Aphrodite’s Smile

by Stuart Harrison

A novel of romantic suspense, set on the beautiful Greek island of Ithaca, from the author of STILL WATER and THE SNOW FALCON. When Robert French travels to the Greek island of Ithaca after his archaeologist father goes missing, he meets Alex, a young woman in search of her roots and the truth about her grandmother's exile from the island sixty years earlier. Gradually it seems possible that there is a link between an ancient treasure that Robert's father spent many years searching for and the tragic events surrounding Alex's grandmother during the Second World War. But the beautiful tranquillity of the island is deceptive. Suddenly Alex vanishes, and Robert is embroiled in a desperate search, for the woman and for the solution that had evaded his father. To find the truth he must come to understand his own past and learn to face the troubled relationships that have dominated his life. Atmospheric, tense and compelling, this blend of classical myth with ancient and recent history creates a memorable and thrilling novel.

448 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

I was born in 1958 in Northamptonshire, England. Left school at 16 with no particular distinction and moved to New Zealand in 1980 where I subsequently worked in a variety of occupations until I began writing novels at the age of thirty seven. Three were universally rejected until The Snow Falcon was bought by publishers in sixteen countries in 1999 and went on to become a bestseller. At the time I was living in England again and during the next few years lived in Ireland and Australia before returning to New Zealand where I now live with my family in the Bay Of Islands.

Reviews

[Vitaliy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book is really good to rest and calm reading. The story is interesting but I'd like detective line to be more extended.
Greece described really good and that's one of the points why I decide to choose that book (I started to read it in collage, took the book in library and didn't finish it, but when I grow up I bought the English version on Amazon and finally finish it :D).
In general I can recommend this book.

[Mrs. A.A. Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

An island mystery

Robert French arrives on Ithaca in the Greek Islands after the death of his father, an archaeologist. He soon finds himself involved in a mystery which began with World War Ii. There are many twists and turns which keep you reading. The descriptions of the Island are beautiful and the characters credible . An excellent read.

[Val Gallagher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read

Reminded me of my time working in Greece loved the storyline. Very descriptive. Love the way Stuart writes. Love his books

[Melanie Gray · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read. Brought back good Good memories of a sailing Holiday in Greece at the same islands. I liked the insight in history of the second world war.

[Jennie Gutry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely mixture of history and mystery,with a love story thrown in. At times I lost track of the various characters but overall, a decent lightweight read.

[Philip Weyers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well constructed crime story, nicely crafted, had me guessing! Well worth the read as are all Stuart Harrison's books.

[Sandy]

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Again, I find the author's insight appealing, giving lots of depth to his writing. A great read.