About the Book
Nathalia, a young photographer, is seeing a therapist. Having accidentally photographed a murder, she finds that she can no longer do her job.
Instead, Doctor Faber suggests that she write about the people she observes in the building opposite. Starting with the actor turned YouTube life coach on the ground floor and going all the way up to the fifth floor, Nathalia creates vivid accounts of the lives of each of her neighbours. Are her stories real or imaginary?
With each session, the doctor and his mysterious patient will get closer to the truth. But as they approach the final floor of the building, Nathalia’s stories take a truly deadly turn . . .
Format: Hardcover (208 pages) Publisher: Gallic Books
Publication date: 6th June 2024 Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Mystery
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My Review
In my eyes, a new book by Antoine Laurain is always cause for celebration because you can be sure you’ll be entertained in fine style. I was first introduced to his writing when I read The President’s Hat in 2016, which I described as ‘quirky, humorous and charming’. I found The Reader’s Room (2020) equally entertaining and I loved Red Is My Heart (2022), a collaboration with artist Le Sonneur.
French Windows pays an obvious homage to the 1954 film Rear Window, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and based on a short story by American author, Cornell Woolrich, but has a deliciously French flavour and displays the author’s trademark wit. As well as being a clever mystery, the accounts Dr Faber encourages Natalie to write describing the lives of the occupants of the apartment building across from her own are wonderful ‘stories within a story’, little snapshots if you’ll pardon the pun of other lives. Something the individuals have in common is change in their lives, in some cases prompted by quite inconsequential things such as a computer screensaver.
Dr Faber has his own little quirks. For example, his passion for collecting passepartout keys (keys that can open any door in a building), perhaps seeing a parallel with his role as a therapist. He regards smoking as akin to an art form, proudly recalling how he acquired the skill of smoking a cigarette ‘hands-free’ and describes himself as ‘a very gifted smoker’. He cannot imagine life without a cigarette, all previous attempts to give up – at the urging of his wife – having failed. But he finds pleasure even in the failed attempts, relishing the ‘special joy’ of each ‘tender reunion’.
From feeling he is control of their therapy sessions, Faber finds himself increasingly compelled to discover whether the stories Nathalie brings him are works of imagination or true. It now seems to be her controlling him as he waits expectantly for her to deliver the next story. When the final one arrives, he gets more than he bargained for.
Even if you’ve worked some of it out before that point, perhaps inspired by the title of one of the author’s previous books, French Windows is still a wonderfully quirky and entertaining read.
I received a digital review copy courtesy of Gallic Books. French Windows is book 1 of my 20 Books of Summer 2024.
In three words: Clever, stylish, witty
Try something similar: Watch Rear Window (1954)
About the Author
Antoine Laurain is the award-winning author of novels including The Red Notebook and The President’s Hat. His books have been translated into 25 languages and sold more than 250,000 copies in English. He lives in Paris. (Photo: Publisher author page)
Connect with Antoine
Website | Instagram
What Cathy Read Next... 
Nicely done review! No spoilers, thank heavens. And no, I doubt anyone will figure it out beforehand. My review will go up on Tuesday.
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I’ll look out for it.
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