An Impossible Return

“Franco-Mauritian writer Laurent, in her potent English-language debut, overlays a tragic love story onto a powerful account of historical injustice in the Chagos Archipelago…Thanks to Laurent’s devastating work, readers will, indeed, have their eyes and hearts opened.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Franco-Mauritian author Caroline Laurent has penned this historical fiction novel based on stories her Mauritian mother told, and [on] her extensive research. The narrative is written in the typical lyrical style of a French novel, which the translator has reproduced faithfully for readers’ enjoyment. Life on the islands is portrayed with intimate details of the inhabitants’ day-to-day existence, such that one can feel the pain of the indigenous peoples’ evacuation for reasons they don’t understand.” —Historical Novels Review

“While Rivage de la colère is a novel about exile and impossible love, it is nevertheless about hope too. It is an ambitious and sweeping story written with sensitivity that renders a geopolitical and human tragedy through its credible and endearing characters.” —L’Orient Littéraire

“A beautiful portrayal of a strong woman…a harrowing novel, stirred with anger, that Caroline Laurent has written with great passion.” —Libération

“Caroline Laurent writes about the Chagossian people’s removal and anger with finesse and emotion.” —Le Parisien

“With a strong show of faith in the power of fiction, Caroline Laurent gives a voice and strength to a forgotten tragedy.” —Le Point

“Caroline Laurent writes with empathy and sensuality…She has fictionalized with subtlety and without hesitation.” —Le Figaro Littéraire

“A deeply moving story about the heartbreak of exile.” —Version Femina

“There’s a lot to love—the vulnerability and temerity of the characters, the bittersweet love story, the skillfully braided narrative—but more than anything, the novel is a vehicle for social change.…The Chagossian struggle for justice becomes ours.” —Asymptote