Angela Locke's 43-year project Tamarisk: Love and War in France

Published on May 31, just ahead of the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings, the writing of Tamarisk has been a labour of love for best-selling author and lover of all things French, Angela Locke.

The novel fuses fact with fiction to provide a compelling story of love, loss and survival amidst the ruins of post-war Northern France.

In Tamarisk: Love and War in France, Locke draws upon the context of the Special Operations Executive (F Section) and the aftermath of war to construct a reality where the turbulence of war tests love's resilience.

The story's protagonist, Pierre, is at the novel's heart.

He showcases unfaltering determination as he navigates the relics of a war-torn world, looking for pieces of his own shattered existence, his life preceding the devastation, and Rebecca, the wireless operator with the Resistance and the love of his life.

Tamarisk: Love and War in France cover (Image: TopHat)

“A major theme in Tamarisk, which runs through the story, is how we deal with the peace after war, how we survive war – if we do – and how we restore life," Angela said. 

"The book is set partly on the farm Le Tamaris, close to the Normandy beaches where the Tamarisk bushes now bloom once again. I hope it is a book that accurately reflects those two worlds of war and peace. 

"The theme too is very relevant given the current war in Ukraine and all the issues it throws up for us in the West," she said. 

This will be Angela's eighth book, one of which Search Dog, went into 14 languages and was a bestseller.

The novel is published by Top Hat Books and is currently available to pre-order in paperback for £12.99 on Amazon.

Angela will also be appearing at the Words by the Water book festival in Keswick, which runs from 5th to 9th June 2024.