The Travels of Daniel Ascher: Review
I have so much enjoyed my review copy of this wonderful book and I’m delighted to share it with you.
Hélène, the main character,introduces us to a selection of fascinating characters as she gets drawn into resolving the mystery of The Black Insignia series of adventure books – and her own family history.
Hélène is studying archeology in Paris and she has just moved into new lodgings – an attic in the house of her great-uncle – from where she can look over the rooftops of the city.
Luckily, her great-uncle, Daniel, is away when she moves in. Why luckily? Because Hélène has always been a little wary of Daniel. He seems to be regarded as the black sheep of the family, he travels extensively and is also the author of The Black Insignia series.
When she was a child and her uncle visited, he would present them with signed copies of his books. Her brother devoured them eagerly but they bored Hélène. Featuring the adventures of the heroic and debonair Peter Ashley-Mill, the books were set in places such as Borneo or the Amazon and mainly showed the hero’s resourcefulness in dealing with, and escaping from, poisoned darts, wild animals and angry native tribes.
Now, as a young woman in Paris,she is surprised when she realised that most of her friends were devoted to the series when they were children and remember them with huge fondness. Her friend Guillaume is particularly fond of them. What has she missed?
Daniel returns from his travels – he had been in Patagonia – and he and Hélène become reacquainted.
She, with Guillaume in attendance, set out to find out more about this mysterious man. The more they learn about Daniel, the more curious his background – and his motivations become.
Highly recommended.
The book was written by Déborah Lévy Bertherat and translated from the original French by Adriana Hunter. It will be released on 26th May 2015. You can preorder the book at Amazon
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