Their dream becomes reality when they open their own shop, The Good Novel, in a fine but unpretentious Paris arrondissement. *Starred Review* Ivan and Francesca’s idea of bliss is a bookshop selling only the finest literature: time-honored treasures as well as overlooked masterpieces, little gems, and innovative new publications. 'synopsis' may belong to another edition of this title. One by one, the pieces of this puzzle fall ominously into place, as it becomes clear to the store's owners, Ivan and Francesca, that their dreams of an ideal place for books may be shattered by envy and violence.Įlegantly mixing the mystery and literary fiction genres, Laurence Cossé has written an enthralling fable for lovers of good books and a heartfelt tribute to fine bookselling.

Now, there are those who will stop at nothing to destroy The Good Novel. The store has proven an instant success, but nobody could have imagined that success would unleash a tide of hatred. Tucked away in a corner of Paris, The Good Novel bookstore offers its clientele literary masterpieces, both contemporary and classic, selected by a top-secret committee of authors. Indeed, all three victims are members of The Good Novel's secret selection committee. In the eyes of their aggressors, they are guilty of only one crime: expressing their tastes in literature. The victims here are not members of the underworld, toughs or thugs, but mild, meek and apparently ordinary people. Mystery abounds but A Novel Bookstore is no everyday mystery. Meanwhile, an elderly man of unbreakable habits is taunted and threatened by two unknown men while on his morning walk along the cliffs of Brittany.

A middle-aged mother who spends much of her time shuttling her numerous offspring along twisting mountain roads loses control of her car and ends up injured but alive in a gorge. A devotee of Stendhal who has shunned the company of his fellow human beings to live on the outskirts of a tiny village in Savoy is kidnapped and left for dead along a forest road.

A Novel Bookstore by Laurence Cossé