The Queen of the Night

Alexander Chee

ISBN 10: 1504701585 ISBN 13: 9781504701587

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc., 2016

Synopsis

Lilliet Berne is a sensation of the Paris Opera, a legendary soprano with every accolade except an original role, every singer's chance at immortality. When one is finally offered to her, she realizes with alarm that the libretto is based on a hidden piece of her past. Only four could have betrayed her: one is dead, one loves her, one wants to own her. And one, she hopes, never thinks of her at all. As she looks for clues, she recalls her life as an orphan who went to Europe and was swept into the world of Second Empire Paris. The Queen of the Night follows Lilliet as she gets closer to the truth behind the mysterious opera and the role that could secure her reputation -- or destroy her with the secrets it reveals.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

New York Times Book Review Editors Choice - An Indie Next Pick

Dazzling. Wall Street Journal - A brilliant performance. Washington Post

Sweeping, richly detailed. People - Masterful. Wired - Spellbinding. BuzzFeed

A wild opera of a novel, * The Queen of the Night tells the mesmerizing story of Lilliet Berne, an orphan who left the American frontier for Europe and was swept into the glamour and terror of Second Empire France. She became a sensation of the Paris Opera, with every accolade but an original role her chance at immortality. When one is offered to her, she finds the libretto is based on her deepest secret, something only four people have ever known. But who betrayed her? With epic sweep, gorgeous language, and haunting details, ** Alexander Chee shares Lilliet s cunning transformation from circus rider to courtesan to legendary soprano, retracing the path that led to the role that could secure her reputation or destroy her with the secrets it reveals.
If Lilliet Berne were a man, she might have been what nineteenth-century novels would call a swashbuckler: the kind of destiny-courting, death-defying character who finds intrigue and peril (and somehow, always, a fantastic pair of pantaloons) around every corner. Entertainment Weekly

Alexander Chee is the author of two novels and the recipient of a Whiting Award and the National Endowment for the Arts fellowship in fiction. His writing has appeared in the New York Times Book Review, Tin House, Slate, and on NPR, among others, and he is a contributing editor at the New Republic. He lives in New York City.

* The Guardian
** Hanya Yanagihara"

From the Inside Flap:

From a writer praised by Junot Diazas the fire, in my opinion, and the light, a mesmerizing novelthat followsone woman s rise from circus rider to courtesan to world-renowned diva

Lilliet Berne is a sensation of the Paris Opera, a legendary soprano with every accolade except an original role a singer s chance at immortality. When one is finally offered to her, she realizes with alarm that the libretto is based on a secret from her past she thought long buried. Only four people could have betrayed her: one is dead, one loves her, one wants to own her. And one, she hopes, never thinks of her at all.

The answer may come from her past. Orphaned as a child, she left the American frontier for Europe and was swept into the glamour and the terror of Second Empire Paris. In order to survive, she transformed herself from hippodrome rider to courtesan, from empress s maid to debut singer, weaving a complicated web of romance, obligation, and political intrigue in her wake.

With a myriad of upending twists and a rich cast of characters drawn from history, The Queen of the Night follows Lilliet as she moves ever closer to the truth behind the mysterious opera and the role that could secure her reputation or destroy her with the secrets it reveals.
"

About this edition

• Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1504701585
• ISBN 13: 9781504701587
• Binding: Audio CD
• Number of pages: 1