Ebook: 407 pages
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Fiction
Publisher: 3 July 2025 Corvus
Source: NetGalley
First Sentences: The rain was a light summer matter, more a mist than a downpour. Somehow, though, it settled within her, burrowing to her bones. She was shivering, cold and hungry, and she was about to do the worst thing she could imagine. To give up her most precious possession.
Review Quote: Straight into the world of vines and olives and love. Brilliant writing, memorable characters. Lived experience unfolds into a superb read. I loved it -- Miriam Margolyes
My Opinion:
I have been aware of Carol Drinkwater more as an actress than an author. In the early years of this century I read and throughly enjoyed her autobiographies about life on her olive farm in the south of France. Despite the fact that she is also a prolific fiction author this is only the second novel of hers that I have read.
‘One Summer in Provence’ is a family saga set in France where married couple Celia and Dominic run a vineyard. Celia is planning the estates annual summer party and things don’t quite go as Celia hoped due to some hidden secrets emerging.
I read this while relaxing in the shade during the recent gorgeous summer weather and was transported to the South of France. If you are looking a gentle summer read but one with depth, then this is for you.
With thanks to NetGalley, Corvus and Carol Drinkwater for the opportunity to read and review.
Précis Courtesy of Amazon:
Celia Grey appears to have the perfect life: married to Dominic, the man of her dreams, and living on a glorious, thriving vineyard in the south of France. To celebrate their good fortune, she decides to throw a huge party.
When she is contacted by a stranger who claims to be her long-lost son, David, the newborn she gave up at twenty and has never spoken of since, Celia impulsively invites him for the weekend of celebrations - without mentioning it to her husband.
Despite his surprise, Dominic graciously welcomes David and his unexpected companion - but secretly he harbours doubts. Is David really Celia's son? And who is the mysterious young woman travelling with him?
Only Celia can decide how far she will go to hold everything together, to keep her perfect life from unravelling...
One Summer in Provence is a story of betrayal and belonging, and of discovering love in unexpected places.
Previous Review: An Act of Love
Author Profile:
Anglo-Irish actress Carol Drinkwater is perhaps still most familiar to audiences for her award-winning portrayal of Helen Herriot in the BBC series All Creatures Great and Small. A popular and acclaimed author and film-maker as well, Carol has published nineteen books, and one Kindle Single, for both the adult and young adult markets. She is currently at work on her twenty-first title.
When she purchased a rundown property overlooking the Bay of Cannes in France, she discovered on the grounds sixty-eight, 400-year-old olive trees. Once the land was reclaimed and the olives pressed, Carol along with her French husband, Michel, became the producers of top-quality olive oil. Her series of memoirs, love stories, recounting her experiences on her farm (The Olive Farm, The Olive Season, The Olive Harvest and Return to the Olive Farm) have become international bestsellers. Carol's fascination with the olive tree extended to a seventeenth-month, solo Mediterranean journey in search of the tree's mythical secrets. The resulting travel books, The Olive Route and The Olive Tree, have inspired a five-part documentary films series entitled The Olive Route.
Photographs, Trailer and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:
Author Amazon Profile. Goodreads Author Profile.
Carol Drinkwater - Author Website. Twitter Profile
