It was 1838 and I had been at the Charterhouse in Valldemossa for over three centuries by then. Of course, it wasn’t the first time I’d seen two men kissing. Knowing them, I am sure that within a month of being together, they will not be able to stand the sight of one another. Who amongst us has not, at some time, selfishly dreamed of forsaking his affairs, his habits, his acquaintances, and even his friends, to settle in some enchanted island and live without worries? Guitars and singing all through the night…. Sunny, hot days everyone in summer clothes. The sky is turquoise, the sea is azure, the mountains are emerald, the air is heaven. You will continue to receive exclusive offers in your inbox. Click below to sign up and see terms and conditions.Īlready a subscriber? Provide your email again so we can register this ebook and send you more of what you like to read.

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As George and Chopin, who wear their unconventionality, in George’s case, literally on their sleeves, find themselves in deepening trouble with the provincial, 19th-century villagers, Blanca watches helplessly and reflects on the circumstances of her own death (which involves an ill-advised love affair with a monk-in-training).Ĭharming, original, and emotionally moving, this is a surprisingly touching story about romantic fixation and a powerful meditation on creativity.

Nearly four hundred years later, when George Sand, her two children, and her lover Frederic Chopin arrive in the village, Blanca is still there: a spirited, funny, righteous ghost, she’s been hanging around the monastery since her accidental death, spying on the monks and the townspeople and keeping track of her descendants.īlanca is enchanted the moment she sees George, and the magical novel unfolds as a story of deeply felt, unrequited longing-the impossible love of a teenage ghost for a woman who can’t see her and doesn’t know she exists. In 1473, fourteen-year-old Blanca dies in a hilltop monastery in Mallorca. An unforgettable debut novel from an award-winning writer: a lively, daring ghost story about a teenage ghost who falls in love with a writer who doesn’t know she exists.

A briefly delicious life