Product Description

eter Mayle sets his latest irresistible tale in the thyme- and lavender-scented south of France. Bennett, a suave if slightly threadbare English ex-patriot who is fast approaching the end of his credit, advertises his "services" in The International Herald Tribune. In no time, he is being paid handsomely to impersonate the mysterious and very wealthy Julian Poe. "A lark that's perfect for summer reading."--Baltimore Sun.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65999 in Books
• Published on: 1997-04-01
• Released on: 1997-04-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780679762683
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Amazon.com Review
It's no secret that Peter Mayle (author of A Year in Provence) loves Provence, so it's no surprise that Mayle's new novel is set that area: it takes place in Saint Martin and in Monaco. Bennett is an Englishman scraping together his last few francs, desperate to stay in France. He places an ad promising "anything considered," a wealthy truffle entrepreneur hires him for slightly illicit work, and the plot is off--a combination of a thriller, romance, and page turner. And through it all emanates the whiff of lavender, the curve of country hills, the bubble of champagne, and the sounds and tastes of Provence.

From Publishers Weekly
Again venturing into the wryly humorous thriller territory of Hotel Pastis, Mayle has produced another caper heavily larded with local color and gastronomic adventures. And again, as in his novels and his nonfiction evocations of Provence, truffles play a crucial role. Here his protagonist is Bennett, a Brit expatriate on his uppers. Having lost his savings in an investment scam, he is intent on finding the means to reside in Saint-Martin in Provence. He advertises his services: "Anything considered except marriage"-and is hired by Julian Poe, a stupendously wealthy fellow Brit, who needs help in evading the French income tax. Pretending to be Poe in the latter's Monaco apartment, Bennett becomes involved in the hijacking of a case containing the secret formula for the successful cultivation of the elusive black truffle. When the Italian Mafioso who stole the formula auctions his loot aboard his yacht, Poe, scheming to substitute a fake, sends Bennett to steal it back. He also sends Anna, a savvy and sexy mercenary enforcer from New York, to help protect his interests. After they recover the formula, Anna persuades Bennett to up his fee to a cool million. With the furious Italians joining Poe in the hot pursuit, the now romantically involved extortioners gormandize their lusty way across the south of France while outwitting their pursuers. Mayle makes froth highly palatable in this larky chronicle of sybaritic pleasures and larcenous activities. 150,000 first printing; BOMC and QPB selections.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
The Mayle charm, once so delightful and original in A Year in Provence (LJ 4/1/90) and Toujours Provence (LJ 5/1/91), has grown thin over the years as the author, a veritable one-man tourist board, has churned out one book after another about sunny, romantic Provence. That charm is now stretched to the breaking point with this third novel. Like his first, Hotel Pastis (LJ 9/1/93), it features an expatriate Englishman, a sexy but smart woman, a millionaire, and lots of peasants, goons, and gendarmes. Instead of a bank robbery, the plot this time focuses on a stolen formula for producing truffles, those very rare and very expensive gastronomic delicacies. Mayle writes smoothly and cleverly (the result of 15 years as an advertising copywriter and executive), but the result is a book that is as phony as its promotional copy. Mayle needs to break out of his rut and choose a new topic?perhaps the colorful inhabitants of Long Island, where he now lives. Buy only if there is demand.
-?Wilda Williams, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Peter Mayle.....always considered!
Being a fan of Peter Mayle's Provence series I was slightly apprehensive about his diving into the work of fiction but at the same time looking forward to his offerings. And, since after reading "Hotel Pastis" I was certain that he was still the author that I had come to enjoy so very much. With the addition of "Anything Considered" his literary skills, at least for me, remain intact! Thank goodness!

This book simply catches all of the magic of his previous offerings. A mystery, love story and comedy I can think of fewer books that I enjoyed so much that I picked up a copy in hardbound to keep and read again...and again. Set, once again, in the French country-side plus Monaco our protagonist Bennett, an English expatriate,lives out his meager existence until placing an ad in the Intl. Herald Tribune where he's offered the chance to live the "high-life" by providing services to Julian Poe, who delves into the illegal truffle trade. What ensues is truly high-comdey with a sprinkling of romance and French travelogue thrown in for good measure.

Overall, the characters are well-thought out and brought fully to life...plus, who could not enjoy a novel where the author is simply having such a wonderful time as Mr. Mayle obviously is! Highly recommended this is...and is there any chance of having this made into a film or BBC series?

A generous,delicious serving of Mr. Mayle!

Better at non-fiction, but interesting just the same
Having thoroughly enjoyed Peter Mayle's best-selling non-fictional (mostly) account of life in Rural France (A Life in Provence), I long meant to give his fiction a try. I'm not a real dog-lover, so A Dog's Life didn't intrigue me, and the jacket copy for Hotel Pastis didn't lend it to immediate reading, either. But the cover for Anything Considered, showing a cast of characters straight out of a CLUE game, and the premise--an Englishman in France, desperate for a job, places an advert in the international paper saying that he was looking for employment and "anything considered"--sounded so close to a Wodehousian experience, that I could not resist it. Even the title was similar to Wodehouse.

Unfortunately, while comic and filled with mistaken identities and misunderstood intentions, Mayle's touch with the material is quite different. I enjoyed the novel, but there's something missing to it, as if Mayle had all the ingredients at his fingertips, but didn't turn the temperature on the oven up high enough. There's no faulting his craftsmanship--the words flow smoothly enough, and nothing is so jarring as to ruin the plot--but the art seems forced, rather than organic.

Bennett is the Englishman who is desperate for anything, who finds himself hired by a fellow who simply wants him to live in the style to which Bennett has become accustomed, with the slight deviation of returning a different name than his own when asked. He goes to Monaco, using this man's credit cards, living in this man's apartment, basically enjoying the life of Riley. But there's trouble lurking, something to do with the truffle market and the Mafia. It's all grand fun, but Mayle never quite convinces the reader that his world is an innocuous one, and so the reader keeps expecting the worst to happen, rather than just another close shave.

Rereading the above, it sounds like I hated the novel, which I did not. In fact, I bought Hotel Pastis based on my impression of this book. I just had expected more from Mayle, and was letdown by my expectations, not by his actual book.

Great Book with lots of twists and turns
Anything Considered is written very well. Another great masterpiece from Peter Mayle. The idea of a poor Englishman on an adventure in France is riveting. All of the characters are well thought out and descriptions are wonderful. This is my first Peter Mayle book and I am hooked on his writing. It is different from the normal fiction that I read, but it is a very, very welcome change.