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Excerpt
from Chapter 1
“I doubt
Saint-Thomas d’Aquin bears any resemblance to how we remember it,” Papa
grumbled, his tone plain. “And Paris is not the safest place to be for anyone
these days.”
“There’s
talk of war in Paris now,” Florian added, absently chewing on his thumbnail.
His words
struck me like a cold gust of wind, leaving a sharp ache in the pit of my
belly. I had heard rumours of war before, but they were just rumours; they had
no reason to be true. The Bastille had fallen three years prior, and nothing
had happened since then.
“That’s
absurd!” said Mamma, throwing cold water on Florian’s claims. “Where did you
hear that? Was it Uncle Stefano? Do remember he gets his news from drunks and
harlots.”
“It’s
true,” Florian insisted, my flesh prickling with dread as I listened. “New
arrivals at the Café Quiberon – it’s all they talk about.”
Mamma’s
face hardened as she scoured his forlorn gaze for the truth.
“Nonsense
– we’re far from France,” she remarked, her tone intended to soothe us as if to
assert that we were but a trifling speck on the farthest reaches of the world.
“But what
if it does reach us?” I asked nonetheless, my arms wrapping anxiously around
me.
“It
shan’t!” Mamma said firmly and gave my hand a tight squeeze. She swallowed hard
and stared at the air and dust swirling in the candle’s glow before her nose.
“But if it should, we won’t get involved in anything that doesn’t concern us.
We’re not French. This isn’t our revolution. We’re not fighting
anybody.”
“Have you
forgotten Britain and Spain, chérie?” Papa said, looking at Mamma
sternly. “They’ll be on us like wolves in a henhouse if France goes to war with
Austria. What do you propose we do when British frigates swarm the bay?”
My heart
sank. War? It seemed impossible. Yet, it was as if a dark, ominous cloud had
crept up on us, shrouding everything in its path. War could stop us from ever
going home again. We’d be stranded in this godforsaken place, far from
everything we knew and loved. My skin simmered, and my throat swelled as I
pondered such horrible thoughts.
“Paoletta,
amore, go and find out where that water has got to,” Mamma said, her
voice clipped with impatience.
I found
Agnés just beyond the kitchen threshold, her brow adorned with beads of sweat
as she wrestled with jugs of water in either hand. The scent of herring
sizzling in a skillet mingled with the aroma of a plump chicken turning over a
crackling fire in a rich and spicy fog. Yet, a curious stillness gripped Agnés,
her attention held by whatever lurked at the bottom of the tiny timber passage
to the pantry.
Following
her gaze, I saw Uncle Stefano, half-buried in the shadows, slobbering all over
another young, dark-skinned girl, his hands racing to capture as much of her
skin as possible. The repugnant sight froze my skin. Each wet smack of his
chapped lips grated on my senses, turning my head to the hearth’s flames, but
the vile image was already seared into my mind’s eye. With a sour mouth, I
ushered poor Agnés to the dining room, desperate to shield her from my Uncle’s
lechery. She placed the water on the table with an obedient nod to Mamma and
made to leave, but something outside had ensnared her attention.
My belly
jolted as a black mass, scarcely larger than a fist, shot through the window
and landed with a jarring thud upon the table. It rolled between the plates,
hissing and sparking with an unnerving vitality. A profound silence engulfed
us, the room fading into a ghostly blur. An icy dread gripped my insides as I
clung to the door frame. Papa’s eyes widened in unfeigned horror. Mamma drew a
sharp breath, poised to scream. Then, with a blinding flash, the world was
plunged into darkness.
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| 2025 annual awards |
| The story of the events that led to The Battle of Hastings in 1066 Harold the King (UK edition) I Am The Chosen King (US edition) AND 1066 Turned Upside Down an anthology of 'What If'' 1066 tales  |
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THANK YOU!
Thank you so much for hosting J.R. Powell today, with an intriguing excerpt from his thrilling new novel, Paoletta: an Eye for an Eye.
ReplyDeleteThanks also for all your support this year. It is always much appreciated.
Wishing you wonderful holidays, and a happy & healthy 2026!
Take care,
Cathie xx
The Coffee Pot Book Club