That Dark Spring - A True Story of Death and Desire in 1920s Provence

''I couldn''t stop reading it . . . a classic of true crime'' Lissa Evans, author of Small Bomb at Dimperley ''A fascinating true crime case study . . . deeply moving'' The Times A gripping, explosive murder mystery by acclaimed true crime writer Susannah Stapleton. In April 1929, the body of British artist Olive Branson was found submerged in a water tank outside her farmhouse in a picturesque Provence village. Dressed only in a pink shirt and stockings, she had a bullet hole between her eyes and a revolver by her side. Was it suicide - or murder? The initial investigation concluded suicide, but under pressure from Olive''s family to conduct a murder enquiry, city detective Alexandre Guibbal was brought in to reopen the case. Examining never-before-seen evidence, acclaimed true crime writer Susannah Stapleton builds a vivid and absorbing picture of an unconventional life and a violent death, and an investigation that shines a bright light on a village simmering with resentments and dangerous rivalries . . .

Product details

• Authors: Susannah Stapleton
• Publisher: Picador Uk
• Languages: English
• Age Recommendation: from age 18
• Product format: Paperback
• Release: 26.03.2026
• EAN: 9781529065589
• ISBN: 978-1-5290-6558-9
• No. of pages: 400
• Subjects: Non-fiction book > Philosophy, religion > Biographies, autobiographies; Provence, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Women, France, True Crime, European History, HISTORY / Europe / France, 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000, TRUE CRIME / Murder / General, HISTORY / Women, Biography: arts & entertainment, c 1920 to c 1929, c 1918 to c 1939 (Inter-war period), Biography: arts and entertainment, TRUE CRIME / Historical, True crime: serial killers and murderers, HISTORY / Modern / 20th Century / General