Name: French Windows
Author: Antoine Laurain
ISBN: 9781805334835

About the book

'This short but sweet mystery... is a delicious jeu d'esprit' The Times'Masterful storytelling that brings the streets of Paris to life' SunOne patient. One therapist. Five floors of intrigue. Nathalia Guitry is an enigma that psychotherapist Doctor Faber can't solve. A photographer unable to work since witnessing a murder, she seems impervious to his usual techniques. He hasn't been able to stop thinking about her since she walked into his consulting room. Desperate to break through her façade, he proposes something unusual: she'll write him a story about each resident of the building opposite, floor by floor. But as he becomes consumed by her tales, his own mask begins to slip. How does she know so much about these strangers' lives? And what's waiting on the final floor?Translated by Louise Rogers Lalaurie. Antoine Laurain was born in Paris and is a journalist, antiques collector and award-winning author of ten novels, including The Red Notebook and The President's Hat. His books have been translated into 25 languages and sold more than 200,000 copies in English. He lives in Paris, France. Louise Rogers Lalaurie is a writer and translator from French. Her translations include Frédéric Dard's The King of Fools and The Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths by Olivier Barde-Cabuçon, both published by Pushkin Vertigo. Her work has been shortlisted for the Best Translated Book Award, the Jan Michalski Prize for Literature and the Crime Writers Association International Dagger.

ISBN9781805334835

PublisherPushkin Press

Publication Date01/16/25

Pages176

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Nathalia, a young photographer, has been seeing a therapist. Having accidentally photographed a murder, she finds that she can no longer do her job. Instead, Doctor Faber suggests that she write about the neighbours she idly observes in the building across the street. But as these written snapshots become increasingly detailed, he starts to wonder how she can possibly know so much about them. With each session, Doctor Faber and his mysterious patient will get closer and closer to the truth. But are the stories Nathalia submits each week as she claims...

I’m new to the world of mystery, thriller, crime, and such, and I have to say: I expected something different from this genre 😅 To be honest, I wouldn’t have read ‘French Window’ if it hadn’t been chosen for our book club. The tone of voice was a bit drier, but still light and easy to follow. It was a good and short read (took me about 2.5 hours), and the build-up of the story was nice. Since there weren’t any clear chapter separations—apart from the titles of Nathalia’s short stories—Laurain managed to pull me through the book. All in all, I can recommend the book and I’m already looking forward to the book club discussion 😬