The French Innkeeper's Daughter - by Diane C McPhail

Book Synopsis

Exiled from her home in rural, 18th century France, a resilient young woman journeys through the forests of Normandy, to the oppressive poverty of pre-Revolutionary Paris, and ultimately to her destiny as one of the founding mothers of Louisiana.

True Grit meets Les Misérables in this epic journey of survival, social inequality, and a woman discovering her own power for readers of Isola by Allegra Goodman and The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee.

A SIMULTANEOUS HARDCOVER EDITION--ALSO AVAILABLE AS TRADE PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

France, 1718: Three years after Louis XIV's death, the country is still reeling from the Sun King's costly wars and reckless extravagance. While ordinary citizens struggle to survive, the wealthy are able to purchase noble titles that grant them power and privilege. In the wrong hands, that power can be a terrible thing, as Azélie and her older sister Nicole discover when their family's roadside inn becomes the property of a corrupt judge.

After a harrowing encounter with the judge's loathsome son, Azélie's only option is to flee. Then a chance meeting with highway robber Jules Charavany leads the two to make their way to Paris. Azélie launders clothes on the banks of the Seine while Jules finds work on the docks, and a friendship borne of necessity evolves into a deeper bond. But when Jules is wrongly arrested, Azélie finds herself caught up in a scheme to arrest young women on trumped-up charges and exile them to the struggling colonies along the Gulf Coast.

Chained aboard the ship La Mutine, a pregnant Azélie finds kinship with the other women during the perilous ocean crossing. The survivors will witness the birth of a new city, New Orleans. And though her new life will be rich in challenge and reward, Azélie's ties to her homeland and her family will remain, echoing through the future in unpredictable ways, even centuries later.

Review Quotes

Praise for Diane McPhail

"McPhail entices with the story of two women from different backgrounds who discover common ground in turn of the 20th-century New Orleans...An undercurrent of New Orleans's dark side propels the story, heightening the tension and supplying McPhail with a wealth of evocative details. Historical fiction fans will be drawn to this." --Publishers Weekly on The Seamstress of New Orleans

"Lush...McPhail's evocative narration captures Lydia's strength and the many wonders of the voyage. Fans of Mary Benedict will relish this." --Publishers Weekly on Follow the Stars Home

"From the captivating first line, The Seamstress of New Orleans transports the reader to the mystery and sultry magic of New Orleans. With McPhail's acclaimed and atmospheric prose, The Seamstress of New Orleans is a tale of well-guarded secrets, societal bonds that must be broken, and women's powerful resilience. A powerful and fascinating story." --Patti Callahan, New York Times bestselling author of Surviving Savannah on The Seamstress of New Orleans

"Inspired by a real-life feud between two Mississippi families, McPhail's first novel sheds light on an often unrecognized part of Civil War history, the Southern abolitionist movement...For fans of Charles Frazier's enduring Cold Mountain." --Booklist on The Abolitionist's Daughter

"McPhail is great at showing differences, but also frightening similarities, in the attitudes about slaves between Union versus Confederate soldiers. A well-researched story into the lives of Southern Abolitionists." --The Historical Novels Review on The Abolitionist's Daughter

"The dialogue, scenery, and daily routines of the characters in McPhail's novel as well as the state of mind of the country during one of the most turbulent times in history is quickly brought to life. This is an absorbing story sure to capture the hearts of historical fiction fans who appreciate a uniquely told tale of those willing to defy the status quo with bravery and steadfastness." --The New York Journal of Books on The Abolitionist's Daughter

"McPhail's...debut centers on a land dispute in the antebellum South...Many intriguing threads." --Publishers Weekly on The Abolitionist's Daughter

"Diane McPhail excavates a nearly forgotten corner of American history and brings it to full, beating life. This is a fascinating and heartfelt look at the kinds of stories that don't always make it into the history books." --Louis Bayard, author of Courting Mr. Lincoln on The Abolitionist's Daughter

"A contender, a deeply felt, thoroughly researched story...as good as it deserves to be." --Jacquelyn Mitchard, New York Times bestselling author on The Abolitionist's Daughter

About the Author

Diane C. McPhail is an artist, minister, and acclaimed author of The French Innkeeper's Daughter, Follow the Stars Home, The Abolitionist's Daughter, and The Seamstress of New Orleans, which was a finalist for the Thomas Wolf Fiction Award and the Mississippi Institute of Arts & Letters Award. A graduate of Ole Miss, Duke Writers, University of Iowa Distance, and the Yale Writers' Conference, she is a member of NC Writers Network and the Historical Novel Society. She was born and raised in Jackson, MS, previously lived in France and New Orleans, now resides in Highlands, North Carolina with her husband and dog. She can be found online at DianeMcPhailAuthor.com.