The Wide World (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9780316444200)

The "jubilant and exciting" saga of one prominent French family in postwar Paris, Beirut, and Saigon--an electrifying novel of passion, greed, murder, and revenge (Sandrine Bajos, Le Parisien)

The Pelletiers are a prominent French family living in 1948 Beirut. The patriarch, Louis, has built a successful business that he hopes to pass on to his eldest son. With no head for management, Jean nearly sinks the company, then marries a materialistic young woman who insists they emigrate to Paris and join high society. But there is another reason Jean must leave--he has committed a terrible crime.

Youngest son Etienne is sent to make his fortune in Saigon. There, he begins investigating a covert scheme to channel smuggled goods and cash to the Viet Minh. But the evidence he collects presents a real threat to his own life.

Fran輟is, the middle brother, arrives in Paris and becomes a journalist. His career takes off when he starts covering the brutal murder of an actress that seems part of a pattern of killings. But the killer he's chasing may be closer to him than he realizes.

Eighteen-year H駘鈩e follows her brothers to Paris seeking adventure and soon throws herself into the dissolute life of an art student. But she must grow up fast when she is called upon to travel to Indochina and continue the investigation Etienne started.

Epic in scope, and a vivid depiction of French life in the booming postwar years, The Wide World is a riveting saga that is at once gripping and classic.

Author: Pierre Lemaitre
ISBN-10: 0316444200
ISBN-13: 9780316444200
Publisher: Little Brown and Company
Language: English
Published: 12/05/2023
Pages: 512
Format: Hardcover
Weight: 1.58lbs
Size: 9.29h x 6.06w x 1.65d

Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 10/02/2023
Booklist 11/01/2023 pg. 35