Anne Trager's Blog, page 7
November 17, 2015
Will there be Beaujolais Nouveau this year?
This year, November 19 is Beaujolais Nouveau Day around the world—the day the year's new wine goes on sale. Why that day? In France, the law says that appellation d'origine contrôllée (AOC) wines cannot be sold before mid-December. But in 1951, Beaujolais vintners made a fuss and the regulations were loosened so that primeurwines from the region could be sold a good month before other AOC wines. That and some good marketing led to the global phenomenon that Beaujolais Nouveau has become. With...
November 10, 2015
Why Exile Makes for a Good Protagonist
Laurent Guillaume, author of White Leopard, was a cop and became a writer. He shares some thoughts about his protagonist and his book.
How did you come up with your protagonist?
For the character of Solo, I raised the question of mixed race. Blacks consider Solo white, and whites consider him black. I find this to be a particularly interesting issue for a novel because it carries narrative tension. Solo is exiled from a life in which he lost everything, and he is unconsciously looking for a se...
November 9, 2015
A Hommage to Bamako
Laurent Guillaume, author of White Leopard,shared a guest post on the blog A Discerning Reader this week about Bamako and his main character Solo. "It takes time to see what lies behind the postcard image, the stark reality of the people who live there," he says. Read it here.
November 4, 2015
Laurent Guillaume on Mystery Fanfare
"The power of a novel lies in its ability to create emotion in readers. Whether those emotions are positive or negative isn’t really the issue." This is how Laurent Guillaume begins this blog post about emotion and writing and what is worth sharing with readers. Go to Mystery Fanfare and check it out.
November 3, 2015
On Mali and Dreams
Laurent Guillaume , author of White Leopard , on Mali and dreams.
What is your best memory of Mali? The strongest image to stay with you?
That is a hard question to answer. I brought back many powerful memories from my four years there. But if I really had to choose one, it was when my son broke down crying the first time he set foot on African soil, and then that same kid with tears in his eyes when it came time to leave Mali four years later. We felt at home there. It changed my views on immig...
October 23, 2015
Two October Book Giveaways
Don't miss this month's book giveaways.
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Backstabbing in Beaujolais by Jean-Pierre Alaux Giveaway ends November 05, 2015.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Enter Giveaway Goodreads Book Giveaway
White Leopard by Laurent Guillaume Giveaway ends November 05, 2015.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Enter Giveaway
October 15, 2015
One less voice
Le French Book is sad to announce the loss of one of our authors. Anne-Laure Thiéblemont passed away this week after a struggle with illness. Our thoughts are with her friends and family. Her voice and her way of revealing art and telling stories will live on in her books.
October 12, 2015
White Leopard Author beats records with new TV show
Actor Bruno Wolkowitch in Borderline.
Laurent Guillaume, author of the upcoming hard-boiled noir White Leopard, co-wrote a TV film that just broke audience records – 5.8 million viewers this week. Borderline is produced by Olivier Marchal and written by Oliver Marchal, Christophe Gavat and Laurent Guillaume. Olivier Marchal is also a former police officer, like Laurent. He directed 36 Quai des Orfèvres, a 2004 movie known as 36th Precinct and Department 36, starring Daniel Auteuil and Gérard...
September 22, 2015
10 Things I Never Thought I'd Know About the French Foreign Legion
Finalizing Sally Pane’s translation of the new Winemaker Detective mystery,Montmontre Mysteriesby Jean-Pierre Alaux and Noël Balen, I encounter a character who fled some dark secret and joined the Foreign Legion, then left the Legion to open a wine shop in Paris. My perfect excuse to find out more. I came up with 10 things I never thought I’d know about the French Foreign Legion, which I shared with Shelf Pleasure. Check it out.
September 18, 2015
What's new — covers, audiobooks
Check out our new covers for The 7th Womanand The Greenland Breach.Many thanks to Jeroen, our cover designer.
New Audiobooks
Audible also released a a couple of new audiobooks of recently: The Collectorand Mayhem in Margaux. Click below to listen to excerpts.
