Illusionist, The [Paperback]

Fran�oise Mallet-Joris (Author)

Bored and lonely, 15-year-old H�l�ne decides to pay a visit to her father�s mistress. Within days, she is captivated by Tamara, a Russian �migr� whose arts of enchantment include lingering kisses, sudden dismissals, and savage, rapturous reunions. As long as she submits to Tamara, H�l�ne is permitted to stay near her: reading forbidden novels, meeting Tamara�s bohemian friends, and learning more �refinements of depravity� than the gossiping matrons of her provincial French town could imagine existed.

Flemish writer Fran�oise Mallet-Joris was 20 years old in 1951 when her first novel, Le Rempart des Beguines � published in English as The Illusionist � created a sensation in France. This contemplative, beautifully written book, with its dark undercurrents of desire, has its origins in Madame Bovary and the novels of Colette, and was a precursor to Fran�oise Sagan�s similarly themed Bonjour Tristesse.