Sunset in St Tropez

In her 55th novel, Steel focuses on the lives and loves of three couples. Diana and Eric Morrison, Pascale and John Donnally and Anne and Robert Smith have been friends for over 30 years. At a new year's gathering they decide, to celebrate Eric and John's 60th birthdays, that they should all go on holiday together. They settle on renting a house the following August in St Tropez. But only a fortnight later the happiness of that night is forgotten when Anne has a fatal heart attack. The group rally to Robert's aid and eventually persuade him that he should still come to St Tropez as planned. In an effort to keep Robert distracted from his grief his daughter, Amanda, asks him to accompany her to a movie premiere. It is here that he meets Gwen Thomas, the star of the movie. Much to Pascale and Diana's chagrin, it isn't long before Gwen and Robert are spending time together, comforting each other's loneliness. When Robert invites Gwen to be his guest in St Tropez tempers flare, not helped by the fact that their stunning rented mansion turns out to be a neglected, run-down building that hasn't had a good clean in 20 years. Here the lifelong friends embark on a voyage of discovery. New friendships are kindled and old ones have to be healed on top of the usual blend of secrets and life-altering events that Steel uses as the foundations of her work. The result is an enjoyable, well-plotted and often humorous novel that will delight her many fans. (Kirkus UK)