A transcontinental, romantic memoir in the vein of A Year in Provence and Eat, Pray, Love.What do you say when a man you've dated a handful of times asks you to go live with him in a mill by a river in France? The obvious answer is: 'Are you out of your mind?' Maria Hoyle's was: 'Okay.'At the age of 63 she left her life in Auckland—her two daughters, her dog, her friends, a beautiful rental by a beach, and everything she'd loved for more than two decades—to settle in a tiny French village with a partner she barely knew. What could possibly go wrong?Maria arrived in the remote hamlet with trepidation but also a little bravado—after all, with a degree in French, she was confident about communicating with the locals. And yes—that part was mostly fine (apart from some amusing faux pas). The true challenges were learning to communicate with her new partner, Alistair (they were smitten with each other, but also sitting on a pile...