A sadly compelling story, reading it was like watching a rabbit caught in the headlights of a speeding car - you know it is going to end badly but you can't do anything to stop the inevitable.

I was delighted to have the opportunity to reread this NZ classic, as it is a short, but powerful tale simply told.
The narrator recounts a war comrade's story, of a weekend in France during the German Occupation, World War II.
Corporal Saul Scourby goes looking for 'a bit of loot or crumpet' in the semi-deserted village one evening and meets the lovely copperheaded Belle. Three Frenchmen are also close by and Belle says they wish to kill her.
Saul invites himself into her cottage, to hear her story and soon finds himself with a dilemma on his hands.
This has variously been described as a war story, a love story but it is so much more than that as we are confronted with the appaling situations that occur in wartime. ( )