From the best-selling author of The Elegance of the Hedgehog comes a story of one man’s promise to keep a secret that will keep him at a remove from the greatest joy in his life.

One night at a party of artists and intellectuals in Kyoto, Japanese art dealer Haru encounters a woman who unsettles him more than anyone else ever has and he is compelled to know her. Maud, a French woman passing through Japan, is distant. Her cold gaze challenges any exchange, yet she is drawn to Haru.

After spending ten intense nights together, Maud leaves without a word. When he learns that she is carrying his child, Haru is determined to find her.. But his advances are unwelcome. Maud wants to raise the child alone, and extracts a heartbreaking promise from him to stay out of their lives.

In her poetically precise prose, Muriel Barbery explores beauty and the deep love of a father, but also captures the darkness that pushes people apart.

Muriel Barbery’s novels include the New York Times bestseller, The Elegance of the Hedgehog (Europa, 2008), and Gourmet Rhapsody (Europa, 2009). She is also the author of The Writer’s Cats, illustrated by Maria Guitart, a short tale about esthetics, inspiration, the writing life, and cats. Barbery has lived in Kyōto, Amsterdam, and Paris, and now lives in the French countryside.