Over the past month, I’ve been working to finish the manuscript of my third novel. It’s a love story set in Île d’Orleans, a historic island in the Saint Lawrence River near Québec City, meant to be the first in a series of three books.
Even with air conditioning, it’s been tough to stay focused in the ridiculous heat we’ve been having. One thing that’s helped is looking at photographs of the island. It’s a beautiful place, so I thought I’d share some of the photos here. The house in the pictures was the inspiration for my main character’s house.
Stay tuned for more news about this book, hopefully soon.
I’m happy to announce that I will be at the Leominster French-Canadian Festival on June 21 selling and signing copies of The River Is Everywhere alongside other Franco-American authors, musicians, and artisans. The festival will be held rain or shine at the Leominster Eagles Club at 456 Litchfield St. from 3 to 8 p.m. Visit the festival’s event page for more information and a list of vendors. I hope to see you there!
I was recently a guest on the Trevor Roberts Talkfest podcast. We discussed Franco-American history and culture and my second novel The River Is Everywhere. It’s especially exciting because the podcast is based on the West Coast, where few people know anything about Franco-Americans or French Canadians. Trevor was a great host and I enjoyed talking with him.
Due to the cancellation of the Leominster French Canadian Festival last Saturday, I have some extra copies of The River Is Everywhere on hand. If you were planning to pick up a copy of the book at the festival, or even if you weren’t, I’m offering signed copies of the book for $20 including sales tax and U.S. shipping. (Shipping is also available outside the U.S. but the cost varies depending on the country,) Send me a note if you’re interested.
FYI, The Leominster French Canadian Festival will take place next year on June 21, 2025.
I’m happy to share that French-Canadian Legacy Podcast episode 102, featuring my interview with Jesse Martineau, is now live. We talked about my second novel, The River Is Everywhere, the coming-of-age story of a Franco-American teenager, and some other things, too. Visit this link for details and ways to listen.
I’ve been working on a new novel. Because it looks like I *might* actually have the first draft of the manuscript done soon, I thought I’d write a post about it.
The novel—a wild, suspenseful, character-driven romance featuring strong female characters—is set in Île d’Orleans, a pastoral island in the Saint Lawrence River near Québec City. It’s one of my favorite places in the world.
Many of the houses and churches on the island were built in the 17th and 18th centuries by the original settlers of New France. Development in Île d’Orleans is heavily restricted, so it still looks much as I imagine it has for the last few hundred years. If you suddenly found yourself on the island and didn’t know where you were, you could easily think you were someplace in rural France.
Église Sainte-Famille, built in 1743. This church appears in the novel, which is partly set in the village of Sainte-Famille. Photo credit: Marc Lautenbacher, Wikimedia Commons
Île d’Orleans is home to six historic villages, each with its own unique charm. Since it was settled by Europeans more than 400 years ago, the island has been a farming community. Today, it is famous for the quality of its products especially strawberries, apples, maple syrup, and wine.
I like big, dramatic, steamy romances (think Masterpiece Theatre) but most of the romance novels out there are very poorly written, not to mention loaded with tropes, clichés, and sexist BS, making them pretty much unreadable.
I started writing this book a couple of years ago as a challenge: I wanted to see if I could write a romance novel that I would not only want to read but wouldn’t be able to put down once I started. I figured if I were successful, other people would want to read it, too. So far, I think I’m on the right track. The novel doesn’t have a title yet, but I’m working on that, too.
Île d’Orléans strawberry harvest. Photo credit: Marc Lautenbacher, Wikimedia Commons
I’m considering the idea of making this novel the first in a series. It’s a little early yet to tell if that will be feasible, but the possibility is definitely there.
Stay tuned for news about this exciting new novel as it develops. I hope to have the first draft of the manuscript completed by July and to have an edited version done by the end of the summer.
This is just a quick post to let everyone know that, at long last, The River Is Everywhere will be released on March 14. The book is currently available for pre-order on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I should have information about the book’s launch event soon. When I do, I’ll post it here.
In the meantime, you can check out some of the book’s early reviews on Goodreads.
Once the book is launched, I will be available for readings and to meet with book clubs, either in person or virtually. For more information about either of these, send me a message via my contact page and I’ll get back to you soon.
If you are a member of the media who would like to write a review of The River Is Everywhere, send me a message and I will arrange for you to receive an advanced reader copy of the book.
I don’t usually like to write posts that have no purpose other than to promote things I’m doing, even though I suppose that’s kind of the point of having an author website. Keeping that in mind, I’m very excited to share the cover of my second novel, The River Is Everywhere, which will be published in March by Vine Leaves Press.
A friend and fellow author told me that the cover was “me” when she saw it, which made me laugh because it’s kind of dark and moody, and a little mysterious. I’m definitely prone to the first two, and maybe the third, but I don’t think I’m the best judge of that.
Anyway, I think the cover is perfect. The folks at Vine Leaves did a great job taking the ideas I sent them and creating something that really conveys the mood of the book, and, I guess, me.
I’ll post updates about The River Is Everywhere as I get them. Thanks again to everyone who follows this blog, and to all the people who have helped the book along its journey to becoming a real, tangible thing.
Emilie-Noelle Provost 