Emile —, French author of the novels Germinal and Therese Raquin (4)

I believe the answer is:

zola

(Other definitions for zola that I've seen before include "Emile --, French author" , "19th-century French novelist" , "French novelist, defender of Dreyfus, d. 1902" , "See 15" , "European writer" .)

I've seen this clue in The Mirror.

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