The Girl with No Shadow: A Novel

By Joanne Harris

The wind has always dictated Vianne Rocher's every move, buffeting her from the French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes to the crowded streets of Paris. Cloaked in a new identity, that of widow Yanne Charbonneau, she opens a chocolaterie on a small Montmartre street, determined to still the wind at last and keep her daughters, Anouk and baby Rosette, safe. But the weather vane soon turns, and Zozie de l'Alba blows into their lives. Charming and enigmatic, Zozie provides the brightness that Yanne's life needs—as her vivacity and bold lollipop shoes dazzle rebellious and impressionable preadolescent Anouk. But beneath their new friend's benevolent façade lies a ruthless treachery—for devious, seductive Zozie has plans that will shake their world to pieces.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Oct 13, 2009
• ISBN: 9780061827846

Joanne Harris

Joanne Harris is the author of seven previous novels—Chocolat, Blackberry Wine, Five Quarters of the Orange, Coastliners, Holy Fools, Sleep, Pale Sister, and Gentlemen & Players; a short story collection, Jigs & Reels; and two cookbook/memoirs, My French Kitchen and The French Market. Half French and half British, she lives in England.

Reviews for The Girl with No Shadow

[avisannschild · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Chocolat is one of my all-time favourite books, so I was delighted to receive a copy of its sequel to review as part of LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program.The Girl with No Shadow focuses less on Vianne’s story—instead it is told in the alternating voices of Vianne, her daughter Anouk and the mysterious Zozie. Joanne Harris writes each character with a distinctive voice, which was a good thing since the images identifying each section were not always the correct ones in my Early Reviewers’ copy.While Chocolat could (almost) have taken place in the Middle Ages, this book has a much more modern feel, which contrasts more sharply with the book's magical elements. It is also darker in tone but as engaging and as full of memorable quirky secondary characters as Chocolat was. Harris writes with her usual flair; however, I felt it took Vianne too long to clue into what was really going on and the ending stretched the limits of my credulity.Harris has also neatly sidestepped the issue of the different endings in the book and movie versions of Chocolat, so this book works as a sequel to either. And although I generally don’t like it when publishers change the title of a novel to suit a different market, this time I think the American title better captures the darker edge of this book.

[kimkimkim-7 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"Children are knives....they don't mean to but they cut. And yet we cling to them, don't we, we clasp them until the blood flows"

I have read most of Joanne Harris books and enjoyed each in varying degrees. I loved this book. The format of giving the primary characters a totem and separate chapters to express their understanding of events added to the emotional roller coaster of the twists and turns of the story. And what a story it is. I found myself listening carefully to the nuances of each message that was being imparted and became caught up in what was to unfold. Magic? Well, perhaps we shouldn't dismiss what we can't explain or understand through simple logic.

[soniaandree_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It was a surprise - this second Opus in the 'Chocolat' trilogy is actually better than the first novel. The writing style is different, as we switch narrative voices from one chapter to the next, from Vianne to Zozie or Anouk. The supernatural elements are kept in check to the level of the 'uncanny' and glances. The plot is about the clash between two witches for the control of one child, and one of them is willing to go to great lengths to win. There is a lot of inner thoughts and psychology involved, as well as manipulation. In the end, this is a very entertaining book, unlike the first one of the series, but adds more dynamic to the inital plot. Well worth reading, even if you did not like 'Chocolat'!

[zjakkelien · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Hmm, I'm still debating about giving this book 4 or 5 stars. I loved The lollipop shoes. It continues the story of Vianne Rocher and her children from Chocolat. The atmosphere is great. Again, there is a chocolate shop in France, this time in Paris. Vianne, unfortunately, has lost herself, but her daughters Anouk and Rosette are delightful, and so is Zozie in the beginning. Zozie brings all the charm and magic that Vianne did in Chocolat. However, it becomes more and more clear as the book progresses that Zozie is not particularly scrupulous. And in order for Vianne to hold out against her, she needs to find herself again... Even though it becomes clear after a while that Zozie is not a good Samaritan, she is still intriguing to read about. I liked reading her bits as much as I did Vianne's and Anouk's. When Zozie's intentions come out in the open, the book even becomes exciting. The only reason I'm debating about the stars is that I put it away halfway through the book and didn't start it up again until I had a long train journey ahead of me. I think this was more my mood than it was the book, though...

[jlapac-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I wanted to meet up with Vianne and Anouk and was desperate for a good book. Sadly for this book, a whole bunch of books came to me all at once and this one got relegated to the bottom of the pile. Finally, after two renewals, I knew I had to finish it.

Again, I should have read Chocolat before starting this one. I didn't remember all the ending details of Chocolat. The author kept referring to what happened in their former home and it made me a bit lost. In the overall scheme of things, it didn't matter. I understood the story.

Harris is a writer that doesn't tell you everything. You have to guess and extrapolate quite a bit.

One problem I had with this book is the way it is written gives me a sense of foreboding for Vianne starting early on in the book. It made it a little stressful to read. Zozie, very clearly, didn't want the best for Vianne and that made me reluctant to delve into the book at the beginning.

I did like the way Anouk had more of a presence in the story. I think she comes into her own and learns a lot in this story. I think that we can all learn from Zozie's advice to her about being fabulous.

I do, generally, like [author:Joanne Harris}, however, so I persevered. She has good descriptions. I like the Advent window display and I also like her reference to Lollipop shoes. I think I am used to listening to her books and will continue to do that rather than reading them.

[periwinklejane_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Well that's confusing. In the US, this book is called The Girl with No Shadow. Apparently they don't have it listed as such on Goodreads!

I liked this book, I did. I thought it tied in well to Harris' recent young adult novel, Runemarks. Much of the same magic is used in No Shadow.

At times I get a little tired of the narrator coyly addressing the reader, you know what that's like, right? You feel like the narrator thinks she can read your mind? I know you do.

Luckily, she only does this with one character, and it suits the character.

So. It's a sequel to Chocolat, and what's quite jarring is that I was never sure when the first book was supposed to take place. Since I've watched the film several times (mainly to see Johnny Depp say, "I'll come over later and take that squeak out of your door.") I've imagined the 1950's as the setting. No Shadow quite obviously takes place in the present, cell phones and all.

[eruntane · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was very good, and very readable, but sadly not up to Joanne Harris's usual standard. It kept me turning the pages, but only to find out if I had guessed correctly what was going to happen, and disappointingly, most of the time I had. I used to love her books because they all had something new and different about them, but this just felt like a rehash of Chocolat and Gentlemen and Players rolled into one. Given that I was also disappointed by Runemarks, I can't help but wonder whether Joanne Harrris's spark is fading along with Vianne Rocher's. And if so, let's hope that Vianne's rebirth at the end will be echoed by a return to form in Harris's next book.

[stonelaura · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This is a rather long-winded sequel to Harris’ bestseller, Chocolat. We meet once again the characters of Vianne Rocher and her daughter Anouk as they are just settling into yet another city in their continual attempt to escape that haunting wind that brings the past swirling around them. This time it is the big city of Paris to which they flee in the hopes of finding anonymity. They are struggling to make a go of yet another chocolate shop, this time without the magical assistance that Vianne has chosen to leave behind as she strives to find a normal life now that she has to care not only for Anouk, but also for functionally challenged four year-old Rosette as well . Into their lives come two central characters, the scheming but irresistible Zozie, who like Vianne has hidden identities, and dependable but controlling Thierry, who offers security. There’s magic galore as Zozie puts her plan into action, sweeping talented and compliant Anouk into her web. We must wait much too long before Roux (who seems a bit less charming than Johnny Depp) to make his appearance, but it’s much less than the four years Vianne has had to wait. The characters are interesting even though the story takes much to long to reach its predictable conclusion.Reader Susanna Burney is a good match.

[stephaniechase_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Not quite what I expected -- this, the sequel to "Chocolat," is both more muddled and more obvious than the first, almost as if Harris wasn't quite sure what she wanted to do or wanted to hit the reader over the head with it.That being said, I had to keep reading it. Vianne may be less intriguing than in "Chocolat," but Anouk is a wonder, and her character (and her chapters) illuminate the novel.

[canalrat · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A Fun read, with magical descriptions of chocolate and people

[reader517 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Joanne Harris’s sequel to her sly, clever novel, Chocolat, finds Vianne and her two daughters living in Paris four years after the wind blew them out of the village of Lansquenet. Gone is the magic that enriched their lives and transformed the village, and that is fine by Vianne. Now calling herself Yanne, she only wants her family to be normal and safe, and on the surface, it seems to be. Anouk is now a pre-teen with an early adolescent’s normal angst. Her younger sister, Rosette, appears intelligent enough even if she can’t talk. And Yanne herself is soon to be engaged to her staid bourgeois landlord. Life couldn’t be more ordinary, until the fateful wind blows into their lives a mysterious and exotic woman who somehow seems to know all about “Yanne” and her family, and soon Vianne must face an adversary that threatens all she holds dear.Although it’s a sequel to Chocolat, The Girl With No Shadow is not Chocolat II. It is a darker, grittier story of mothers and daughters, and readers expecting the same Disneyesque charm of the first novel will find this contemporary fairy-tale more in the vein of the Brothers Grimm. My only quibble is I missed the zest of Vianne during most of the story. The villain was a much more compelling creation. Nevertheless, fans who loved Chocolat and want to continue the story will enjoy this book.

[auntie0nanuuq · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The Girl With No Shadow, by Joanne Harris

I'm not very far along, but I find this very disturbing....and it frightens me as well.....That Zozie woman I do not like, I know too many women like her and have had those bad experiences with them (I call it Bad Magic: Malice Aforethought)....and I am not sure that I will continue to read this book.

I'll just say, I skimmed most of the middle and it just didn't have that romance or fell good quality that "Chocolat" had.

This just had too much unveiled evil....I Loved "Chocolat" but truly it wasn't as creepy or disquieting as this book.

[angelajmaher · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this straight after Chocolat, but it still took several chapters to work out who was who and what was going on. The feel is quite different. It is a sequel, but I think it could be read as a standalone, and maybe better not read immediately after the first. An intriguing and mysterious tale.

[gribeaux_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good, but with a darker element than Chocolat. Think chocolat that has grown up and taken some responsibility for its actions. The ending, while satisfying is a bit too saccharine for me. The bad character is also just a little too self satisfied and has got away (until the end) with more than you'd think actually possible. Also not sure about the denouement re 'Vianne's mum.

[lehack · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful! Vianne Rocher and Anouk are back, The wind, and something else, compelled them to leave Lasquenet for Paris. It is now 4 years later. Vianne is still running a shop, but no longer making all of her special chocolates. Her landlord has proposed to her. Will she accept? Zozie d'Alba, who has stolen identities, comes into their lives. Zozie thinks she recognizes Vianne, and sees opportunity. Anouk, at an impressionable age, is totally under Zozie's spell. I kept thinking that Vianne is worldly enough to see what is going on. I received my copy yesterday and finished it tonight. This book is written in the same style as Chocolat with each chapter written from one of the main characters' perspective. If you enjoyed Chocolat (even if you only saw the movie), you will enjoy this sequel.

[karen_o_23 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In Joanne Harris' wonderful sequel to Chocolat we catch up with Vianne Rocher, daughters Anouk, now eleven, and four-year old Rosette in Montmartre. Vianne has changed her name to Yanne Charbonneau and Anouk is now known as Annie and the nameless chocolaterie she operates in Montmartre bears no resemblance to La Celeste Praline, the labor of love we knew from Chocolat. Vianne has somehow lost her spirit and has run so hard from the past that she's on the verge of marrying Thierry, a stolid older man of means whom you know instantly will never fit the real Vianne.Enter Zozie de l'Alba, a woman wearing lollipop shoes who possesses both sparkle and a past and practices a much darker sort of magic than Yanne, and things begin to change.Part Chocolat and part Gentlemen and Players with a Joanne Harris ending that satisfies, I enjoyed every one of these 400-plus pages and hope others do, too.

[h8denloose · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"The Girl With No Shadow" is not as lyrical, purely enjoyable, or lighthearted as "Chocolat," also by Joanne Harris. The book makes a lot more sense if the reader has read "Chocolat" before attempting to get into this, the sequel. The beloved main character from "Chocolat", Vianne Rocher, has hidden herself in a new chocolaterie in the streets of Montmarte, for reasons that gradually unfold over the course of the sequel. However, Vianne is almost too effectively hidden; the reader finds it hard to see her as the same character that was so delightful and full of life in "Chocolat". Luckily, Anouk, Vianne's daughter, is there and familiar even as she is growing up and changing in the ways that pre-teens do--and in other ways that are quite unique. Other characters from "Chocolat" appear at unexpected times and in unexpected ways. But most of the action is taken up by a cast of new characters, none of them as endearing as those that frequented Vianne's chocolaterie in the previous tale. At the same time that "The Girl With No Shadow" is darker, it is also much deeper than its predecessor. With numerous complications and three narratives telling the story, the reader is definitely kept entertained and interested until the somewhat surprising but satisfying conclusion.

[ishtahar · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A wonderful, magical, mystical tour of chocolate and Mountmatre, of prejudice and lies and the fear of being who we truly are. A worthy sequel to Choclat, which makes me want to re-read said book. And a wonderful re-appearance of Roux. Harris language makes you smell and taste the surroundings she describes, to love and hate the characters in equal measure, to empathise with their human foibles and to weep at the way magic is lost from our lives. Read it. I demand of you :)

[sslibrary · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Sequel to Chocolat, published as The Lollipop Shoes outside of U.S.Chocolat was full of colors and enchantment that we never really knew the source of. The Girl with No Shadow reveals these right away. This story starts with none of the enchantment and mystery of Chocolat. We are introduced to Zozie who is leaving her previous life. Each chapter comes from the point of view of either Zozie, Vianne, or Anouk. This threw me at first until I realized we had switched characters. Roux returns but is not the same character he was in Chocolat. Vianne’s life before Chocolat and between that story and this one is explained where Chocolat never really addressed this. For some reason I always got the impression that Chocolat took place in the 1950s or so, but according to this story it took place in the present. Vianne and Anouk seem out of place in the present day, and it was hard to wrap my mind around.It was a good story, but kind of flat for me. I prefer Chocolat.

[kindschi · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another great book by Joanne Harris. A sequel to Chocolate it continues the life of Vianne four years after the end of the first book.Much has changed for Vianne and Anouk. Vianne only wants to fit in and be invisible. Anouk can't understand why they have to do that. She is growing and changing Vianne sees her own past in her. Zozie joints the group and works herself into their lives. Vianne keeps wondering what she wants and what the price she'll have to pay in the end is.Roux (Johnny Depp in the movie) comes to Paris to find them. He feels that Vianne is in trouble. Imagine his surprise when he finds her engaged to another man and with a four year old daughter named, Rosette.The winds of change are blowing take a trip along with it to find out what happens as the magic comes alive.

[sueincyprus · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a sequel to Joanne Harris's first (and very popular) novel 'Chocolat'. Told from three perspectives, it has more of an occult thread than previous books by this author. As the book progresses, it becomes a good vs evil battle, increasingly dark in places.

Very well written, full of symbolism and stories, with a reassuring ending. Hard to put down once started!

[phoebesmum · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm never sure if it's really okay to like Joanne Harris, or if she's a bit naff. Let's go out on a limb and say yes, she probably is, but I find her quite readable anyway. This is a follow-up to 'Chocolat', with Vianne cowed and almost unrecognisable after her daughter's supernatural talents lead to tragedy, and easy prey for a travelling con artist (and worse). Rather unfortunately, the villain's the most colourful element in the book, but the rest of it jogs along fairly comfortably. As ever, Montmartre is romanticised out of all recognition, but that seems to be its main purpose in life these days.

[nordie_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the follow on from Chocolat and set 4 years later. When reading C, I hadnt realised how modern the setting was - it was only in this book and the talk of Euros, that I realised it was an early 21st century story, rather than set mid 20th.Lots more magic in this book, both of European and South American. It is the story (in part) of Vianne and Zozie, and what Vianne is prepared to lose in order to gain what she believes is a normal life for her and her two daughters. Zozie starts taking over Vianne's life, building up the chocolate shop just as Vianne had done in Chocolate, and winning over Vianne's older daughter. Finally Vianne has to decide on what she wants in this world Agree that it's perhaps a little long, and the main disadvantage when reading Harris' books - I have a near overriding urge to Bake! (I've even hunted out the cookery book and may inflict the results on people!).

[christinelstanley · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a fabulous book, but it's not until the end, that you realise just how good it is. 4.5 stars, but since it stalls a bit in the middle, I can't quite give 5 stars. Much more magic and much darker than Chocolat, but excellent.

[pokarekareana · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another complex web of chocolate, French magical realism, inane chatter about imaginary animals, and the return of Roux, as played by Johnny Depp in the film version of Chocolat. What’s not to love? My only real criticism is that it feels a bit like Joanne Harris has changed the cover of her mega-mammoth-massive bestseller, added a couple more chapters, replaced every instance of the word “Lasquenet” with “Paris”, and let this one out into the world. My recommendation is simple – if you liked Chocolat, you’ll like this. If you didn’t, you won’t. I did. Joanne Harris still does something wonderful, and her books invariably make me a bit hungry.

[bedazzledeternally · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I started this book with a lot of expectations and i am happy to report that I enjoyed it thoroughly. Joanne Harris's Lollipop shoes is like dark,creamy chocolate with a hint of spice-totally heady and difficult to resist. Narrated from three POVs(Yanne, Anouk and Zozie), the narrative flows seamlessly. I loved how Joanne let a huge chunk of the narrative be told from Zozie's perspective- I don't really think i have read too many novels that have been narrated from the Villain's point of view.Also,even the minor characters seemed etched out and the writing exceptionally vivid.Despite being a sequel to Chocolat, this one reads like a stand-alone book.I don't think not reading the first book before tackling his one matters much.The spells,totems,fables and stories about faeries and witches that Zozie and Yanne mention make the book more exotic and fascinating.It's no secret that I am a huge fan of magic realism-Joanne's book is a fine specimen of that genre.The writing is measured,yet intimate and warm,just like the characters in the book. There is something dangerously appealing about a slinky,chameleon-like villain and I loved Zozie's character the most(even more than Anouk and Yanne.). The bullying and name-calling that goes on in schools also forms a huge part of the story -atleast when the narration is done from the perspective of the eleven year-old Anouk.Joanne's writing is breathtaking and flows beautifully.This has to be one of the best books I have read in a long, long time and I don't think I can rave enough about it. People who are fascinated with the art of chocolate-making will love the details that Joanne shares with us and the book is about good food as much as it is about anything else.Sample some of her writing .."That red-orange flare as the fire spread ,leaping and tumbling and somersaulting like an evil acrobat from a rail of scarves to a trapeze of dreamcatchers and finally to a stack of books.""The problem is me.I just don't match.I'm the wrong shape,somehow the wrong colour.I like the wrong books.I watch the wrong films in secret.I'm different whether they like it or not and I don't see why i should pretend otherwise."Overall,an awesome book I'll recommend to lovers of good fiction.A full 5 on 5 from me.I am going to hunt down and read every single book written by this incredibly talented lady.

[mamashepp · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This f/u to "Chocolat" is more complicated than its predecessor and deals much more with magic than the first book. There were a couple of gaps between the first book and this one (the relationship between Josephine and Roux seems to have been forgotten entirely)and I felt like Roux was a much weaker character in this book. But this one does compel you to keep reading even more than "Chocolat" because of the story line and I enjoyed the new characters.

[dslynn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The wind blows a new Chameleon Witch into the life of Vianne Rocher thus, the sequel to Chocolat does not disappoint. The characters are all fully developed enticing you to stay up all night savoring this story!

[cookiedemon · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The follow up to the utterly fabulous `Chocolat' catches up with Vianne Rocher and her daughters Anouk and Rosette, who are now living in Montmartre, Paris under new identities and still trying to run from those `ill winds' that Vianne feels are determined to ruin everything for them. One day a complete stranger, Zozie, blows into their lives. Seemingly Vianne's new fairy godmother, is Zozie really everything she seems?This, like Chocolat, is a magical, intriguing story of family, mother-daughter relationships, romance and of course, chocolate! Set four years after the prequel, it is told in 3 first person narratives and is wonderfully written with a touch of the occult about it- it is definitely much darker than Chocolat is in that respect, though I found that fascinating to read about, personally. There is also the introduction of a few new characters- locals who really add a great splash of colour to the story, as well as the return of a couple of old favourites of mine.At first I did think that having three narrators to this tale might be a bit problematic, but it wasn't at all and added a new depth to the story- which chapter is told by whom is identified by the little characters at the top of each chapter, so it is made obvious who is talking. I particularly liked understanding events from Anouk's point of view too- being on the cusp of your teenage years is hard enough without having to contend with the fact that you have magical powers! The way that Anouk was given her own voice here really worked.I have to say that I didn't like Zozie at all, but her manipulation made for interesting reading and she was certainly a memorable protagonist. I suppose I was most disappointed with Vianne (Yanne) who seems to have changed so much since Chocolat that it was like reading about a different person- I know this is the point of course and she is now trying to make a concerted effort to fit in and fade into her surroundings, but it felt a bit like losing an old friend at times as she is so different here. Sad I know!Like I've said, this was a really lovely book (I don't think I have ever read a Harris novel that has disappointed me yet, actually), but personally I would recommend reading Chocolat first just so you get to know the characters and their lives up to this point. This can be read as a standalone, obviously, but it seems a shame not to read about Vianne and Anouk's lives before they came to Paris. Those who have already read Chocolat will not be disappointed with this offering - it is a really well written tale and will still have you craving some of the delectable sugary delights that Joanne Harris describes, so make sure you have some good quality chocolate to hand whilst you are reading this! *This review also appears on Amazon.co.uk*

[eas311 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I like books about magic and chocolate. Mainly chocolate.