Petite Mort

First published 2013

Desmond Elliott 2013 · Longlist

Scandal, intoxication, and lies flourish in the silent film studios of Paris. A silent film destroyed in a fire in 1913 before it was seen even by its director. A lowly seamstress who makes the costumes she should be wearing but believes her talent, and the secret she keeps too, will get her a dressing room of her own.

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Mesdames et Messieurs, presenting La Petite Mort, or, A Little Death … A silent film, destroyed in a fire in 1913 at the Path? studio, before it was seen even by its director. A lowly seamstress, who makes the costumes she should be wearing, but believes her talent – and the secret she keeps too – will soon get her a dressing room of her own. A beautiful house in Paris, with a curving staircase, a lake, and locked rooms. A famous – and dashing – creator of spectacular cinematic illusions, husband to a beautiful, volatile actress, the most adored icon of the Parisian studios. All fit together.