The Silent Village: set in the French and Italian Riviera, three generations of passionate women uncover the secret of their past

by Merryn Corcoran

Against the majestic, visual backdrop of the French and Italian Riviera, three generations of strong passionate women fight for the survival and the future legacy of their families.
1944:Menton France:
Allessia's family are brutally murdered in reprisal by the Germans across the border in Italy in their small medieval village. Allessia's nephew Mario is one of the few survivors; he and his mother Carla come to live with Allessia and her young daughter Sylvie in Menton. The Germans occupation on the South of France brings horrific consequences for Allessia's family.
1955:
Seventeen year old Rebecca Samuels arrives from London to work in Nice in the South of France. Naïve and vulnerable, she falls for forbidden love which alters the course of her life forever.
2009:
Sarah Anderson, in her fifties and recently widowed finally decides to track down her birth family. After leaving London her quest takes her to the Riviera where she finds love and uncovers the impossible story of her birth.

Based on true events and woven with fiction Merryn Corcoran tells an intimate and compelling story, which finally exposes a cruel and sad secret that has been carefully guarded for over fifty years.

278 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 23, 2013

About the author

Merryn Corcoran was born in New Zealand but has spent most of her adult life in London. She now divides her time between Menton on the French Riviera and London. Merryn enjoys telling stories with female heroines, based on historic facts, woven with a mystery tinted with romance and full of colorful descriptions of scenery, architecture, food and fashion.

Menton, her French base, is uniquely located between Monte Carlo and the Italian border, affording her unlimited stimulation and opportunity for charismatic story telling. Merryn also works in the family film company as an executive producer. Alongside a successful business career, Merryn has avidly fundraised for UNICEF and was awarded an Honorary Fellowship UNICEF (UK) in 2002.

Reviews

[Fiona · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually like historical fiction, but found the style of this book quite laboured. Don't mind having spent my time reading it, but wouldn't read it again.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this as there was so much potential based on the blurb on the back cover. However, I found it quite unreadable and gave up about 20% in. It was full of errors ( on the cover it claims " The Secret (sic) Village is a best seller in New Zealand" so they couldn't even proof read that! The sentence construction and paragraphing is dire and the language is so stilted. It felt like a self published vanity project. Dreadful.

[Susan Golding · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story set across three generations, based in South of France. Initial story of Jewish family and how their routes are intertwined.

[Lisa morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Romantic war love and loss, easy read.

[Jill Shortt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the different time lines.

[Pauline Minnis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good read with likeable characters which made you want to read on. Set post WW 2 to today and historically accurate of time in Northern Italy and Menton, S.France.

[Marilyn Goodwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant, interesting read.

[Jeanette Fay Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good story, from start to end it was captivating

[Rosalyn Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this 2nd edition 6 years after the first & loved it again. I was lucky to be in the region so visited the village & explored the area that still feels haunted by the events of the past. A thoroughly good read.
28/10/2024