The Pyrenees

The Pyrenees mountains stretch for 480km from the Atlantic coast across to the Mediterranean forming an impressive natural frontier between France and Spain. They rose from beneath a shallow sea millions of years ago when the European and African continental plates collided. Since then the gigantic glaciers that covered most of Europe during the last great ice age have shaped the magical natural features we see here today.

The Pyrenees mountains are not just a geographical barrier between France and Spain, but a divide of culture, climate, flora and fauna and way of life between two very different countries. The Pyrenees are one of the last wilderness areas of Europe and can only really be appreciated on foot. 

The Capcir plateau offers hiking trails to short walks and Capcir and Haut Conflent are traversed by the GR10 and HRP (marked long distance footpaths) linking Hendaye to Banyuls.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Who were the Cathars

"The Cathars were heretics without a name. The word Cathar is a slang name, used by Catholics as an insult. The words Perfect, the elect, and Credentes for the followers are similarly lifted from the annals of the Inquisition. They called themselves Good men, Good Women or simply Good Christians. They were, undeniably, dualists who believed that there were two Gods – the good God of the spiritual world and the Bad God of the material world. Accordingly the material world was of no interest. They believed that you had to reach a spiritual enlightenment in order to finally reach the Good God. The Catholic Church with its sacraments, relics, rules and prohibitions was seen as, at best, an irrelevancy to the Cathars. Catholics had simply missed the point.

The Catholic Church in Languedoc was a sad mess at this time, the late 12th Century. Corrupt and worldly Archbishops and Bishops led a trail of usury, ignorance and malpractice right down to the average village priest, who probably had a few concubines and was woefully ignorant of the substance of Christianity. In comparison the wandering Perfect were ascetic, saintly men who ate no meat, were celibate, learned and lived as simple, wandering artisans. They had little difficulty winning adherents. But while dualism was rife throughout southern Europe there were special reasons for its success in the Occitan; as mentioned, the Church was feeble, but the feudal system had not thrown up the central organisation it had in Northern France and England. The ancient custom of dividing land equally between all children, men and women, had seen to that. Cathar Perfect could be women as well as men, and many of the leading lights of Catharism were noble women of limited, but independent means. The Occitan was a fragmented, independent state, not easily controlled or regulated.

And so the Dualist faith thrived. In many mountain villages Dualists were in the majority while in towns like Carcassonne or the region’s capital, Toulouse, Cathars and orthodox Christians (and indeed, Jews, remarkably enough) rubbed shoulders happily, each content to worship their own."

This quotation is taken from a website authored by Brian Creese.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Walking in Capcir, France, Pyrenees

Walking in Capcir
Some of the best walking in Europe can be found in the Pyrenees with the summits attainable for most relatively fit walkers. There are plenty of well maintained footpaths and marked trails that criss cross this mountain range from coast to coast. This photo was taken by one of the many small lakes in Capcir.



You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Walking in Capcir

Capcir - walk the same trails as John in the novel

Walking through the Pyrenees

 Starting the tour de CapcirA short minibus journey takes us into the Capcir, a high bowl of lakes pasture and forest surrounded by mountains and known locally as "Petit Sibire" (little Siberia) which tells you a lot about its winters. We start walking from the pretty village of Matemale and skirt the eastern side of the Capcir in a long day of forest tracks and paths, with cracking views across to the Puig Carlit (our eventual high point of the week, and the highest peak in the area, even higher than the famous Canigou). Skirting the lake of we cross its dam to the old village of Puyvalador then on up a beautiful side valley to the hamlet of Espousouille.

CamporellsWe leave our friendly gite d'étape and follow the Vall de Galba upwards into the mountains. A good path takes us to the remote and beautiful Camporells refuge (bunk beds, outside toilet, basic food). A gorgeous spot.

Traverse of the PéricsThe two mountains in front of the hut are the little and big Pérics. We will climb them both by some extremely steep paths followed by a descent involving a bit of scrambling, down the northeast ridge. Vistas of mountains all round, a good chance of seeing vultures, and possibly a lammergeier. We traverse the Puig de la Cometa and drop down to the even more remote hut of D'En Beys. Similar accommodation.
Into the Vall d’Orlu
We leave the Camporells and retrace our steps of day 4 briefly before heading up the mountain to the Estany del Diable, the Lake of the Devil! We cross the ridge and descend steeply into the Orlu valley. We make our way up to the remote Refuge d’En Beys.

Puig CarlitHopefully you had a good rest because this is the big one. An early start heading south down the very remote valley then we strike steeply up the western flank of Puig Carlit, at 2921m the highest peak in the Capcir, and in this part of the Pyrenees for that matter. Tremendous views from the top. We then descend a long rough path followed by wanderings on green pasture next to a multitude of shimmering lakes, with semi-wild herds of horses. Finally we drop down to the huge Bouillouses reservoir and cross its dam to get to the relatively opulent Bouillouses refuge. We can even go out to dinner, as there is a bar/restaurant next door!

Completing the circleA relatively relaxed start and we soon strike off into the forest. Coming out onto alpine pasture we skirt the Lac d'Aude and easily ascend Mont Llaret behind it. Superb views of our previous adventures. A steep descent through the forest brings us out onto a forest road and down to the beautiful lake of Balcere with its little cafe and ardent anglers. From here we follow the forest track to the village of Les Angles. The lake of Matemale glitters below. We descend and skirt the lake (possibility of a swim) then a short pleasant walk through open woodland takes us back to Matemale, and we are soon back at the hotel.

Further infomration can be found at the Pyrenees walking website .

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Pascal on the Pyrenees...

“There are truths on this side of the Pyrenees, which are falsehoods on the other.”

Blaise Pascal


You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Plotting a novel is like sex

Plotting is like sex. Plotting is about desire and satisfaction, anticipation and release. You have to arouse your reader's desire to know what happens, to unravel the mystery, to see good triumph. You have to sustain it, keep it warm, feed it, just a little bit, not too much at a time, as your story goes on. That's called suspense. It can bring desire to a frenzy, in which case you are in a good position to bring off a wonderful climax.

But also

Plotting isn't like sex, because you can go back and adjust it afterwards. Whether you plan your story beforehand or not, if the climax turns out to be the revelation that the mad professor's anti-gravity device actually works, you must go back and silently delete all those flying cars buzzing around the city on page one. If you want to reveal something, you need to hide it properly first.
(Colin Greenland)

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Reading and writing

"The novel is an event in consciousness. Our aim isn't to copy actuality, but to modify and recreate our sense of it. The novelist is inviting the reader to watch a performance in his own brain. " - George Buchanan

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Available in print

The popular novel  Capcir Spring by Jean de Beurre has been published by CreateSpace and is available on Amazon in the UK and USA. 

The ISBN numbers are ISBN-10: 1477574964  ISBN-13: 978-1477574966

In the US you can find the book here.  for just $7.99

In the UK the book can be found here...  for just £5.99

If you have not got a Kindle you can still enjoy this book.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Capcir Spring kindle novel - character profiles number 2: John

John is

• forty something years old
• a Roman Catholic priest
• A Jesuit
• who has very human failings 
• is in a remote area of France to think about his vocation
• has been working at a church based counselling centre in the inner city
• is a trained and accredited counsellor
• left catholic school for seminary and has been in the church all his life
• is at a crisis point in his life
• is perceptive and open yet embarassed about his own recent history

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Character studies number one - Mary

Mary

• Mary is the heroine.
• She is researching the Cathars in the French Pyranean mountains for her academic career. 
• Since the end of her marriage she has devoted herself to historical research and wants to be a professor.
• She is in her 30s, blond, intelligent and many consider her stunningly attractive. 
• She is very sensitive to atmospheres and has a lively imagination. 
• Mary has given up on relationships after the failure of her marriage in a painful and violent way.
• She has seen the church at work from the inside and is suspicious of the motives and actions of the clergy. 
• A single minded determination to become someone known in her own right for her own achievements is deeply embedded in her psyche
• This novel describes how, whilst pursuing her academic goals, her world is turned upside down and the possibility of another future emerges.
• It is a novel which contains intrigue, crime, romance, mystery in a beautiful setting and with a credible historical background based on recent research.
  

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Capcir Spring the Kindle novel

Mary had her life all planned out. A summer in the French mountains researching the Cathars would be the launch pad for a prestigious academic career.

She was confident that she had had rebuilt her life after the traumatic and violent end to her marriage. But in these peaceful Pyrenean mountains the bloody persecution of the Cathars by the inquisition haunts her dreams. This is made worse when her nightmares mix this violent history with flashbacks to her own painful past.

In this state she discovers a plan that would damage her recently discovered heritage site. There are a group of people who don't want her research to be made public.

John is also staying in the same mountains to escape the painful memories of his failure and loss.

Can these two scarred people help each other and protect the archaeological remains? Who amongst the bizarre range of people that they meet can be trusted? And will they discover the happiness that they have each been seeking for a long time?

Jean de Beurre knows the Capcir plateau well and writes a tightly paced story of mystery and intrigue, tinged with the hope of love. 

You can get a copy of this novel for your Amazon Kindle "by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Capcir in winter

The lovely old village of Les Angles in Capcir in winter.....

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Iglesiettes

Les Iglesiettes, the place in the hills where in Jean de Beurre's novel "Capcir Spring" Mary discovers Cathar remains really exists

Ruins of an old village near Les Angles. The red building in the back is an old church.

This photo was taken by Adam Fowler on April 8, 2010 in Les Angles, Languedoc-Roussillon, France, using a Canon EOS 500D. It is available to share on Flickr.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Kindle free books

Capcir Spring has been included by Jean de Beurre in a book giveaway tomorrow (Friday, 13 April 2012).  The group of authors involved will be offering over 70 books free on the Kindle Store at Amazon.com.  All of the books can be found at:  

Book bonanza freebies for kindle....

Where is Capcir?

Capcir is in France near the border with Spain and Andorra

It is a part of the Pyrenees high in the mountains....

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

The novel "Capcir Spring" will be available for free on Amazon for your Kindle on Friday 13th April 2012.

A chance to read my novel without it costing you anything!

Best wishes

Jean de Beurre

In this novel of about 70,000 words, set in contemporary France, Jean de Beurre brings together insights from psychology, history and theology in a romantic adventure.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Please note the following important information from Amazon:

Free promotions will start at approximately 12:00 AM Pacific Standard Time on the date specified. Depending on system latencies, it may take a few minutes to several hours for the free promotion to start.

Free promotions will end at approximately 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time on the date specified. Depending on system latencies, it may take a few minutes to several hours for the free promotion to end.

Jean de Beurre

Some interesting facts about Jean de Beurre.

Jean de Beurre:

• lives in central Scotland
• writes fiction 
• finished Capcir Spring in 2005 and it was first published by Lulu in 2006. The kindle edition came out in 2012
• has also published a book of short stories
• is working on a new novel set in Glasgow
• is married with grown up children
• is a Christian (liberal - middle of the road)
• enjoys travel and photography
• studied both urbanism and theology at post grad level at University (at different times)
• has worked in the voluntary sector for over 20 years
• enjoys cycling
• sung in the musical "The Music Man" in 2011
• is on the board of an environmental charity
• was the editor of a fellowship journal for over 10 years
• has written numerous articles and book reviews for magazines and newspapers
• likes the operettas of Gilbert and Sullivan

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Special Offer

The novel "Capcir Spring" will be available for free on Amazon for your Kindle on Friday 13th April 2012.

A chance to read my novel without it costing you anything!

Best wishes

Jean de Beurre

In this novel of about 70,000 words, set in contemporary France, Jean de Beurre brings together insights from psychology, history and theology in a romantic adventure.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Please note the following important information from Amazon:

Free promotions will start at approximately 12:00 AM Pacific Standard Time on the date specified. Depending on system latencies, it may take a few minutes to several hours for the free promotion to start.

Free promotions will end at approximately 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time on the date specified. Depending on system latencies, it may take a few minutes to several hours for the free promotion to end.

Capcir Spring - The opening pages - Start to read here

Chapter One

Thesmall settlement, nestling in a wide clearing on the floor of thehigh valley, was silent after the last activities of the day. Thestockade gates were shut and there was no movement in or around thethatched wooden huts inside the boundary of the heavy timber fencing.All was still except for an isolated spiral of smoke drifting up fromthe glowing cinders of an outdoor earth hearth. The last daylight wassinking above the outline of the distant mountain peaks and the sky,which moments before had been red was turning slowly through purpleto blue black.

Anowl hooted twice and was almost immediately answered by another fromthe other side of the valley. And then there was fire. Fire wasapproaching the stockade from up the valley and down. At first therewere just a few torches but all the while their number expanded intoa mighty army of individual flames that together brought a flickeringorange glow to the leaves of the overhanging trees and even to thenight sky itself. From among the mass of torches flaming missilesflew through the night air and almost immediately the roof of one andthen another of the thatched huts was alight.

Asudden anguished cry ripped through the darkness as the sleepingvillagers were harshly shocked out of their slumbers. More screamsfilled the night air as people of all ages were kicked awake and ranat first in blind confusion but then, lemming like, together, to findsanctuary in the chapel, the one stone building of the settlement, atthe centre of the stockade. The noise and light and fire seemed tobe coming at them from all sides. The gates had been broken down andthe fiery torches were inside. They were moving closer, advancingslowly, setting aflame all that was in their pathway. Where wassafety now? The chapel was crammed full of frightened, tremblingbodies. The air was heavy with the smell of fire and sweat and fear.

Itoo followed the crowds and headed for the chapel. It already seemedfull. I could hardly get in. As one of the last to arrive I wasstanding in the doorway. I could feel the press of bodies coweringbehind me but I was facing outwards. The chapel was too small. Therewere too many people and it was too late to bar the door. They werealmost upon us. In the torchlight the approaching faces were grossand distorted. I could see that they were full of rage and hatred.

ThenI saw James. There could be no mistake. The same familiar outlines,the gangling gait, the prominent forehead and weak chin. Thetorchlight deepened the shadows under his sunken eyes giving his facea menacing quality. He was at the front of the crowd. It was Jameswho was leading them on and they were chanting in unison. He wasleading the rhythmic chant. I didn't understand the words but Isensed a pure hatred tinged with fear. His face was distorted in anviolent grimace of blood lust that I had seen once before. Theiranger bit into my flesh as physical pain. In his right hand was asword. Slowly, with small steps and in time with the chanting theymoved ever closer.

Angrymen with torches and swords and spears and staves were beside him anda mass of hate filled faces were crowding behind. Their advanceinched forward step by step. The cowering mass behind me in thechapel was now screaming. Voices of young and old united in acrescendo of terror, prayer, supplication and fear. And then theywere at the door, a few yards from my face. One from the advancingthrong threw a flaming torch over my head and it sailed over me intothe crowded chapel. I was conscious of a strong pressure from behindas those inside moved to avoid the fiery missile. Bodies pressedagainst trembling bodies and I was being pushed inevitably towardsthe enemy. I was being forced forwards. I was being forced to movecloser and closer to the raw hatred and the swords and the fire andthe certainty of death. Oh God! No! No!

*****

Thescream pierced the silence of the Pyrenean mountain valley. It was asultry day in early May. The sky was a cloudless blue, typical ofthat region of France. John was hot. He had been walking for severalhours and though it was not long since his lunch break, he was againlooking for somewhere out of the glaring sun to rest. He was amblinggently down a track that wound into a little wide floored clearing inthe valley with some ancient stone ruins. Then there was a scream. Itwas a sound he remembered vividly. It started quite softly almost asa low pitched, half stifled murmur but it gradually grew louderuntil a high pitched whine flooded the lightly wooded valley andechoed round the rocks and hills above............................... 

In this novel of about 70,000 words, set in contemporary France, Jean de Beurre brings together insights from psychology, history and theology in a romantic adventure.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you

Capcir Spring is now on Kindle

This romantic adventure, set in the French Pyrenees is now available as a download from Kindle.

Mary thought she had left her past behind as she starts exploring Cathar remains in the Pyreneen mountains as part of her post doctoral research. Her nightmares not only relive the painful persecution of local people by the Inquisition but are also mixed up with flashbacks to more recent events in her life. When Mary discovers a plan to destroy the heritage site that she has discovered, she joins forces with John to protect the mountains. Unknown to her John too is trying to escape from a painful past in the quiet, out of season French ski resort. In the conservation battle they join forces with an eccentric group of new age travellers. Both Mary and John have to overcome their personal demons and so rediscover what is really important in their lives.

In this novel of about 70,000 words, set in contemporary France, Jean de Beurre brings together insights from psychology, history and theology in a romantic adventure.

You can get your copy of my ebook  "Capcir Spring"by clicking HERE if you are in the USA or here if you are in the UK  Thank you