that while "Peaches" kept my interest, I did find parts of it weighed down a bit, and not as magical as "Chocolat" - and I'm not sure why. The story was somewhat complex, and all the new characters were hard to follow.Still I recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn more about social issues in contemporary France. I have spend some time in the part of France in which "Lansquenet" is located and I know such problems exist.

Ho letto prima "The Lollipop Shoes", trovato per caso in vacanza tra i libri del book exchange, e l'ho finito tutto d'un fiato. Poi è stata la volta di "Chocolat", che mi ha deluso in quanto mi aspettavo di ritrovare le stesse scene dell'omonimo film. Perciò, quando infine ho acquistato il terzo volume della trilogia, ero un po' scoraggiata e, invece, devo ammetterlo, è stata una bellissima sorpresa. Una lettura come sempre magica, coinvolgente, scorrevole. In inglese esiste un'ottima definizione: a real page-turner. Un'abile narrazione, anche, giocata tutta sulla suspense e sull'effetto sorpresa. Fino all'ultimo siamo portati a credere che Roux ha tradito Vianne, che ha avuto una relazione con Joséphine, relazione da cui sarebbe nato Pilou, e che ha mentito per tutto questo tempo, conducendo una doppia vita segreta. Fino all'ultimo anche noi, come tutta la comunità di Lansquenet-sous-Tannes o quasi, siamo convinti che la villain è Inès Bencharki ma niente è come sembra. Le apparenze ingannano. Dobbiamo trovare tutti il coraggio di sollevare il velo e di guardare in faccia la realtà. Molto interessante, inoltre, è il momento in cui Joséphine confessa tutta la verità a Reynaud ma, nonostante a noi lettori è concessa solitamente una conoscenza privilegiata dei fatti, rimaniamo all'oscuro di tutto: la confessione deve rimanere segreta. Altrettanto interessante è la metamorfosi del monsieur le curé, a cui voltano le spalle proprio coloro che prima lo osannavano. Le uniche disposte ad aiutarlo sono Vianne, la sua eterna nemica, e Joséphine, la donna per cui egli stesso non ha mai alzato un dito. È un monsieur le curé capace di sentimento, che fa quasi tenerezza. Magari mi sarei aspettata una conclusione diversa ma forse sarebbe stato chiedere troppo. In altre parole, assolutamente consigliato: fatevi rapire anche voi dalla magia di Joanne Harris.

The last part of the Chocolat trilogy,and since I owned the previous two and loved reading them,had to order this one. Purchased it for Rs.226 only. Perfect condition,brilliant book.

J'ai donné une note de 4 étoiles (plutôt entre 3 et 4) pour differencié entre ce livre et d'autres de la même auteur. J'ai trouvé Chocolat, Blackberry Wine et même the lollipop shoes d'un autre classe. Neanmois, 'a good read' comme tout les livres de cet auteur.

Once again Joanne Harris weaves her magic with this delightful story. After chocolat I worried that further books would dissapoint I loved it so much. They have not . This book will hold you until the last page as the story unfolds and you can't wait to find out what happens next. Joanne Harris uses words like a poet and her descriptions are inspired. It was wonderful to be back in Lansquenet again and catch up with old friends and to find out what had been going on in our absence. The answer is all sorts of unexpected happenings and colourful characters.! Monsieur le Curé surprised us all, who would have thought it! Vianne needed all her insights this time to restore order. The only problem with this book is you want to carry on reading about them all and to know what will Vianne do now!

Acht Jahre sind vergangen, seit Vianne Rocher Lansquenet verlassen hat. Als sie einen vor Jahren verfassten Brief der verstorbenen Armande erhält, macht sie sich mit ihren beiden Töchtern zu einem Besuch dorthin auf. Auf den ersten Blick hat sich in ihrer Abwesenheit kaum etwas verändert; tatsächlich aber gibt es seit einiger Zeit Spannungen zwischen den alteingesessenen Dorfbewohnern und der muslimischen Gemeinde, die sich dort gegründet hat. Die Zeichen stehen auf Sturm, und ausgerechnet ihr alter Widersacher - Monsieur le Curé Francis Reynaud - benötigt Viannes Hilfe.Nach "Chocolat" und "The Lollipop Shoes" ist dies nun das dritte Buch mit Vianne Rocher als Hauptfigur. Und obwohl es Jahre her ist, dass ich die beiden Vorgänger gelesen habe, habe ich mich sofort wieder heimisch gefühlt in Viannes verträumter, sinnlicher und magischer Welt. Da gerade im ersten Drittel des Buches immer wieder Bezug genommen wird auf frühere Ereignisse, habe ich mich nach und nach wieder an Details der Handlung in "Chocolat" erinnert. Man muss sich also nicht durch nochmaliges Lesen der Vorbände auf diese Fortsetzung vorbereiten.Die Geschichte wird abwechselnd von Vianne und Reynaud erzählt. Die beiden sind immer noch ganz unterschiedliche Charaktere, obwohl Reynaud in diesem Buch deutlich zugänglicher und sympathischer wirkt als bei seinem ersten Auftritt. Ich mochte beide Erzählperspektiven - Viannes Passagen wirken immer ein bisschen träumerisch; Reynaud ist im Vergleich dazu sehr nüchtern und oft schroff, obwohl er es im Grunde gut meint. Ich mochte ihn in diesem Band sehr gern und habe sehr auf ein Happy End für ihn gehofft. Da die meisten von Harris' Romanen einen unbestreitbaren Wohlfühl-Faktor haben, war ich in dieser Hinsicht von Anfang an sehr zuversichtlich.Wie alle Romane von Harris ist auch dieser hier schön geschrieben und angenehm zu lesen. Es gelingt ihr scheinbar mühelos, das Dorf Lansquenet und seine Bewohner lebendig werden zu lassen. Dass einem beim Lesen des öfteren das Wasser im Mund zusammenläuft, versteht sich quasi von selbst: Pralinen stehen nun einmal für die einfachste Art von Magie, die Vianne zur Verfügung steht.Insgesamt ein recht schönes Buch. Es hat gerade am Anfang einige Längen und ist insgesamt nicht so gut wie "Chocolat" (mit "Lollipop Shoes" lässt es sich schlecht vergleichen, weil die Thematik und vor allem die Stimmung eine ganz andere ist), aber dennoch lesenswert. Ich würde mich freuen, wenn es nicht der letzte Auftritt von Vianne und all den anderen gewesen wäre. (Knappe 4 Sterne.)