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33%OFFCatherine Hewitt - The Mistress of Paris: The 19th-Century Courtesan Who Built an Empire on a Secret - 9781848319264 - V9781848319264
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The Mistress of Paris: The 19th-Century Courtesan Who Built an Empire on a Secret

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Description for The Mistress of Paris: The 19th-Century Courtesan Who Built an Empire on a Secret Hardback. A fantastically readable biography of a 19th-century Parisian courtesan who harbours an incredible secret Num Pages: 320 pages. BIC Classification: 1DDF; 3JH; BGH; HBJD; HBLL; JFMX. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 243 x 171 x 35. Weight in Grams: 640.

Valtesse de la Bigne was a celebrated nineteenth-century Parisian courtesan. She was painted by Manet and inspired Emile Zola, who immortalised her in his scandalous novel Nana. Her rumoured affairs with Napoleon III and the future Edward VII kept gossip columns full.

But her glamourous existence hid a dark secret: she was no Comtesse. She was born into abject poverty, raised on a squalid Paris backstreet; the lowest of the low. Yet she transformed herself into an enchantress who possessed a small fortune, three mansions, fabulous carriages, and art the envy of connoisseurs across Europe. A consummate show-woman, ... Read more

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Product Details

Publisher
Icon Books
Format
Hardback
Publication date
2015
Condition
New
Number of Pages
320
Place of Publication
Duxford, United Kingdom
ISBN
9781848319264
SKU
V9781848319264
Shipping Time
Usually ships in 5 to 9 working days
Ref
99-99

About Catherine Hewitt
Catherine Hewitt studied French Literature and Art History at Royal Holloway, University of London and the Courtauld Institute of Art. Her proposal for The Mistress of Paris was awarded the runner-up's prize in the 2012 Biographers' Club Tony Lothian Competition for the best proposal by an uncommissioned, first-time biographer. She lives in a village in Surrey.

Reviews for The Mistress of Paris: The 19th-Century Courtesan Who Built an Empire on a Secret
Through incisive enquiry and astute observation, Catherine Hewitt traces the courtesan's flight from squalor to splendour, her prose sparkling in the light of her luminous subject.
The Biographer's Club prize
Innately fascinating
All About History
An enthralling story, told with both conviction and sympathy
The Observer
A handsome boudoir book
Irish Examiner
... Read more

Goodreads reviews for The Mistress of Paris: The 19th-Century Courtesan Who Built an Empire on a Secret


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