{"product_id":"9781897009895","title":"Thomas, A Secret Life: A Novel","description":"Writer, lover, spy: Life is nowhere near as good or as easy as Thomas Pichon imagined it would be. Set in early-18th-century France, Thomas: A Secret Life is the imagined life of Thomas Pichon. We first meet Thomas as a twelve-year old in the small town of Vire, Normandy. Precociously sensuous by nature, Thomas is inclined to poetry and religious\/erotic imaginings. A series of adolescent adventures provide striking background to his character.  Rejecting parental insistence that he become a priest, Thomas steals away to Paris in the middle of the night. There, nearly broke, Thomas works as a lowly office clerk, joins the ranks of aspiring French writers and makes extra money serving as a part-time spy for the police of Paris. But his careers advance too slowly for his liking, and he finds himself taking regular comfort and release in prostitutes’ stalls. A rendezvous with a high-class courtesan brings a new possibility and Thomas plots a future in which he can have his cake and eat it too.","brand":"Cape Breton University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47158316892400,"sku":"9781897009895","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781897009895_p0.jpg?v=1763610864","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781897009895","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}