The Greengage Summer

Set in the aftermath of World War I, the story follows the Grey siblings as they navigate summer in the French countryside while their mother is hospitalized. At the hotel Les Oeillets, the eldest sister, Joss, becomes the object of obsession for Eliot, a charming Englishman with a complicated relationship with the hotel's owner, Mademoiselle Zizi. Told through the eyes of Joss's younger sister, Cecil, the narrative explores themes of innocence, jealousy, and the looming threat of violence, all set against the backdrop of France's picturesque Champagne region.