Stories of inheritance, family, misery and adventure… Draw from our selection of novels to slip into your suitcase this summer to travel back in time and cross the 20th century.
We who knew Solange, by Marie Vareille
“That day when I became a murderer, I stopped loving mirabelle plums. »Centenarian, Célestine decides to tell her story. A girl from the Corrèze countryside at the end of the Great War, she is passionate about literature and would like to escape farm work. But the death of her mother when Solange was born condemns her to housework. The rural story is interspersed with the correspondence of Solange interned in a reform school.
Spanning the century, the story covers four generations of tested and courageous women, engaged in the fight for their public recognition. “Women’s omnipotence terrifies men, so it’s safer to keep it hidden. » A broad novel, which received the Maison de la presse 2026 prize.
Flammarion, 432 p., 22 €
The Testament of the Devil, by Armel Job
In the new novel by Belgian writer Armel Job, François Lebel is a sort of uninhibited notable. A widower and father of four children, he lives with Fanny who runs the restaurant that Lebel bought from him. But then he dies of a heart attack during a rowing session. Far from being negligible, the inheritance should simply be distributed among the legitimate children. Unless there is a will that could give pride of place to young Fanny. The document appears, disappears… Everyone has their opinion on what to do next, even as we discover the secret life of the deceased. Inheriting personal history is sometimes heavier than the financial stakes. But do peaceful successions exist?
Robert Laffont, 288 p., €20
Wings of the Forest, by Jamy Gourmaud
Embarking for Guyana at the start of the 20th century is like setting off on an adventure. Even more so when it comes to butterfly hunting in 1924. Émile is passionate but was unaware of the traffickers, the dangers of the jungle and the lush Amazon. The adventurous entomologist describes with passion the great forest and this fascinating world of butterflies with magical colors. Aboard the canoes, the expedition sets out in search of the rare butterfly: “The butterflies were there, a tumult of colors danced in the light. » The television host and popularizer of science has written a first novel combining adventure and generous nature. A real change of scenery.
Albin Michel, 286 p., €19.90
Wild rose found, by Yves Viollier
She’s a lost child. Orphaned from a very young age, she was placed under the authority of her generous grandfather, but mistreated by her aunts and uncles. Life is hard in the Vendée countryside. Églantine struggles to find her place, sent to the fields, exploited as often happens at that time, in the 1930s. She will still get through it, endowed with resilience and the tireless courage of simple people. She will take her destiny in hand, love and be loved. The aurora borealis rises, and the horizon clears: “It’s not true that we arrive empty-handed. We are heirs. »
Les Presses de la Cité, 240 p., €21
The Lovers of the Cross, by Jessica L. Nelson
In 1943, the Vercors plateau became a strategic location. The resistance fighters, the Jews, those who resist the STO are found there. Jessica L. Nelson’s three heroes know the mountain in which they grew up well. The war separated them, but soon they return to the places of childhood. Faced with trials, they must choose their side and keep their secrets secret. From the 1930s to 1944, it is the story of Marc, Marie and Louis, the story of a stolen youth. Impossible to escape the burning of the world. Those who played in the caves hide or say: “We are no longer children…”
Albin Michel, 336 p., €21.90
