Jean-François Le Mestre

A native of Brest, his early years were spent between the Menez-Paul and Guelmeur neighborhoods. These years would definitively anchor his Breton identity in this territory at the "end of the earth." As a teenager, Jean-François Le Mestre discovered life in Clichy-sous-Bois. This uprooting forged in him a sensitivity to social issues, reinforced by his career as an economics student at Paris XIII. He entered professional life by joining the external services of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, then a departmental administration in Occitanie, serving the most vulnerable populations. Now retired, he finally found the time to devote himself to writing. This new means of expression extends his quest for sharing through his novels, but also his thrillers, the action of which he willingly sets in Breton soil out of loyalty to his origins, and when inspiration comes, his poetry. In 2023, his detective novel "A Necklace Packs a Suitcase" was a finalist for the "Roz et Noir" suspense prize in Perros-Guirec.

Sophie, a young psychologist, begins her career in child protection. Her attention is drawn to the situation of two little girls, two sisters entrusted to a childminder. Confronted with the eldest's silence, whose puzzling behavior worries her teacher, she strives to adapt her investigative methods to unravel her mystery. She experiments with new strategies to overcome her resistance. Will her revelations about this child's reality result in a rethinking of the placement? When it comes to challenging the legal mysteries, she receives support she would never have dared to hope for. It will turn her life upside down through the succession of choices she faces both professionally and personally. Beyond the treatment of abuse, this novel highlights the humanity of the workers involved. It questions the working relationship and trust between social workers, the institutional environment, the police-justice duo, and the interference or misunderstandings with local elected officials. All these dimensions represent risks of dysfunctions that are detrimental to the child. Added to this are the history and emotional burden of the caregivers themselves... Published: April 1, 2025 Order Press release