The Luminous Life of Lilly Aphrodite - Softcover

Colin, Beatrice

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1848540310 ISBN 13: 9781848540316

Publisher: John Murray Publishers Ltd, 2009

Synopsis

As the clock chimed the turn of the twentieth century, Lilly Nelly Aphrodite took her first breath. Born to a cabaret dancer and soon orphaned in a scandalous double murder, Lilly finds refuge at a Catholic orphanage, coming under the wing of the, at times, severe Sister August, the first in a string of lost loves.

There she meets Hanne Schmidt, a teen prostitute, and forms a bond that will last them through tumultuous love affairs, disastrous marriages, and destitution during the First World War and the subsequent economic collapse. As the century progresses, Lilly and Hanne move from the tawdry glamour of the tingle-tangle nightclubs to the shadow world of health films before Lilly finds success and stardom in the new medium of motion pictures and ultimately falls in love with a man whose fate could cost her everything she has worked for or help her discover her true self.

Gripping and darkly seductive, The Luminous Life of Lilly Aphrodite showcases all the glitter and splendour of the brief heyday of the Weimar Republic, and the rise of Hollywood to its golden age. As it foreshadows the horrors of the Second World War, the novel asks what price is paid when identity becomes unfixed and the social order is upended.

About this title

About the Author

Beatrice Colin was born in London and raised in Scotland. She has worked as a freelance journalist writing for publications including the Guardian, and a playwright, writing radio plays for the BBC. She lives in Glasgow. THE LUMINOUS LIFE OF LILLY APHRODITE was a Richard & Judy selection and has been translated into several languages.

Edition details

• Publisher: John Murray Publishers Ltd
• Publication date: 2009
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1848540310
• ISBN 13: 9781848540316
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416