The Saint Laurent Muse: A Novel

(Paperback)

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The Paris runways of the 70s come to wild and splashy life in this novel of fashion's It Girl Loulou de la Falaise and her life partying and designing with Yves Saint Laurent, Karl Lagerfeld, and Halston. Nightlife! Gowns! Cocaine! Glamour!

Its the 1970s, and from hippie London to Warhols Factory in New York, reluctant aristocrat Loulou de la Falaise is desperately seeking adventure. Having escaped an early, unhappy marriage, she arrives on a whim in Paristhe champagne-soaked heart of the fashion world, where the rigid old world of haute couture and the ffast-paced new world of ready-to-wear are vying for supremacy.

Glamour, sex, and cocaine nights fuel the Paris fashion scene. Its crown prince is the soulful and intensely gifted Yves Saint Laurent, whose sexy tuxedos for women and chic Rive Gauche boutiques reflect womens desire for seductive independence, a desire Loulou knows all too well.

Loulous bohemian flair immediately captures Saint Laurents attention, and they embark on a glorious intimate friendship as artist and muse. Together they revel in the excesses of high society, decadent parties, and the hedonistic underworld of gay nightclubs, where the young and beautiful become prey, and dangerous rivalries start to emerge. Their course collides with eccentric designer Karl Lagerfeld, intent on his own conquest. Lagerfelds bitter professional rivalry with Yves divides Paris even in an era when anything goes. As Yves plunges into a dangerous, secret affair with Karls enigmatic young companion, and Loulou finds herself falling in love with a colleagues handsome boyfriend, evanescent illusion and savage deception will bring them to the brink of ruin.

Intoxicating and unforgettable,The Saint Laurent Museis the dramatic imagining of a lifelong friendship between two kindred spirits, and of a tumultuous time and place in fashion history that will never be seen again.

Reviews

Sucked me in by the pearls and never let go. Gortners imagining of the ultimate fashion icon is equal parts grit and glamour, painting a portrait of a woman who was hugely inspiring but by no means perfect. Oh, and if you cant afford to visit Paris in peak springtime season, reading this book with a glass of wine is a decent substitute. Glamour on Mademoiselle Chanel Absorbing, heartbreaking and salaciouslike Chanels life story . . . a vivid, heartbreaking portrait of Coco Chanels meteoric rise to fame and her complicated personal life. Shelf Awareness on Mademoiselle Chanel In this deliciously satisfying novel, C.W. Gortner tells the epic, rags-to-riches story of how this brilliant, mercurial, self-created woman became a legend. Christina Baker Kline,New York Timesbestselling author ofOrphan Train, on Mademoiselle Chanel Enticing . . . a well-researched and well-crafted historical novel that leaves the reader satisfied on many levels. New York Journal of Books on Mademoiselle Chanel In a novel as brilliant and complicated as Coco Chanel herself, C. W. Gortners prose is so electric and luminous it could be a film, and not just any film, but one of the grandest biopics of our time. Divine! Erika Robuck, bestselling author ofHemingways Girl, on Mademoiselle Chanel

Author Bio

A former fashion executive, C. W. Gortner is a lifelong admirer of Coco Chanel. His passion for writing led him to give up fashion, and his many historical novels have been bestsellers, published in more than twenty countries. He lives in San Francisco.