A young woman wakes in a hospital room. What happened to her and why is a mystery. Is she victim or murderer? The young woman has been badly injured in a fire and has amnesia. But what happened to her? Is she Mi, Micky or Michele, or Do, Dominique? As she struggles to rebuild her identity, she starts to recall the crime that was committed and the house on the French Riviera. She remembers the rich heiress and the faithful friend - but which is she?

A runaway bestseller in France when it was first published ten years ago, this irresistible novel set during the aftermath of World War I is reissued. "A classic mystery . . . Only the best historical fiction can make the journey into a distant time and return with a believable sense of how things really were. This novel does it."--Paul Watkins, "Washington Post Book World."

For fans of Patricia Highsmith, Harriet Tyce, Jorn Lier Horst, Fred Vargas and Jean-Patrick Manchette.

For fans of Patricia Highsmith, Harriet Tyce, Jorn Lier Horst, Fred Vargas and Jean-Patrick Manchette.

For fans of Patricia Highsmith, Harriet Tyce, Jorn Lier Horst, Fred Vargas and Jean-Patrick Manchette.

'Japrisot is the most welcome talent since the early Simenons' New York Times Car mechanic Fiorimond is irresistibly drawn to beautiful, provocative Elle, a recent arrival in his sleepy Provence village. Their relationship develops quickly, but even as they make plans to marry, Fiorimond doesn't know what to make of his bride-to-be: is she an enigma or simply vacuous? In fact the troubled Elle is on a mission to exact revenge on Fiorimond's family for a crime committed decades earlier, with a plan that will ultimately destroy all their lives, including hers. Set in the 1970s, and available in English again for the first time in many years, this is a true classic of French suspense. It has everything: stylish writing, clever construction, an unforgettable leading lady, and most importantly leaves the reader guessing until the very last page. In the 1980s it was turned into a successful film with Isabelle Adjani.

During the First World War five French soldiers, accused of a cowardly attempt to evade duty, are bundled into no-man's land and certain death. Five bodies are later recovered, the families are notified that the men died in the line of duty and the whole, distasteful incident appears closed. After the war the fianc-e of one of the men receives a letter which hints at what might have happened. Mathilde Donnay determines to discover the fate of her beloved amid the carnage of battle. A Very Long Engagement turns into an unusual and engrossing thriller as she discovers an increasing number of people trying to put her off the scent.

Japrisot's achievement is to have written a novel that is both a suspenseful thriller and one which transforms a single small incident into the epitome of all wartime atrocities. The dénouement, when it finally happens, is moving and horribly convincing.