When Esmeralda Ruiz returns home from London in search of land to farm and a safe haven, she doesn’t realize the moral peril of living with Rex Trevail, a reclusive and erudite man. She also doesn’t know about the hidden animosity between Rex and the village mayor, Javier Crespo, whose source is shrouded in mystery. As she delves into an old crime involving the disappearance of a mysterious and talented woman, she finds herself drawn to both men: Rex, who enlightens her mind but obsesses over his past and the injustice of life, and Javier, who charms her with his geniality but conceals his own dark secret.
Julia Seivad was born in Cumbria in 1953, and has settled in Cantabria, northern Spain. She has lived in India, England, Wales, Guatemala and Slovakia, and travelled extensively in Europe and the Americas. She has worked as an export executive and teacher of English as a Foreign Language. She enjoys playing classical music with friends, sea swimming and gardening. Use of the Fruit is her first novel.
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Reviews
11 reviews
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I read "Use of the fruit" over the holidays, and it cheered my quiet evenings. Just enough mystery to intrigue, just enough romance to entertain.
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A crime, a triangle, beautiful scenery, local politics, a garden full of produce. Very enjoyable.
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Use of the fruit by Julia Seivad is a complex novel about good and evil, light and dark, growing fruit, having children, making mistakes... It hangs together surprisingly well. I look forward to the next one by this new writer.
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We meet a village mayor, a market gardener and would-be academic. Among the tomatoes and corn, beaches and lanes off the Santiago Way in Cantabria, and other exotic venues, they seek the meaning of life and the meaning behind a tragic disappearance. A must-read book to immerse yourself in a fascinating story.
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Julia Seivad has written this fascinating and gripping book which displays a deep love of Cantabria and an intriguing cast of characters.
Use of the Fruit has a plot which shows the power of home, family, love, friendship, manipulation and forgiveness. The simple rural life of Cantabria is an effective backdrop to the complex situations and personalities of the main characters. The book displays immense research covering topics including horticulture, sailing, literature, religion and Cantabrian rural culture.
Written from a female perspective, the power over women of the arch manipulator Rex is provocative and has topical parallels in the ascent of misogynistic and bullying men in society.
Seivad demonstrates a subtle sense of humour and sense of the ridiculous which it would have been good to see more of.
Use of the Fruit is a very well written, thought provoking and complex book which will keep book club discussions occupied for some time.
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I like the way Rex's past life unravels through Esme's relationship with him and how she endures the dangerous downward trajectory. A book full of descriptions woven in poetic discourse makes me curious as to whether a good woman's love has the power to save a man and redeem his past.
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La novela engancha. El vocabulario y las exquisitas descripciones,son elementos muy bien aprovechados para presentar los lugares y los personajes. Intriga y misterio a través de todo el libro. Altamente recomendable. Esperamos segunda parte.
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Poetic and mysterious, this novel gets us straight into the inner life of characters, Esme and Rex and rural life by the Santiago Way. Well recommended.
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