Died on May 10, at the age of 70, following cancer, the author of novels with a historical flavor and Austenian at heart Diane Lacombe has not been idle during the past year despite the disease. In addition to signing the English version of her novel La châtelaine de Mallaig (VLB, 2002) and recounting the life of her ancestors in La dent de louve (Laurent Lavigne, 2023), the native of Trois-Rivières delivered a charming story evoking Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, and Doctor March’s Four Daughters, by Louisa May Alcott. However, that is where the comparison ends. “Notary Hart’s four daughters greeted the unveiling of the final guest list with resignation. Certainly, there are balls where you dance with a very Victorian modesty and four marriageable girls who dream of love and emancipation, alas! the outcomes are telegraphed, the descriptions summaries, the characters roughly sketched out, and the quality of the French leaves much to be desired.
Hart’s four daughters
★★
Diane Lacombe, Quebec America, Montreal, 2023, 278 pages
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