Trespass: From the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Gustav Sonata

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My belief is Tremain was inspired by The Diary of Samuel Pepys. They are much alike in many ways. The problem with this though, is that while Pepys diary is a valuable historical document, it doesn’t really have a proper end, because Pepys just quit writing. There’s no real climax, no real plot or cohesive tale, and Restoration kind of has that feel to it as well. The real arc of the story is Merivel’s character change, but I’m not quite sure that’s a strong plot. I suppose Merivel goes full circle and comes away with an enlightened point of view, but it doesn’t have the true feeling of a full story. Along the way, Tremain gives us a history lesson of the Cévennes. She tells us about the decline of the once thriving silk industry, the poor working conditions Audrun once endured in the underwear factory in Ruasse, the way the Cévenol people never hoped for more than what they already had. But it’s the sense of isolation, of ever-present menace that really captures the spirit of the area and adds to the darkness of this book. The woods of holm oak and beech and chestnut and pine are lovely, but Tremain never lets us forget that its loveliness is fraught with danger. This could have been awful, but it is rather good and there are some very funny passages; watch out for the Indian Nightingale and Merivel's attempts at painting (inventing impressionism in the 1660s only to be ridiculed).

Trespass | Rose Tremain | 9780099554097 | AwesomeBooks Trespass | Rose Tremain | 9780099554097 | AwesomeBooks

A dark, thrilling exploration of the nature of revenge and the legacy of damaged family history Marie ClaireWhich is where I want to send these goddamned woman novelists who, when they are absent an idea, think it's perfectly okay to portray their fellow women as victimvictimvictim of horrible, slimy men. It's shouting down the well to say this, but do you not see, Womankind, that this is INSULTING TO *YOU*?!? No woman I know...not one, without exception...is a victimvictimvictim by virtue of her womanliness. Each and every one of the women I know is strong and capable. I resent on their behalf the unquestioned rightness of this kind of claptrap built on the false dichotomy between male abuser and female abused. When he travelled with a donkey in the Cévennes mountains of south-central France in the 1870s, Robert Louis Stevenson took a revolver with him, in case the locals were unfriendly. In her new novel, Rose Tremain vividly evokes the same verdant and recalcitrant region. At the heart of her story are a French brother and sister, Aramon and Audrun, born after the second world war: the progeny of a generation traumatised by loss and accusations of collaboration with German occupiers. By the time the siblings reach late middle age in the early 21st century, when the novel is set, "thousands of Cévenol people had seemed to forget their role as caretakers of the land. Diseases came to the trees. The vine terraces crumbled. The rivers silted up. And nobody seemed to notice or care." With wonderful skill, [Tremain] shows the ripples that circle these two unhappy people...brilliantly evoked Sarah Hayes, Tablet The only quibble I have with this book is a maddening habit of Tremain’s to write "and now he, Anthony" or "now that she, Kitty...." when we know who’s being written about. The reference is distracting. Even though grammatically correct, this habit really got on my nerves and it reminded me of something a lesser writer would do, not someone of Tremain’s status.

Rose Tremain Books | Waterstones Rose Tremain Books | Waterstones

In a silent valley in southern France stands an isolated stone farmhouse, the Mas Lunel. Its owner is Aramon Lunel, an alcoholic haunted by his violent past. His sister, Audrun, alone in her bungalow within sight of the Mas Lunel, dreams of exacting retribution for the unspoken betrayals that have blighted her life. In the end, Anthony is shot by Audrun for being a rosbUnlike Anthony and Veronica, Audrun and Aramon do not have the same kind of close bond. Though they both adored their mother, Bernadette, their father was abusive, and he encouraged Aramon to follow his example. Both brother and sister struggle to come to terms with their poisoned past, though they struggle in different ways. Unfortunately it’s not. The middle of the book drags when Merivel is sent into exile and he spends his time decorating his house in putrid colors, making ridiculous fur coats and chasing a woman who loathes him. Readers of Rose Tremain's 11th novel who find themselves inspired to rush off to the French countryside she lovingly conjures will hardly be able to claim they haven't heard the warnings of "buyer, beware" that nestle between the vivid descriptions of brooding hilltops and babbling streams, particularly if they feel inclined to take their chequebooks with them and acquire a prime piece of real estate. In her first novel since the Orange prize-winning The Road Home, which told the story of an eastern European's journey through a bewildering and inhospitable contemporary Britain, she turns to the mountains and villages of the Cévennes to bring us a different vision of cultural collision and the experience of the outsider.

Trespass by Rose Tremain | Waterstones Trespass by Rose Tremain | Waterstones

Trespass revolves around five middle aged characters: two French siblings, Audrun and Aramon, who share a secret past, an English garden designer and writer, Veronica, and her lover, a mediocre watercolorist, Kitty, as well as Veronica’s brother, Anthony Verey, a London antiques dealer in his middle sixties, who has come to France to try to salvage what’s left of his life. While Audrun and Aramon are more or less estranged, Veronica and Anthony have remained very close. Tremain’s prose and literary language in “Restoration” is also top-notch. “Restoration” features all of the star qualities of classic literature along with historical accuracy and character dialogue which feels of the times. The reader will have to be reminded that Tremain was not actually alive during Charles II’s reign.Robert Merivel, son of a glove-maker, and a trainee physician who does not take his studies seriously, comes to the attention of the King Charles II. Merivel lives for pleasure and is something of a rake, and after curing the King's Spaniel, becomes a favoured courtier. The King decides to marry him to one of his mistresses which gives him a Norfolk estate. Alas Merivel transgresses the one law that he is forbidden to break and is brutally cast out from his newfound paradise. Thus begins Merivel’s journey to self-knowledge, which will take him down into the lowest depths of seventeenth-century society. Tremain doesn’t focus too much attention on describing the setting of the scenes and yet each creates a vivid picture. Simply put: “Restoration” has a unique draw while being written exceptionally well. Also noteworthy are the multi-layered events. Instead of merely being a part of the plot-line; each occurrence in the story signifies a deeper lesson/meaning, adding substance to the novel and thought-provoking philosophical ideas. Additionally moving (and compelling) is Merivel being a protagonist and his own antagonist. There is nothing more relatable than being your own worst enemy.