Talking Location With author Jane Dunning – Provence

16th January 2018

#TalkingLocationWith… Jane Dunning, author of Thirty-Five Minutes from St Tropez

PROVENCE

St Tropez, the port

Well, if I had to say which part of France is my favourite, I wouldn’t blink, I’d just answer ‘Provence’. Don’t get me wrong, I like others such as the Dordogne and Brittany but Provence is the place for me. It’s got everything – a varied but beautiful coastline, a huge choice of sand or pebble beaches, seaside towns to suit all tastes, ancient inland perched villages, rugged mountains, lakes, gorges, vibrant cultural cities, wonderful markets – I could go on…

Terrace at the Vineyard

The main setting for my books, is near the famous coastal town of St Tropez, which is about thirty-five minutes away. That’s out of season journey time, of course – it would take over twice as long in high summer. My main characters, Richard and Helen, both around 60, live on a vineyard surrounded by oak and umbrella pine forests but near enough to head to the local town each day for buttery croissants and a couple of crusty baguettes. Apart from country life on the vineyard, Helen’s sister, Joanna, lives in bustling Antibes/Juan-les-Pins while granddaughter, Danielle, studies in Aix-en-Provence. Grandson, Joseph, is working his way up the ranks on a superyacht and visits many ports along the French and Italian coasts along with Corsica, an island I’ve visited a few times.

Cannes – Le Suquet

Antibes – the port

As this is a family saga, chapters are set in different places all over Provence, and also in glamorous Monaco, where Richard’s brother and his American wife live the high life, occasionally mixing with the Principality’s royal family. While on university placement at the Belle Époque deluxe Hotel Hermitage, Danielle lodges at their luxurious apartment with its stunning view of the Mediterranean, giving a younger person’s perspective of Monaco life.

Casino de Monte-Carlo

Villefranche-sur-Mer

Romance features fairly highly on the agenda as the teenage grandchildren and widowed Joanna meet prospective partners. Naturally, it doesn’t all run smoothly! These liaisons take them to Nice, Cannes, Villefranche-sur-Mer, Vence and also near Avignon, towards the north of the region. My other interests make an appearance – the Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix, a classic Italian sports car, a 1963 Vespa scooter, architecture, fashion, interior design, wine growing, dogs, but generally the theme is French…

Spring at the vineyard

Life is pretty good in Thirty-five Minutes from St Tropez but in the sequel, Stolen Summer, there is a distinct undercurrent of fear. A number of nasty incidents on the vineyard and in Monaco shake the whole family to the core, leaving them to question the idyll they thought they had established for themselves.

Thank you SO much to Jane for sharing her wonderful insights!

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