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Madelaine Before the Dawn

Brief Description
A spellbinding tale of female defiance and rage. In a time outside time, in a world hemmed in by dark woods and silence, the villagers of Les Montées endure a life of hardship and submission. The land is stingy, the Lords are merciless, and for the... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$3299
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Releases 23rd June 2026 (Approx. Date) Pre-order  "Madelaine Before the Dawn" now to secure your copy from our first shipment

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A spellbinding tale of female defiance and rage

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A spellbinding tale of female defiance and rage.

In a time outside time, in a world hemmed in by dark woods and silence, the villagers of Les Montées endure a life of hardship and submission. The land is stingy, the Lords are merciless, and for the village women, resistance is a futile dream.

One day, a foundling appears at the edge of the forest. Madelaine grows up to be mysterious, magnetic, and shockingly adept with an axe. One day, she slaughters a stag in defiance of the Lord's decrees. The land, the laws, and the lives of those around her tremble in response, and a new destiny begins to take root.

Madelaine Before the Dawn is a wild, lyrical novel about the inheritance of silence and the fire of female defiance. Collette has created an electrifying vision of revolt and resilience at the edge of civilisation.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781787706170

Publisher: Europa Editions (UK) Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 26 February 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Europa Editions (UK) Ltd

Contributors:

  • Translated by Alison Anderson
  • Translated by Alison Anderson

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 135.0mm

Height: 210.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 208

About the Author

Sandrine Collette was born in Paris in 1970. She divides her time between Nanterre, where she teaches philosophy and literature, and Burgundy, where she has a horse stud farm. She is the author of numerous novels, including Nothing but Dust (Europa, 2018), winner of the Landerneau Prize for crime fiction, and After the Wave (Europa, 2020). Alison Anderson’s translations for Europa Editions include novels by Sélim Nassib, Amélie Nothomb, and Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt. She has translated all of Muriel Barbery’s books, including the international bestseller The Elegance of the Hedgehog.

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