Un reflet de lune' (rough translation: A moon reflection) is Ms Faye's latest offering. The story is set in the same universe/world as Un éclat de givre, but can be read independently. So, you don't have to have read the first book. As I haven't read it, I can assure you... you must have read 'Un éclat de givre', or rather, I strongly recommend that you do before you tackle this new one, 'Un Reflet de lune'. Then again, both stories are indeed completely independent, but it's the characters who are the same.

So, what's 'A moon reflection' about? It takes place in Paris, like the first book, in a post-apocalyptic setting. The city is being drowned by heavy rainfall, which makes the river Seine flow over, causing floods.

Main character Chet (based on Chet Baker or not, I'll leave that in the middle) is a jazz singer, known as Thaïs, and has his personal pianist, Damien. When Chet transforms into Thaïs, he dresses up, gets his heels on, make-up, ... the lot, in short.

Chet is not a hero as we usually depict them, rather an anti-hero. Somehow, at some point, someone (close to Chet) created doubles based on him. These doubles wreak havoc, commit crimes, and what have you. Chet is totally unaware of this at first, until some of his friends start wondering and ask him related questions. At some point, he has no other choice but to try to investigate who's behind all this and why he was chosen as reference character for those doubles.

In this new book we learn more about Chet, about his way of living, about the people he meets, the friends he has, the relationships he has (Chet like men ánd women, he's very free-spirited here), and not in the least, the city he lives in: Paris. Chet's walks, wanderings, escapes, investigations, ... take us to the Sorbonne, Trocadéro and surroundings. Everything takes place around or near the Seine, the Eiffel Tower, ... That area of Paris. (personal note: I haven't seen much of Paris before, except the Château de Fontainebleau, Dôme des Invalides, the Musée de l'armée, ... back in the summer of 2019 and only during a short stay. Paris is expensive, but has a certain charm, which makes me want to go back and "explore" some more)

Of course, Chet is not alone, more like caught between two fires, if I managed to get the gist: the Mareyeurs (Fishmongers) and the Fils de Noé (Sons of Noah). Oh wait... Did Estelle Faye use the flood myth to depict a flooded Paris and go from there for the rest of the story?

I'll cut to the chase here. Despite a few scenes in the book and especially in the last 50 pages, the story went completely over my head, as not everything was explained or cleared up. Maybe the current situation (Corona and political decisions) (also) had an impact on my concentration, I can't tell for sure.

Chet's experiences are written from his point-of-view, the first person. That's fine in itself, as this creates the feeling that the character is personally telling his story to you, the reader. The way the story was written for 'Un Reflet de lune' created the impression I was reading more about Chet's behaviour, emotions, thoughts, the clothes he wears, than about the intrigue and unravelling the mystery. As if the intrigue was subordinate to presenting Chet and making everything revolve around him: Chet being a bit too self-centred, I would say. This made it difficult to imagine and sympathise with the other characters, be they on Chet's side or his opponents', and thus put the pieces together.

I'll repeat what I wrote in the beginning: I strongly recommend that you first read 'Un Éclat de givre' before you read 'Un Reflet de lune', if only to learn more about Chet and understand his ties with Damien, Gabriel, François-Alexandre (Faxe), and others. Obviously, it would also help to have a better understanding of the setting. Unfortunately, I haven't read the first book, which undeniably has influenced my reading experience.

'Un Reflet de lune', while not a perfect story (even on its own), shows Mrs Faye's love for this city through the eyes and behaviour of Chet aka Thaïs. The style is quite poetic, but allows for a smooth read, especially if you master the language sufficiently. Nevertheless, the story is a bit too character-centred, drowning the real adventure, the real mystery.

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My experience with Estelle Faye's writings was so far limited to a number of short stories and one novel:

* Trolls et Légendes - L'Anthologie Officielle (my review)
* Fées et Automates - Anthologie des Imaginales 2016 (my review)
* Utopiales 2016 (my review)
* Destinations - Anthologie des Imaginales 2017 (my review)
* Utopiales 2017 (my review)
* Créatures, anthologie des Imaginales 2018 (my review)
* Natures - Anthologie des Imaginales 2019 (my review)
* Les Seigneurs de Bohen (my review)

On my TBR-pile:
* No(s) Futur

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I was sent this book by Éditions ActuSF for review. Many thanks to them for the trust. ( )