Book 0 of the Chocolat Series
After scattering her mother’s ashes in New York, 21 year old, pregnant, Vianne Rocher (who uses the name Sylvaine) moves to Marseille. She starts working as a waitress in a bistrot, and intends to move on before her baby is born. However. she meets eccentric local Guy Lacarrière who introduces her to the world of chocolate. Sylvaine begins to experiment with recipes and learns she has a knack for creating chocolate creations. She subtly uses her magic gift on the people around her and grows close to the locals. She even gets pulled into a local conspiracy which eventually threatens the life of her unborn child.
This book is Vianne’s origin story – we learn about her nomadic existence before her daughter is born and before she settled in Lansquenet-sous-Tannes as a chocolatier.
I enjoyed this book as it gives more insight into Vianne, she is kind of mysterious in Chocolat. In this book we learn what drew her to chocolate. Looking forward to re-reading Chocolat – but won’t do that until next year I think.
Read for the ShelfReflection Reading Challenge 2026
Prompt 31: A book with food on the cover
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
