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The Last Empress of France. The Rebellious Life of Eugénie de Montijo. Hanover Square Press (HarperCollins).
The Last Empress of France. The Rebellious Life of Eugénie de Montijo. Hanover Square Press (HarperCollins).
“The Last Empress of France delights from the very first sentence. Thoroughly researched and gracefully written, this untold story will keep you up reading late into the night." –Martin Dugard, New York Times #1 bestselling author of Taking Midway
In 1839, a red-haired girl in search of adventure ran away from an English boarding school and attempted to board a ship headed for India. Her name was Eugénie de Montijo, and within fifteen years, she would be Empress of France, and one of the most powerful women in the world.
Eugénie’s unconventional life began in the dying days of the Spanish empire, would take her to the literary salons of Paris and, finally, to the throne of France itself as the wife of Napoleon III. Famed for her beauty and her athleticism, she would become a powerful advocate for women and children’s rights. She created haute couture as we know it, all while displaying a razor-sharp understanding of geopolitics. But the triumphs of her life were coupled with heartbreak and tragedy, and today her legacy is barely known.
The Last Empress of France is a gloriously witty and entertaining biography of one of history’s most charismatic figures, and a thoughtful exploration of the century that shaped her, and which she shaped in turn.
USA: Available at your local bookstore, on the HarperCollins website, Barnes and Noble, or Amazon.
UK: soon available on the Duckworth Books website, at Waterstones and at your local bookstore in paperback edition.
Follow the story of Eugénie in the media.
A few constant passions have led my life: the history of women, literature, music, culture, and travel around the world. Born and raised in Paris, France, in a family with links to England, the US, Japan and Mauritius Island, I developed an early passion for literature and history from various cultures and languages. This passion culminated with a Ph.D. from the Sorbonne on women writers in Europe.
From then on, life became even more interesting: I moved to Los Angeles with my American musician husband, and taught at UCLA. I wrote, published, and edited books and encyclopedias, taught cultural life to Americans and American culture to French students. I then turned entrepreneur: I co-founded and managed a boutique communication firm focused on luxury and international culture.
Curiosity has brought me all over the world: Portugal, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Romania, Belgium, England, Austria, Germany, China, Japan, Thailand, Tunisia, Mauritius, Cuba, Mexico (I've certainly forgotten a few countries) and in many American states. I delight in discovering so many cultures, people, landscapes, music, literature... And there are still so many countries to discover and so many people to meet while I continue writing about cultural history in Europe and in the USA.
Without culture, and the relative freedom it implies, society, even when perfect, is but a jungle. This is why any authentic creation is a gift to the future.
Albert Camus (1913-1960), French writer
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