La Tour Ivanov [French]

By Lyane Guillaume

Luc inherits the astonishing diary of a woman named Nastia, born in Saint Petersburg in 1894, whose impassioned life ended in the most mysterious circumstances. Fascinated and intrigued by the words of this young woman, Luc decides, with the help of Lenora, an interpreter, to piece together the puzzle of Nastia's life.

It was a life so full of promise in the beginning, that was then torn apart by the Bolshevik revolution and an intense but disappointing love affair with a young revolutionary artist. Nastia immigrated to Paris in 1924 and returned to the USSR twenty-three years later, not suspecting the horrors that awaited her. Through Luc and Nastia, we are transported back into early 20th century Russia, during the last days of the czarist regime, a time and place marked by an abundance of literary and artistic talent, where we cross the paths of Diaghilev, Ma akovski, Anna Akhmatova and many others. Further on we discover one of the most atrocious episodes of Russian history, the return of former emigrants, enticed by Stalin s promises, who were immediately sent off to a kolkhoze or a gulag.
But Luc s investigation in post-perestro ka Saint Petersburg also gives us a modern look at the city, with its communal apartments, artists squats, omnipresent Mafia, struggling universities and new Russians.

A novelist and teacher of literature, Lyane Guillaume spent many years abroad. She was in Afghanistan during the Soviet invasion, lived in India where she became proficient in classical Indian dance, and more recently resided in Saint Petersburg and Moscow where she hosted a cultural program for television. Her latest novel, Fi re et intouchable, focused on India and was published by Latt s in 1996.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: French
• ISBN: 2709619679
• ISBN13: 9782709619677
• Release Date: February 2018
• Publisher: Editions J.C. Lattes
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.02 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.9"