- Format: Kindle Edition
- File Size: 4375 KB
- Print Length: 289 pages
- Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0316490148
- Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson (11 July 2019)
- Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
- Language: English
- ASIN: B07K23PNSR
Synopsis
FRENCH RIVIERA, WINTER 1992
On a freezing night, as her high school campus is engulfed by a snowstorm, 19-year-old Vinca Rockwell runs away with Alexis, her philosophy teacher.
No one will ever see them again.
FRENCH RIVIERA, SPRING 2017
Formerly inseparable, Thomas, Maxime and Fanny – Vinca’s best friends – have not spoken in twenty-five years. But when they receive an invitation to their school reunion, they know they must go back one final time.
Because there is a body buried in that school…
…and they’re the ones who put it there.
Review
The. Reunion is by French author Guillaume Musso and translated by Frank Wynne. A school reunion may put fear in many a stomach for so many reasons, but for Thomas and Maxim there is a skeleton in the gym that could ruin their lives. The plot shifts between 1992 and the present day at the reunion and focuses on the disappearance of Vinca Rockwell, the love interest of Thomas, who suddenly disappeared in 1992 with a teacher she was having an affair with. From the gripping opening chapter to the last page, the plot grips and shocks as the story of Vinca is slowly revealed.
What first intrigued me to read this book was the marketing line that Guillaume Musso was the bestselling author you have never read, and after reading this book I will certainly keep my eye out for other novels written by him. The book is set in the stunning Côte d Azur with its juxtaposition of pine forests, lavender, cliffs and sandy beaches. Guillaume Musso’s eloquent prose evokes the sights and smells of the landscape so they are a picture postcard in your mind; the mistral, salt of the sea, the roaring of the waves and the scent of the lavender. The plot is multilayered and twists in so many different directions that the story becomes a lot deeper than originally thought. I do love a translated novel and have read quite a few, and I have found that French authors have such a way with words, a real eloquent and expressive prose that comes across well when translated. There is plenty of tension and suspense with a few surprises along the way as you would expect from a thriller but I found this read more like literary fiction with the stunning use of language.
The book is narrated in the first person by Thomas, a bestselling author now living in America. The split timeline gives the reader a chance to see how events from 1992 have shaped Thomas’s life over the twenty five years. In returning for the reunion we see that he is still hung up on Vinca who he was in love with in 1992, and has the hope that she is alive somewhere. Because of his actions in 1992 he has cut himself off emotionally from friends, family and relationships and in returning to his home town he has to face the past and the decisions he has made; the past is very much shaping his present and perhaps his future. His best friend from school Maxim, is now a politician and has a better relationship with Thomas’s parents than Thomas does, and they are like grandparents to his two daughters. Both Maxim and Thomas have a lot to lose and in their investigation into Vinca’s disappearance they do a lot of soul searching and facing up to their past and ultimately their future.
The Reunion is an original and intelligent thriller that will keep you turning the page long into the night. The writing has an eloquence to it, the characters are complex and deep and the plot tightly packed with suspense, what more could you ask for. An intriguing and captivating read, that I highly recommend.
I would like to thank Weidenfeld & Nicolson and Tracy Fenton form Compulsive Readers for inviting me to be part of the blog tour for this wonderful book.
If yo have enjoyed my review then please share the book love on social media, thank you x
