Lights and Shadows

A man alone in an empty house somewhere in the Solagne region of France. Despite the pleasent light of spring, the man is prey to anguished thoughts : a brewing storm, the blood of two children, a face glimpsed behind a windowpane, sleepless nights spent waiting for the dawn. The man is Vincet Delaune, a famous novelist. But he is having a hard time finisshing his latedt book. A stone's throw from his house, two little girls were killed. In spite of Vincent's disgust at the crime, he is irresistably drawn to the little abandoned train station where the bodies of the twins were found...

Over several generations, the story of an aristocratic French family spanning the 20th Century, from the two World Wars to the social and political upheavals of May 1968. Facing adversity, old Duke Sosthène tries to keep traditions alive.

In 1668, in the Cotentin region, witchcraft was still widely practiced. To get rid of an overly strict priest, a gathering of heretics took advantage of the night of Saint Martin to organize a sabbath. A young boy found himself involved in this black mass against his will. The religious authorities decided to investigate and punish the miscreants...

Julien, fifteen-year-old, meets Nathalie, a girl his age whom he falls in love. Soon she is expecting a child. Their parents take the news with reservations. The baby will come and with it, the difficult learning of life.