From the original queen of the page-turner and author of Madam, Will You Talk? comes a thrilling tale set in a France as beautiful as it is deadly, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie and Barbara Pym.

'Mary Stewart is magic' New York Times

'One of the great British storytellers of the 20th century' Independent

'There are few to equal Mary Stewart' Daily Telegraph

High in the rugged Pyrenees lies the Valley of the Storms, where a tiny convent clings to the beautiful but lonely mountainside. Jenny Silver arrives seeking her missing cousin, and is devastated when she learns of Gillian's death following a terrible car accident. But Jenny's suspicions are aroused when she's told the blue flowers ornamenting her cousin's grave were Gillian's favourite. Jenny knows Gillian was colour-blind - and so starts her mission to uncover what really happened to her.

The growl and roar of thunder rolled an re-echoed from the mountains and the sword of the lightning stabbed down, and stabbed again, as if searching through the depths of the cringing woods for whatever sheltered there.


'A comfortable chair and a Mary Stewart: total heaven. I'd rather read her than most other authors.' Harriet Evans

'She built the bridge between classic literature and modern popular fiction. She did it first and she did it best.' Herald'

'One of the most stupendously successful authors ever' Sunday Express