The newest novel from the Goncourt prize winning author of Trois jours chez ma mère

Daniel Flamm, 50s, lives in Paris with his wife and two children. While on a trip to Montreal, he unexpectedly falls in love with a fledgling actress named Justine. The attraction is immediate and reciprocal. In other words, love at first sight. So begins an affair that is as passionate as it is fleeting. How can one fight against what is fleeting?

Justine is funny, insolent and inventive. It’s her narcissism that seduces Daniel. When he leaves Montreal, they both know that their affair will not soon be forgotten.

As the years pass, they write, phone and even see each other from time to time, reinforcing the fragile bond that unites them. Their constant communication allows them to think that their love does not weaken even as they lead separate lives.

In an unexpected turn of events, Justine moves to Paris and Daniel leaves for Strasbourg to stay with his sister. Justine and Daniel love each other but avoid one another. Is it because they lack the courage or is the reality of their love weaker than the fantasy?

They understand that as time passes, their joy turns to melancholy. Like in all great love stories, unhappiness reigns. They learn that love only survives in this strange place we call memory.

"Royal Romance a un charme fou. François Weyergans a toujours excellé dans l’autoportrait romancé. Sérieux, il pratique l’humour des mélancoliques. Hypersensible, il feint d’être cynique."
-Jérôme Garcin, Le Nouvel Observateur