UV [Paperback]

"A thrillerish suspense story with a great erotic charge . . . Drop everything and read this!"
--"LIRE
"
"In every scene a heavy atmosphere of what is unspoken reigns. Joncour's literary style is relatively classical, without surprises, but it is the complexity of his characters, their ambiguity, that makes the story so interesting"
--"Paris Magazine
"
"In the company of this Ripley of another genre, the reader waits for Philip, just like one waits for Godot. Inevitably you think of Patricia Highsmith to whom Joncour renders homage"
--"Elle"

Literary suspense novel set in the sultry summer heat of a bourgeois French holiday.

Winner of the Prix Roman France Télévisions

On a hot and lazy sun-drenched afternoon, when one affluent family are at their most docile, most vulnerable, most ripe for the picking, a handsome stranger unexpectedly turns up, and lingers poolside. A master of the art of deception, Boris introduces himself as an old school friend of Philip, the feckless brother. No matter that Philip has been unreachable for days and yet to arrive for the summer holiday, Boris is welcomed with open arms.

As the island's spectacular Bastille Day fireworks celebration looks ever nearer, and Philip's arrival feels increasingly imminent, Boris is embraced wholeheartedly into the family fold. No one seems to notice as he carefully exerts a powerful and sinister influence over them all...

Winner of the Prix Roman France Télévisions

The sun-baked coast of Brittany, where the affluent French spend long days basking in the summer heat, provides the perfect setting for a family holiday. So when a handsome blonde stranger unexpectedly interrupts this holiday to introduce himself as an old school friend of their son, Philip, he is welcomed with open arms. Is it the seductive heat that dispels their caution? Or the reassuring crisp, white attire in which he greets them? While the family await Philip's imminent arrival, Boris is embraced into their fold and no one seems to notice as he carefully exerts a powerful influence over them all.

UV is a literary suspense novel that will chill the reader even as they are lulled by the hazy heat of summer.

Serge Joncour was born in 1961 and studied philosophy at university before deciding to become a writer. His first novel, VU, was published by Le Dilettante in 1998. UV was first published in France in September 2003, the mass market paperback edition will be published by Folio later this year.