Bennett is an English expatriate living in France with a champagne taste and a beer bankroll. Happy-go-lucky and a bit roguish, he places an ad in the International Herald Tribune offering his services -- any services. He pursues a response from a wealthy Englishman named Julian Poe who has developed a means of producing truffles and is close to cornering the immensely lucrative truffle market. Bennett signs on and finds himself in Monaco, where he is able to live in a style to which he has always wished to become accustomed (including eating to his heart's content -- a Mayle trademark!). Soon the Sicilian and Corsican Mafiosi intrude and Bennett is joined by the beautiful and experienced (in all ways) Anna. Ham-fisted goons, gendarmes working at cross purposes, French village busybodies, and an order of monks dedicated to the god Bacchus all play a role in the surprising, and more than a little satisfying, denouement.
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Peter Mayle spent fifteen years in the advertising business, first as a copywriter and then as a reluctant executive, before escaping Madison Avenue to write books. He is the author of A Year in Provence and Toujours Provence, as well as the novels Hotel Pastis and A Dog's Life. He and his wife and two dogs divide their time between the South of France and Long Island.
n English expatriate living in France with a champagne taste and a beer bankroll. Happy-go-lucky and a bit roguish, he places an ad in the International Herald Tribune offering his services -- any services. He pursues a response from a wealthy Englishman named Julian Poe who has developed a means of producing truffles and is close to cornering the immensely lucrative truffle market. Bennett signs on and finds himself in Monaco, where he is able to live in a style to which he has always wished to become accustomed (including eating to his heart's content -- a Mayle trademark!). Soon the Sicilian and Corsican Mafiosi intrude and Bennett is joined by the beautiful and experienced (in all ways) Anna. Ham-fisted goons, gendarmes working at cross purposes, French village busybodies, and an order of monks dedicated to the god Bacchus all play a role in the surprising, and more than a little satisfying, denouement.
The young wild boar, basted until it shone, had been spit-roasted in the kitchen fireplace and was now lying on a wooden platter in the center of the table, a large baked potato in its mouth. Father Gilbert carved, and served chunks of the dark, gamy flesh onto plates of battered pewter, the sleeves of his habit rolled up above his elbows, his face glowing in the candlelight. Glasses were filled, and the fat, round loaves of country bread were sliced thick. The only indications of the twentieth century were the two visitors, in their modern clothes. Everything else, everyone else, could have come from the Middle Ages.
The conversation was mostly of country matters -- the prospects for this year's vintage, the vagaries of the weather, the threat of mildew on the vines, the productivity of the monastery vegetable garden. There were no arguments, no raised voices to disturb the air of contentment that hung over the table. Anna was intrigued. Where had they come from, these men who seemed happy to live in a medieval time warp?
"We are all fugitives from the world of business," said Father Gilbert. "I myself used to work for the Banque Nationale de Paris. Others have come from Elf Aquitaine, IBM, the Bourse, Aerospatiale. We hated corporate life. We loved wine. Fifteen years ago, we pooled our resources and bought the monastery, which had been empty since before the war, and we became monks." He winked at Anna. "Rather informal monks, as you can see."
She was looking puzzled. "Can I ask you a question? Didn't any of you have wives?"
Father Gilbert leaned back in his chair and considered the shadows cast by the candlelight on the vaulted ceiling. "That was another bond we discovered," he said. "The delights of female companionship are not for us. Remind me -- how is that described in your country?"
"Gay?" said Anna.
"Ah, yes. A most inappropriate use of a charming word." He shook his head. "Gay. How ridiculous. I suppose, then, that one could say we are living in a state of perpetual gaiety. That will be a considerable comfort to us all, I'm sure." He laughed and raised his glass to Anna. "Here's to gay days, and many of them."
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Anbieter: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, USA
Hardback. Zustand: Fair. Peter Mayle's delicious new fictional confection is set, bien entendu, in Provence, where a suave if slightly threadbare English expat named Bennett is reaching the end of his credit. In desperation he places an ad in The International Herald Tribune: Unattached Englishman . seeks interesting and unusual work. Anything considered except marriage. In no time at all Bennett is being paid handsomely to impersonate the mysterious and very wealthy Julian Poe. This entails occupying Poe's palatial flat in Monte Carlo, whizzing around in his Mercedes, and charging meals at the C te d'Azur's better restaurants. Unfortunately, there are certain complications . involving Sicilian and Corsican Mafiosi, the loveliest woman ever to drive a tank, and a formula for domesticating the notoriously unpredictable black truffle. As orchestrated by Mayle, these elements make Anything Considered a novel of nail-biting suspense and champagne-dry wit, whose evocations of the good life are so convincing that you'll come away with a suntan. Artikel-Nr. 00109969077
Anzahl: 1 verfügbar
Anbieter: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, USA
Hardback. Zustand: Good. Peter Mayle's delicious new fictional confection is set, bien entendu, in Provence, where a suave if slightly threadbare English expat named Bennett is reaching the end of his credit. In desperation he places an ad in The International Herald Tribune: Unattached Englishman . seeks interesting and unusual work. Anything considered except marriage. In no time at all Bennett is being paid handsomely to impersonate the mysterious and very wealthy Julian Poe. This entails occupying Poe's palatial flat in Monte Carlo, whizzing around in his Mercedes, and charging meals at the C te d'Azur's better restaurants. Unfortunately, there are certain complications . involving Sicilian and Corsican Mafiosi, the loveliest woman ever to drive a tank, and a formula for domesticating the notoriously unpredictable black truffle. As orchestrated by Mayle, these elements make Anything Considered a novel of nail-biting suspense and champagne-dry wit, whose evocations of the good life are so convincing that you'll come away with a suntan. Artikel-Nr. 00093676575
Anzahl: 19 verfügbar
Anbieter: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, USA
Hardback. Zustand: Very Good. Peter Mayle's delicious new fictional confection is set, bien entendu, in Provence, where a suave if slightly threadbare English expat named Bennett is reaching the end of his credit. In desperation he places an ad in The International Herald Tribune: Unattached Englishman . seeks interesting and unusual work. Anything considered except marriage. In no time at all Bennett is being paid handsomely to impersonate the mysterious and very wealthy Julian Poe. This entails occupying Poe's palatial flat in Monte Carlo, whizzing around in his Mercedes, and charging meals at the C te d'Azur's better restaurants. Unfortunately, there are certain complications . involving Sicilian and Corsican Mafiosi, the loveliest woman ever to drive a tank, and a formula for domesticating the notoriously unpredictable black truffle. As orchestrated by Mayle, these elements make Anything Considered a novel of nail-biting suspense and champagne-dry wit, whose evocations of the good life are so convincing that you'll come away with a suntan. Artikel-Nr. 00104757509
Anzahl: 2 verfügbar
Anbieter: BooksRun, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Hardcover. Zustand: Very Good. 1. With dust jacket. It's a well-cared-for item that has seen limited use. The item may show minor signs of wear. All the text is legible, with all pages included. It may have slight markings and/or highlighting. Artikel-Nr. 0679441239-11-6-29
Anzahl: 1 verfügbar
Anbieter: BooksRun, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Hardcover. Zustand: Very Good. 1. With dust jacket. It's a well-cared-for item that has seen limited use. The item may show minor signs of wear. All the text is legible, with all pages included. It may have slight markings and/or highlighting. Artikel-Nr. 0679441239-11-1-29
Anzahl: 1 verfügbar
Anbieter: BooksRun, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Hardcover. Zustand: Very Good. 1. With dust jacket. It's a well-cared-for item that has seen limited use. The item may show minor signs of wear. All the text is legible, with all pages included. It may have slight markings and/or highlighting. Artikel-Nr. 0679441239-11-18-29
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Anbieter: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, USA
Hardcover. Zustand: Very Good. No Jacket. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Artikel-Nr. G0679441239I4N00
Anzahl: 1 verfügbar
Anbieter: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, USA
Hardcover. Zustand: Very Good. No Jacket. Missing dust jacket; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Artikel-Nr. G0679441239I4N01
Anzahl: 1 verfügbar
Anbieter: Wonder Book, Frederick, MD, USA
Zustand: Good. Good condition. Good dust jacket. A copy that has been read but remains intact. May contain markings such as bookplates, stamps, limited notes and highlighting, or a few light stains. Artikel-Nr. M13D-00859
Anzahl: 2 verfügbar
Anbieter: Wonder Book, Frederick, MD, USA
Zustand: As New. Like New condition. Very Good dust jacket. A near perfect copy that may have very minor cosmetic defects. Artikel-Nr. T07A-05800
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