Artifice

'Terrific! Set in modern Paris, this literary thriller invigoratingly combines questions of identity, shenanigans in the art world, love and murder' MICHELE ROBERTS

'A breathtaking book confirming Claire Berest's inexhaustible talent as a storyteller' Elle

'Deliciously unique and unpredictable ... this novel blossoms like a poisonous flower' Le Journal du Dimanche

'An astonishing thriller' Liberation

Abel Bac, a police officer, has been suspended from duty for unknown reasons. Haunted by a recurring nightmare, he walks the streets of Paris hoping to lose himself in the city, but somehow, he always finds his way home. All that gives Abel comfort are the ninety-four orchids which populate his small apartment.

In museums across Paris something strange is happening. A white horse appears in the library of the Pompidou Centre. Then stuffed wolves are displayed in a gallery, dressed in fine garments and drinking tea. The police are baffled and Abel, who is somehow linked to it all, is becoming more and more unnerved.

Soon, the hidden darkness of his life will rise to the surface and lead him to Mila, the mysterious artist at the heart of this enigma. And then he discovers that nothing about these events is coincidental . . .

Translated by Sophie Lewis.

A glowing, cinematic thriller, propelled throughout by zippy, electric writing, which builds in pace and intensity until reaching an ingenious, twisting finale Buzz Magazine
A breathtaking book confirming Claire Berest's inexhaustible talent as a storyteller Elle
An astonishing thriller ... full of mystery and dark humour Libération
Deliciously unique and unpredictable ... this novel blossoms like a poisonous flower Le Journal du Dimanche
A cleverly crafted novel made up of trompe l'oeil, red herrings, and mistaken identities. Dreamlike and dark ... unique Le Figaro
The writing is skilful, the narrative propels us forward ... a scintillating fire of many colours Page
An intense thriller where performance art intersects with tragedy ... brilliant and captivating Le Pèlerin
Spellbinding Notre Temps

CLAIRE BEREST is a writer from Paris. In 2019, her novel Rien n'est noir about the life of Frida Kahlo won Elle's Grand Prix des lectrices. With her sister Anne, she is also the author of Gabriele, a critically-acclaimed biography of her great-grandmother, Gabriele Buffet-Picabia, Marcel Duchamp's lover and muse. She is the great-granddaughter of the painter Francis Picabia.

SOPHIE LEWIS is a literary editor and translator from French and Portuguese into English. She has translated works by Jules Verne, Marcel Ayme, Violette Leduc, Leila Slimani and Joao Gilberto Noll, among others. Her translations have been shortlisted for the Scott Moncrieff and Republic of Consciousness prizes, and longlisted for the International Booker Prize.

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