Spurgeon and Hesse in the Garden of Montreuil - Michael L. Smith

A chance meeting or divine predestination?

A garden in France. A conversation that cuts to the soul.

In the Garden of Montreuil, a recovering Charles H. Spurgeon encounters a young Hermann Hesse.

What begins as polite conversation becomes a sustained clash of ideas-faith and doubt, grace and freedom, God and the modern self.

Set at the dawn of the twentieth century, this historical literary novella unfolds almost entirely in dialogue, drawing readers into a quiet but intense struggle between Christian theology and existential philosophy. Spurgeon speaks with pastoral warmth and conviction. Hesse presses toward inward truth and rebellion against dogma.

For readers of literary historical fiction, theological novels, and stories that explore belief, unbelief, and the cost of conviction.