The Inheritance of Pain Saga

Sour Cherries | The Fifth Apple | St. John’s Walnuts

In three villages in the Přerov region, several families see their lives marked by war, the postwar period, and the arrival of the communist regime. Over fifteen years, silenced secrets, hidden crimes, and decisions made under pressure are passed from one generation to the next, affecting women, men, and children who struggle to survive, love, and preserve their dignity in an environment where the past never truly disappears.

The Inheritance of Pain Saga is a historical fiction series set in the Moravian region of Přerov between 1944 and 1959.

Through three interconnected novels portraying life in small Czech villages during and after World War II, the author shows how war, political violence, and regime change directly impact family relationships, personal decisions, and the future of several generations.

The trilogy combines standalone stories with characters and events that reappear or are mentioned from one book to another, thus building a continuous narrative about postwar Czechoslovakia.

At the core of the saga are rural communities marked by recent traumatic events, family secrets, and moral conflicts derived from the historical context. Childhood interrupted by violence, unwanted motherhood, the loss of private property, ideological pressure, and the difficulty of escaping the past are central themes. Real historical events directly influence the characters’ decisions and the development of the plots. The action is grounded in recognizable everyday settings: rural schools, family orchards, inherited houses, and small communities where everyone knows one another and where every secret eventually comes to light.

In Sour Cherries (Kyselé třešně), the story is set in 1944 and 1945 in the village of Lověšice, near Přerov. Petr, a young schoolteacher with a physical disability, arrives at the local school and begins a relationship with Lota, a widow stigmatized for having had a daughter out of wedlock.

As the relationship progresses and Lota becomes pregnant, the presence of Gustav, a violent man who claims to be the girl’s father, heightens tensions in the village.

After the end of the war, Petr is deceived into taking part in a supposed excavation task and becomes a forced witness to the Švédské šance massacre. Unable to cope with what he has witnessed, he takes his own life, leaving Lota pregnant and alone.

In The Fifth Apple (Páté jablko), the action takes place between 1946 and 1950 in Předmostí, near Přerov, and follows the Franek family, owners of an orchard and fruit business. The parents, Anděla and Fabián, attempt to maintain the family enterprise in an increasingly hostile environment for small property owners.

The romantic conflicts of their sons, Teodor and Eduard, along with the arrival of the communist regime, disrupt the family’s balance. Valja, the couple’s goddaughter, is rejected as a potential bride by both brothers at different times. After a confrontation with Betty, Eduard’s wife, Valja accidentally causes her death and conceals what happened with the help of an elderly villager.

Consumed by guilt, she eventually confesses the crime while the family simultaneously faces the loss of their business and the advance of political repression.

In St. John’s Walnuts (Svatojánské ořechy), set in 1958 and 1959 in the village of Dluhonice, the story centers on the teenager Vilemína, who lives with her grandfather Hanuš and her great-grandmother Juliana in a house known for a family tradition linked to the early harvesting of walnuts.

The family situation is shaped by the past of her mother, Albína, rejected by the village because of her relationship with a German soldier during the war and her later role as an agitator for the communist regime.

At the same time, unresolved conflicts resurface among former village friends connected to betrayals and losses suffered during the war. The plot culminates in an attempted murder, a death that prevents that crime, and Albína’s subsequent emigration, closing the trilogy with the final consequences of decisions made many years earlier.

RELEVANT INFORMATION: Lenka Chalupová is a Czech writer and journalist whose work has won over a broad readership thanks to her blend of historical fiction and mystery. Since her debut, Chalupová has published more than a dozen titles combining dramatic and investigative plots with a deep connection to the country’s history. She has been recognized with the Olomouc District Literature Award, a distinction that highlights both her narrative quality and her impact on the contemporary Czech literary scene.

The Inheritance of Pain Saga is a strong historical fiction project with high audiovisual potential due to its grounding in real events and its focus on universal human conflicts. Through three connected yet autonomous stories, the saga combines intimate drama, family saga, and thriller elements within a rural setting. Its chronological progression allows for a clear serialized adaptation, showing the evolution of Czechoslovak society from the end of World War II to the consolidation of the communist regime. The rural settings, complex characters, and recognizable historical events facilitate a realistic, intense adaptation that is easily accessible to international audiences.

AUDIOVISUAL POTENTIAL: TV Series, Miniseries, Feature Film, TV Movie.

AVAILABLE LANGUAGES: Czech.