The Queen of the Night
Published on 21. April 2016
576 pages
978-0-7181-8510-7 (ISBN)
Description
Recommended by The Observer . . .
'One doesn't so much read it, as one is bewitched by it. Epic, gorgeous, haunting' HANYA YANAGIHARA, author of A Little Life
When it begins, it begins as an opera should begin: in a palace, at a ball, in an encounter with a stranger, who you discover has your fate in his hands . . .
She is Lilliet Berne. And she is the soprano.
1882. One warm autumn evening in Paris, Lilliet is finally offered an original role, though it comes at a price. The part is based on her deepest secret.
Only four people could have betrayed her: one is dead, one loves her still, one wants only to own her. And one, she hopes, never thinks of her at all.
In taking this role Lilliet is forced to confront her darkest lies but will the truth save Lilliet - or destroy her?
'Brilliantly extravagant' VOGUE
'Terrific' NEW YORKER
'One doesn't so much read it, as one is bewitched by it. Epic, gorgeous, haunting' HANYA YANAGIHARA, author of A Little Life
When it begins, it begins as an opera should begin: in a palace, at a ball, in an encounter with a stranger, who you discover has your fate in his hands . . .
She is Lilliet Berne. And she is the soprano.
1882. One warm autumn evening in Paris, Lilliet is finally offered an original role, though it comes at a price. The part is based on her deepest secret.
Only four people could have betrayed her: one is dead, one loves her still, one wants only to own her. And one, she hopes, never thinks of her at all.
In taking this role Lilliet is forced to confront her darkest lies but will the truth save Lilliet - or destroy her?
'Brilliantly extravagant' VOGUE
'Terrific' NEW YORKER
Reviews / Votes
One doesn't so much read The Queen of the Night as one is bewitched by it -- Hanya Yanagihara, author of the Man Booker shortlisted 'A Little Life' A wild opera of a novel and the perfect summer read: swift, smart, immersive and gorgeous * Guardian * A celebration . . . of creativity, ingenuity, endurance, mastery and grace * New York Times * A more impressive, richly imagined novel I have not read in many years. From its heroine's first entrance, The Queen of the Night grabbed me and kept me rapt as it writhed and contorted its way through love and murder, courtesans and empresses, fates and curses * Financial Times * A masterfully written book. Chee, just, is masterful. I loved this novel -- Roxane Gay An epic novel, brilliantly extravagant * Vogue * Lush and sweeping . . . A moving meditation on the transformative power of fate, art, time, and sheer survival * Publishers Weekly * Sprawling, soaring, bawdy and plotted like a fine embroidery * National Public Radio * It just sounds terrific. It sounds like opera * New Yorker * A night at an opera you'll wish never-ending -- Helen Oyeyemi, author of 'Boy, Snow, Bird' and 'Mr. Fox'More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
File size
1,11 MB
ISBN-13
978-0-7181-8510-7 (9780718185107)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Alexander Chee won a Whiting Award for his first novel, Edinburgh, and is a recipient of the NEA Fellowship in Fiction and residencies from the MacDowell Colony, Ledig House and Civitella Ranieri. His writing has appeared in The New York Times Book Review, Tin House, Slate, and NPR, among others, and he is a contributing editor at the New Republic. He has recently been selected as a prestigious LA Times critic-at-large. He lives in New York City.
