Overview

"""Ambitious, subtle, engrossing"" (LES ECHOS) ""An unforgettable novel"" (PARIS MATCH) Ever since childhood, Nelly Alard has had two passions: Empress Elizabeth of Austria -the legendary Sisi- and Hollywood movie stars. When she discovers the story of Elissa Landi, a 1930s film star whose mother, Countess Karoline Zanardi Lands, claimed to be the empress's secret child, Alard decides she needs to know more. After years of digging into the mystery, she manages to find Elissa Landi's daughter, who tells her she believes her grandmother's tale and hands Alard the keys to a behemoth of a family archive, within which lies -or so Aland hopes, along with the reader- the definitive proof that Karoline was telling the truth. While recounting her investigation and retracing the amazing lives of Karoline and Elissa, Alard takes us through the ups and downs of her own career as an actress, from her promising debuts in Hollywood to her first literary efforts, all related to the empress in one way or another. As we follow the author's long search for her true calling, we become aware of an intricate web of coincidences and echoes between her own existence and those of her three heroines -Elisabeth, Karoline, and Elissa. Set in Paris, New York, Los Angeles, London and Vienna among other places, and in spite of its rich historical subject matter, award-winning author Nelly Alard's third novel intertwines different epochs and characters with such fluidity that they all come to life, vivid and authentic. Full of surprising twists and witty personal insights, it is as brilliant in its formal aspects as it is thought-provoking and surprising in content. Published in France by Gallimard in 2020, it was enthusiastically received by both audience and press: ""A gripping investigation shot through with cheerful humor"" (ELLE MAGAZINE) ""An enthralling quest that is also a superb self-portrait in which the personal lives and destinies of the heroines intermingle and mirror one another."" (LE FIGARO) ""A fascinating investigation where fiction merges with reality. Surprising - different from anything you've read before"" (L'OBS) ""Portraits of two glamorous women, drawn with great psychological finesse. A subtle storyline worthy of the most exciting thrillers"" (BIBA MAGAZINE) ""An investigation at once personal and dramatic "" (POINT DE VUE)"

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9781915919090

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Reviews

Ambitious, subtle, engrossing (LES ECHOS) A gripping investigation shot through with cheerful humor (ELLE MAGAZINE) An enthralling quest that is also a superb self-portrait in which the personal lives and destinies of these uncommon heroines intermingle and mirror one another. (LE FIGARO) A fascinating investigation where the lies bleed into the truth. Surprising - different from anything you've read before (L'OBS) A subtle storyline worthy of the most spine-tingling thrillers (BIBA MAGAZINE) An unforgettable novel (PARIS MATCH)

Author Information

Before becoming a writer, Nelly Alard was trained as an actress. She has acted in France in numerous plays and TV movies, and in two American films by Henry Jaglom, Eating and Venice/Venice. Her first novel, Le crieur de nuit, published in 2010 by Gallimard, was awarded the Roger Nimier Prize and the Lions National Prize of Literature. It was followed in 2013 by Moment d'un Couple, which won the prestigious Interallié Prize and became a bestseller, translated into several languages. Alard, who lives in Paris, is also a screenwriter and works regularly for French television.

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