This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
Reviewed by Kelly Allen
After eight years of living in Paris, Vianne Rocher feels as if her little family have finally settled down. Vianne is safe in her world with Roux; the man she fell in love with all those years ago in Lansquenet, their daughter Rosette and her eldest daughter, Anouk. However, one day a letter arrives from an old friend that summons Vianne back to the faraway land of Lansquenet. She always promised herself never to return, however the letter appears desperate for her help and she decides to go back. Roux, who strongly believes in never looking back (and who had his fair share of troubles when he was last in Lansquenet) chooses to stay behind on their houseboat.
Vianne arrives in the little town with her daughters in the light of the carnival, but immediately feels that there is something amiss. Soon she bumps into Father Reynaud; her old adversary, and both of their journeys begin to spiral out of control. Reynaud struggles with the gossip regarding his rumoured actions within Lansquenet, whilst Vianne battles with her own insecurities surrounding Roux and her dear friend, Josephine. Furthermore, they both long to discover the truth behind the elusive Inés that has brought trouble into the community since the day she arrived. It is only when it is almost too late that Vianne realises she has returned to help Reynaud all along.
Reading this book made me hungry; not only for the delicious food that is described with such passion and vibrancy, but for the words and metaphors that bring each scene into a reality. The story is told between the daily accounts and experiences of Vianne and Reynaud; the voices are strongly written and there is no doubt who is narrating when a fresh chapter begins. Joanne Harris has written two very strong narrative characters, not only in terms of bringing them to life for the reader, but also in terms of strong-willed characters, who will fight to the death for what they believe is right.
Initially, I was concerned I would not understand the background to this book, not having read Chocolat, but there is enough information given to explain Vianne’s original story for anyone who may have not read the first book. This aside, I did find the book a little hard to grasp in other ways, especially when I read the first section from Reynaud’s point of view. His character is very deep and almost verges on slightly depressing in the beginning, as opposed to the light and positive Vianne. This made it a task to read, until I grew to like and fully understand him as a person. I found the insertion of Arabic descriptions mixed in with English a little difficult at first, almost jarring mixed in with the rest of the text; however the more I read the easier it flowed. It was extremely interesting to see such varied viewpoints regarding attire, fasting and behaviour within religion- it made me stop and think about my own personal thoughts, judgements and opinions about the world.
The descriptions within the book are deliciously exquisite; offering a tantalising view of not only places and people, but also food and the power it can have to bring people together. There are a lot of characters in the book, and the descriptive talent that Joanne Harris has simply allows for this vast cast of people; because each person is unique. The story is fascinating, and although I initially felt a strong pull towards Vianne as a character, by the end of the book I was totally caught up in Reynaud’s words and I felt he was the most thoroughly developed character within the book.
There are some lovely moments within the book, most taking place under Armande’s roof, as Vianne and her friends and family feast, talk and relax together in the safe tranquillity of the house. The other memorable scenes take place with Reynaud; in particular the moments we spend with him trapped in the cellar are very moving and there is no indication as to whether he will make it out alive or not. He is not extremely lucky in this book; doing his utmost to help people yet always ending up in the crossfire. Vianne too feels the sting of her actions, her naivety causes her several moments of embarrassment and shock and as a reader I felt her pain.
Ultimately, both characters learn a lot from their varied experiences, and although there are several tragedies along the way, Armande turns out to be right all along, ‘everything returns’ and by the end of the book everything is in its rightful place.
Put simply, this is a deeply delicious read.
8/10