"The Village Rector" by Honoré de Balzac covers themes that Balzac had already developed in le Médecin de campagne - improvements to living conditions in rural areas and redemption through self-sacrifice. It was first conceived as a detective novel and includes a mysterious death, with the attitude of its main character Véronique Graslin remaining enigmatic until the end of the book.
THE SAUVIATS In the lower town of Limoges, at the corner of the rue de la Vieille-Poste and the rue de la Cite might have been seen, a generation ago, one of those shops which were scarcely changed from the period of the middle-ages. Large tiles seamed with a thousand cracks lay on the soil itself, which was damp in places, and would have tripped up those who failed to observe the hollows and ridges of this singular flooring. The dusty walls exhibited a curious mosaic of wood and brick, stones and iron, welded together with a solidity due to time, possibly to chance. For more than a hundred years the ceiling, formed of colossal beams, bent beneath the weight of the upper stories, though it had never given way under them. Built en colombage, that is to say, with a wooden frontage, the whole facade was covered with slates, so put on as to form geometrical figures,—thus preserving a naive image of the burgher habitations of the olden time. None of the windows, cased in wood and formerly adorned with carvings, now destroyed by the action of the weather, had continued plumb; some bobbed forward, others tipped backward, while a few seemed disposed to fall apart; all had a compost of earth, brought from heaven knows where, in the nooks and crannies hollowed by the rain, in which the spring-tide brought forth fragile flowers, timid creeping plants, and sparse herbage. Moss carpeted the roof and draped its supports. The corner pillar, with its composite masonry of stone blocks mingled with brick and pebbles, was alarming to the eye by reason of its curvature; it seemed on the point of giving way under the weight of the house, the gable of which overhung it by at least half a foot. The municipal authorities and the commissioner of highways did, eventually, pull the old building down, after buying it, to enlarge the square.
Perfect for fans of Barbara Pym 'Rebecca's wit, humour and brilliant observational skills put her in the forefront of village storytelling. I never tire of reading her wonderful novels' Jack Sheffield 'Winning novels of village life' The Times 'A delightful beginning that suddenly gets darker and more dramatic than expected. Totally believable characters and a story line with unexpected twists' Margaret Dickinson When Peter Harris arrives in Turnham Malpas as the new rector, he finds the village people welcoming but set in their ways. Yet despite his own weaknesses, and a deeply felt sadness his wife keeps hidden, he comforts and advises his new parishioners, growing more and more involved with the rural way of life. Then the whole village is rocked by spiteful trick that goes terribly wrong, and a gruesome murder that points to a killer in its midst. Now, more than ever, Peter's pastoral role is crucial - and yet he is wrestling with his own private hell that may still wreck his own life.
« Monseigneur, dit l'abbé de Grancour, tout est inutile, et nous aurons la douleur de voir mourir ce malheureux Tascheron en impie, ... il crachera sur le crucifix, il reniera tout, même l'enfer... — Quand Tascheron doit-il être exécuté? demanda l'Évêque. — Demain, jour de marché, répondit monsieur de Grancour. — Messieurs, la religion ne saurait avoir le dessous, s'écria l'Évêque. L'Église se trouve en des conjonctures difficiles. Nous sommes obligés à faire des miracles dans une ville industrielle où l'esprit de sédition contre les doctrines religieuses et monarchiques a poussé des racines profondes... J'irai voir ce malheureux. » THE VILLAGE RECTOR I. THE SAUVIATS In the lower town of Limoges, at the corner of the rue de la Vieille Poste and the rue de la Cite might have been seen, a generation ago, one of those shops which were scarcely changed from the period of the middle ages. Large tiles seamed with a thousand cracks lay on the soil itself, which was damp in places, and would have tripped up those who failed to observe the hollows and ridges of this singular flooring. The dusty walls exhibited a curious mosaic of wood and brick, stones and iron, welded together with a solidity due to time, possibly to chance. For more than a hundred years the ceiling, formed of colossal beams, bent beneath the weight of the upper stories, though it had never given way under them. Built en colombage , that is to say, with a wooden frontage, the whole facade was covered with slates, so put on as to form geometrical figures, thus preserving a naive image of the burgher habitations of the olden time. None of the windows, cased in wood and formerly adorned with carvings, now destroyed by the action of the weather, had continued plumb; some bobbed forward, others tipped backward, while a few seemed disposed to fall apart; all had a compost of earth, brought from heaven knows where, in the nooks and crannies hollowed by the rain, in which the spring tide brought forth fragile flowers, timid creeping plants, and sparse herbage. Moss carpeted the roof and draped its supports. The corner pillar, with its composite masonry of stone blocks mingled with brick and pebbles, was alarming to the eye by reason of its curvature; it seemed on the point of giving way under the weight of the house, the gable of which overhung it by at least half a foot. The municipal authorities and the commissioner of highways did, eventually, pull the old building down, after buying it, to enlarge the square. The pillar we have mentioned, placed at the angle of two streets, was a treasure to the seekers for Limousin antiquities, on account of its lovely sculptured niche in which was a Virgin, mutilated during the Revolution. All visitors with archaeological proclivities found traces of the stone sockets used to hold the candelabra in which public piety lighted tapers or placed its ex votos and flowers. At the farther end of the shop, a worm eaten wooden staircase led to the two upper floors which were in turn surmounted by an attic. The house, backing against two adjoining houses, had no depth and derived all its light from the front and side windows. Each floor had two small chambers only, lighted by single windows, one looking out on the rue de la Cite, the other on the rue de la Vieille Poste.
The Rector’s Daughter is the story of Mary Jocelyn, a woman who fears life is passing her by. Having lost her mother and her beloved invalid sister, Mary shares her days in sleepy Dedmayne with her father, the severe and distant Canon Jocelyn. Then, with the arrival in the village of Robert Herbert, her quiet, ordered existence is changed forever.
Major Robert Kurland has returned to the quiet vistas of his village home to recuperate from the horrors of Waterloo. However injured his body may be, his mind is as active as ever. Too active, perhaps. When he glimpses a shadowy figure from his bedroom window struggling with a heavy load, the tranquil facade of the village begins to loom sinister. Unable to forget the incident, Robert confides in his childhood friend, Miss Lucy Harrington.
Conflict, mistrust and a tragedy...There is nothing quiet about the village of Turnham Malpas. When the rector, Peter, takes his family to Africa for a year so that he can work in a mission, the villagers are bereft. What's more, the locum, Anna, has rather modern ideas and the parishioners determined to keep an eye on her. Then she brings a down-and-out petty thief into their midst, sparking conflict within the community. The Women's Institute comes up with the idea of raising funds for Peter's mission and holds an upmarket pyjama party, midnight skinny dipping and an afternoon's horse racing. Then a message arrives from Peter with the most devastating news - and the villagers are more determined than ever to raise a substantial sum for the mission.
