City of Lights
Melika Danesse Lux
Reviewed by Mary Simonsen, author of Pemberley Remembered
City of Lights,
The Trials and Triumphs of Ilyse Charpentier is a
triumph for its young author.
You are immediately pulled into this debut novel and held there
by the
breathtaking pace set by Miss Lux. It is
the story of chanteuse, Ilyse Charpentier, who has had more heartache
than a
21-year old should have to bear: the
death of her parents in a ship accident; abuse at the hand of her
guardian; and
estrangement from her beloved brother because of a misunderstanding. Lifted out of poverty by her patron, Count
Sergei Rakmanovich, she becomes the darling of the 1894 Parisian
cabaret scene,
but the count’s patronage comes with a price:
his desire to possess her, mind, body and soul.At the heart of the
story is the love between Ilyse and Englishman, Ian McCarthy. The two fall in love within hours of their
meeting. It is the magical kind of love
unique
to the very young whose thoughts for the future extend no further than midnight.
Ilyse naively believes that she can walk away form the evil
Count Sergei,
and Ian is ill-prepared to deal with a man who is willing to kill to
keep his
“Pure Dove” from being with anyone else.
This novel will be
especially appealing to young adult readers (and the young at heart)
who enjoy
an engaging love story set in one of the most exciting cities in the
world, a
city where Toulouse Lautrec wanders the streets of Montmarte and the
five-year
old Eiffel Tower dominates the Parisian skyline. This
is a remarkable debut novel, especially
when you consider that the novelist is very near to the age of her
heroine. Her broad knowledge of history
and the arts is evident, and her enthusiasm for her subject leaps off
of every
page. A spectacular first effort.