February book of the month

Fire in the Blood, planned in 1937 and written in 1941, is a never-before-published novel from Irène Némirovsky, author of last year's best-selling Suite Française.

A morality tale with doubtful morals, a story of murder, love and betrayal in rural France, Fire in the Blood is a beautiful chamber piece which starts quietly, but then races away with revelations and narrative twists. It's a story about young women forced into marriages with old men, about mothers and daughters, stepmothers and stepdaughters, youthful passions and the regrets of old age, about peasant communities and the ways they hide their secrets.

Coming next month: At A Loss For Words by Diane Schoemperlen

She wasn't looking for love. As a successful writer with an established career, a comfortable home and a supportive group of friends, her life was full. But then, 30 years after he broke her heart the first time, he walked into a book signing and back into her life. Spurred on by the idyll of a first love made good, they reconnect through emails – the bits and bytes of their messages transforming into a real electricity between them. He is smitten. She is enthralled.

At A Loss For Words is another compelling (and hilarious!) expression of Governor General's award-winner Diane Schoemperlen's gift for building the minutiae of everyday life into a profound understanding of women, men, love and imagination.