Author | Michelle Gable |
---|---|
Publisher | Thomas Dunne Books |
Publication date | April 22, 2014 [1] |
Pages | 384 |
ISBN | 9781250048738 |
Website | A Paris Apartment |
A Paris Apartment is a novel by Michelle Gable. [2] Set in Paris, France, the book follows a Sotheby's auctioneer who discovers a wide range of antiques and collectibles in an apartment that had been locked for 70 years. [3] [4] It was first published by Thomas Dunne Books for St. Martin's Press in 2014 [5] and eventually appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list in 2016 and is a USA Today bestseller. [6]
Gable began writing the novel in 2010 after her agent told her about a real-life apartment in Paris that had been locked up for 70 years. Although based on actual events, the story about the Sotheby's employee's involvement with the apartment is fictionalized. [3] [4] Prior to writing the novel, Gable spent four months researching the apartment, the time period, and the apartment's former owner, Marthe de Florian. [5]
The main plot of the novel revolves around April Vogt, [5] a Sotheby's auctioneer who is tasked with assessing and selling rare antiques and collectibles found in an apartment in Paris that had been locked and unoccupied for the previous 70 years. [2] [7] [8] The apartment is only opened after an heir to Marthe de Florian, the former owner, passes away. [5] [9]
The narrative alternates between modern day and the late 19th- and early 20th-centuries. The past storyline revolves around Marthe's diary entries while the present storyline follows April's quest to find the history behind the apartment's accoutrements. One particular item of interest for April is a portrait of Marthe painted by Giovanni Boldini. As a result of her research, April becomes increasingly fascinated with Marthe, Boldini, and the contents of the apartment. She also re-evaluates her position in a disappointing marriage and considers staying in Paris with a potential love interest. [8] [9]
Throughout the novel, Vogt reads pages from de Florian's diaries that reference her life during the Belle Époque, including her friendships, rivalries, and romances with various historical figures including Jeanne Hugo, Léon Daudet, Jean-Baptiste Charcot, Robert de Montesquiou, and Duchess Sophie Charlotte in Bavaria.
The book received generally favorable reviews. The blog, MomAdvice.com, called it a "fun summer historical fiction escape to Paris." [8] The Historical Novel Society noted that it was a "charming read about a fascinating history and the woman behind it." [10] The Library Journal called it a "stunning and fascinating debut [that] will capture the interest of a wide audience." [11] The book became a New York Times bestseller in January 2016 and is a USA Today bestseller. [6]
Sotheby's is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and maintains a significant presence in the UK.
Princess Martha Bibescu also known outside of Romania as Marthe Bibesco, was a celebrated Romanian-French writer, socialite, style icon and political hostess. She spent her childhood at the noble Lahovary's estates in Baltotesti and Biarritz, where she had an education in literature. During her life, she traveled to and moved around many European countries and met many contemporary influential political figures. During the post-World War 1 period she rebuilt her family estates. She lived in exile after World War 2 when communist rule in Romania started.
Callot Soeurs was one of the leading fashion design houses of the 1910s and 1920s.
Giovanni Boldini was an Italian genre and portrait painter who lived and worked in Paris for most of his career. According to a 1933 article in Time magazine, he was known as the "Master of Swish" because of his flowing style of painting.
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Marthe de Florian was a French demi-mondaine and socialite during the Belle Époque. She was known for having famous lovers including Georges Clemenceau, Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau, Paul Deschanel, Gaston Doumergue, Robert de Montesquiou, and Giovanni Boldini. Initially forgotten from history, her story resurfaced in 2010 after her belongings were discovered in her Parisian apartment, located at 2 square La Bruyère in the 9th arrondissement, untouched for decades. The discovery of her apartment was the inspiration behind Michelle Gable's novel A Paris Apartment.
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The Nightingale is a historical fiction novel by American author Kristin Hannah published by St. Martin's Press in 2015. The book tells the story of two sisters in France during World War II and their struggle to survive and resist the German occupation of France. The book was inspired by the story of a Belgian woman, Andrée de Jongh, who helped downed Allied pilots escape Nazi territory.
Michelle Gable is an American author based in San Diego. She has published two novels, A Paris Apartment in 2014 and I'll See You in Paris in 2016, the former of which has appeared on The New York Times Best Seller List.
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