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This Rough Magic: A completely unputdownable adventure set in the South of France (Mary Stewart Modern Classics) by [Mary Stewart]

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Mary Stewart

This Rough Magic: A completely unputdownable adventure set in the South of France (Mary Stewart Modern Classics) Kindle Edition

by Mary Stewart (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

373 ratings

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Stuck inside? Join the original queen of the page-turner Mary Stewart, as she leads you on a thrilling journey through a dangerous and deadly Provence . . .

'Mary Stewart is magic' New York Times

'One of the great British storytellers of the 20th century' Independent

Lucy Waring, a young, out-of-work actress from London, leaps at the chance to visit her sister for a summer on the island paradise of Corfu, and what's more, a famous but reclusive actor is staying in a villa nearby. But Lucy's hopes for rest and romance are shattered when a body washes up on the beach and she finds herself swept up in a chilling chain of events.

I shuddered, and drank my coffee, leaning back in my chair to gaze out across pine tops furry with gold towards the sparkling sea, and surrendering myself to the dreamlike feeling that marks the start of a holiday . . .

'A comfortable chair and a Mary Stewart: total heaven. I'd rather read her than most other authors.' Harriet Evans

'She built the bridge between classic literature and modern popular fiction. She did it first and she did it best.' Herald

Length: 388 pages	Word Wise: Enabled	Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
Page Flip: Enabled	Audible Narration: Audible Narration Switch back and forth between reading the Kindle book and listening to the Audible narration. Add narration for a reduced price of $2.99 after you buy the Kindle book. Ready	Language: English

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From the Publisher

Mary Stewart is one of our most successful novelists. Her first novel, MADAM WILL YOU TALK, was published in 1955. It was an immediate success and marked the beginning of a long and acclaimed writing career. All her novels have been bestsellers on both sides of the Atlantic. She was made a Doctor of Literature by Durham University in 2009. --This text refers to the paperback edition.

Review

"A magical concoction brewed from the most disparate plot elements. . . . A warm and sunny book, for all its violence." --New York Times

"Romantic, suspenseful, delightful." --Columbus Dispatch

"The best sort of romantic suspense, the kind that only Mary Stewart could write." --Nancy Pearl, author, Book Lust to Go

"Mary Stewart's writing is magical, with every word and phrase carefully chosen for beauty and sound and shape. . . . One marvels at the exquisite evocation of scene." --Los Angeles Times

"Wonderfully evoked atmosphere . . . fine plotting and suspense." --San Francisco Chronicle

"Suspense and romance, expertly mingled." --Observer --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

File size : 1582 KB
Word Wise : Enabled
Print length : 388 pages
Screen Reader : Supported
Text-to-Speech : Enabled
Publisher : Hodder & Stoughton; Digital original edition (26 May 2011)
X-Ray : Not Enabled
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
Language: : English
ASIN : B004WJRU62

Best Sellers Rank: 127,451 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- 413 in Sea Adventure Fiction (Kindle Store)
- 511 in Sea Stories
- 2,018 in Coming of Age Fiction (Books)

Customer Reviews:
373 ratings

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4 star		19%
3 star		7%
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Fran

Always good

Reviewed in Australia on 15 July 2014

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Mary Stewarts novels always follow the same formula. Independent, adventurous, bolshy young woman who jumps to quick conclusions about the man who she will eventually marry within 2 days of meeting. This dark brooding man is the murderer of whatever exciting murder mystery she finds herself unexpectantly thrown into! The actual murderer you suspect but always comes as a satisfactory surprise as does the reasons for all the main players actions. All in all these are charming books and never get old. There's always an exotic location and her protagonist is always slipping into lovely vintage 50's frocks, powdering her nose and doing other mid 20th century rituals that seem so far away now.
This novel is set in Corfu and you can feel yourself there, yearning to feel the atmosphere of a time when it wasn't filled with horrible tourists!
These are such easy, enjoyable reads. Treat yourself!

2 people found this helpful

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Samrosie

Sun and Shakespeare , murder and mayhem. Classic Mary Stewart

Reviewed in Australia on 15 April 2015

You can't go wrong discovering or rediscovering this gem of a book
Mystery and romance done with class

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June

A little dated, but stylish and enjoyable.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 April 2016

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Back in the sixties and seventies, I was buying these books as they were being published, and loved them. Some, shabby and with pages brown with age, still live on my bookshelves. I recently reread her Arthurian trilogy - quite superb! - and then this novel came up at a reduced price on Amazon. Perhaps the normal high price of her novels in the kindle format reflect the quality of her writing; the twentieth century certainly produced many excellent writers.

This novel is contemporaneous with the time of writing, so the reader is being drawn back to a time when smoking was considered a sociable habit, drinking alcohol in pregnancy wasn't frowned upon, the word 'marvellous' was still in common use and the heroine was chaste. I found myself wondering what genre this and her other novels fell into. There's usually a death, as in this one, but they don't really amount to murder mysteries. There's romance, but they're certainly not romantic novels. In fact, Mrs Stewart didn't do romance well. In this particular novel, a young woman meets a handsome man and it's a case of dislike at first sight. They barely exchange a civil word - even the uncivil ones are well spaced - until they kiss, which is then a lifelong commitment followed by terms of endearment such as 'darling' and 'my love'.

Then it struck me. They're adventure stories. Like Enid Blyton for grown ups. Strange to think that, when I was first reading them, this didn't occur to me at all.

But I don't mean to belittle them in any way. Mrs Stewart was intelligent and well educated and she wrote with stylish fluency. I intend to make my way through every one of her novels again, and highly recommend them.

18 people found this helpful

Louise Marley

This Rough Magic

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 December 2017

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I first read Mary Stewart's books when I was a teenager. I sneaked them from my grandmother's bookshelves and felt very grown-up. Re-reading them now, I'm not quite sure why I felt so daring as they have no sex or violence in them. They do, however, have lush descriptions, sexy heroes, feisty heroines and lots of nail-biting suspense.

This one, unfortunately, was a disappointment and I found it quite hard going. It was originally published in 1964 and the dialogue feels dated. The characters spoke with the same 'voice' and as though they'd stepped out of a Famous Five novel. Usually I love Mary Stewart's heroines, but this one was a bit of an idiot - deliberately putting herself in harm's way just to prove a point.

Lucy Waring goes to visit her sister, who has married into the Italian aristocracy and is currently holidaying at her husband's summer residence on Corfu. There are two other houses on the estate - the original castle, now rented by a famous actor, and another villa on the other side of the bay. But Lucy's plans for a relaxing holiday are shattered when she almost gets shot while trying to protect a dolphin, and then a body is washed up on the beach.

The story is very much of its time, so I would hesitate to recommend it to a modern audience. I loved Julian (the reclusive actor) and hearing about the island's saint, Spyridon, but I did find all the Shakespeare references a bit wearing. Extra points for the dolphin though! If you've never read Mary Stewart, I'd recommend starting with one of her others first, such as Nine Coaches Waiting, which is one of my favourites.

6 people found this helpful

JMaxfield

Well written romance, thriller, corfu guide and it has humour.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 February 2017

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Well written romance, thriller, corfu guide. This being my second Mary Stewart book that I have read I was slightly disappointed as this book doesn't have the same powerful verve that My Brother Michael has. However saying that the book still has humour, a very readable style and was very much a page turner. This book has many references to Shakespeare's - The Tempest which may confuse some readers if they haven't read or are familiar with this work. The book also covers Corfu history & cultural attitudes.

5 people found this helpful

Dean

Classic Mary Stewart

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 May 2019

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I first picked up 'madam will you talk?' and really enjoyed it. I have now read quite a few of her books and find them a delight.

This one is set in Greece, and makes you feel like you're actually there. What she does with her characters and locations is pure joy. It might come across as a bit dated, but it's a brilliant piece of escapism from yesteryear.
If you like her other works, pick this up. You won't be disappointed.

One person found this helpful

Moggy

A joyous rediscovery!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 July 2014

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I'm currently rediscovering the joys of Mary Stewart's work, after a long gap. This book is a great example - wonderful descriptive prose evoking the sights, sounds and even smells of the place, a heroine who isn't ashamed to admit to fear, and of course a satisfying ending. It's a pleasure to read a book by such a well educated and articulate woman, who doesn't need to pepper her work with obscenities to keep it interesting.

4 people found this helpful

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