Julius Raphael's Diary
A Novel by
Andrew Lansdale
Property in the bricks and mortar sense, has a definite feel to it.
To use modern phrases, it can have either good vibes or bad vibes. Some
properties feel as if the sunlight has danced on their roofs and dappled their
walls since the day they were built. By contrast, others have a most
unattractive feel about them. A considerable number even feel as if someone has
died there the day before. The cold dankness of them can be felt from across
the street.
I believe in
what might be called the 'properties of property'; but can a house be a
character in a book? A house can certainly have character. Fictionally,
Howard's End and Mandalay had character. Factually, the Bloody Tower in London
has character, despite the unspeakable cruelties committed within.
Paradoxically, Wandsworth prison (a similar place of incarceration) has the
chill damp feel of November about it, even upon a summer's day.
The house in
my book in France has character. The Maison du Lac is a Chateau with a soul.
The Chateau on the lake has memories and secrets to unlock. The bigger the
houses, the bigger the secrets.
The other main
character in my book is George Campbell, new owner of the Chateau. Unusual
discoveries lead him gradually to the house's deep secrets and he feels
challenged when tracking down the previous owners of the Maison du Lac in an
effort to restore the family's plundered heritage.
The novel
opens in wartime France where the Germans have occupied more than half the
country and the iron grip of the SS is tightening.
The Raphaels
are a Jewish family who have a modest Chateau in the French countryside. They
are the last descendants of a wealthy Paris banking family and are victimised
by the Gestapo and eventually, the family disappears.
Over fifty
years later, a moderately successful writer George Campbell sells the film
rights to one of his books. With the proceeds he tours France on the lookout
for a country house. After a long search, he finds the fairy tale property
which has lain empty and neglected for many years.
These two
characters, the chateau and the writer, combine to discover the fate of the Raphaels.
ISBN:
1-4137-4042-1 Price: US$24.95