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A Hundred Suns

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( 2,668 ratings, 485 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Set against the glamorous yet morally complex backdrop of 1920s Paris and 1930s Indochine, A Hundred Suns follows Jessie Lesage, an American who joins her French husband in Vietnam, drawn into the world of the Michelin rubber fortune. Amid sun-drenched days and champagne-soaked nights, Jessie navigates a colonial society rife with secrets and political turmoil. Her friendship with the enigmatic expat Marcelle de Fabry becomes a precarious balance of loyalty and betrayal as both women grapple with love, ambition, and survival in a richly detailed historical landscape.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$3799

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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for readers who enjoy richly detailed historical fiction with suspenseful, psychological thrillers set against exotic, colonial-era backdrops. Fans of stories about complex female relationships and political intrigue during turbulent times will find this novel particularly engaging.

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A faraway land. A family’s dynasty. A trail of secrets that could shatter their glamorous lifestyle.

An evocative novel set in 1930s Indochine about an American who journeys there in the name of family fortune, the glamorous world she finds herself in - and the truth she may be running from.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Named A Best Book of Spring 2020 by Real Simple · Parade · PopSugar · New York Post · Entertainment Weekly · Betches · CrimeReads · BookBub

"A transporting historical novel, and a smart thriller." - Washington Post

"A luscious setting combined with a sinister, sizzling plot." - EW

A faraway land. A family's dynasty. A trail of secrets that could shatter their glamorous lifestyle.

On a humid afternoon in 1933, American Jessie Lesage steps off a boat from Paris and onto the shores of Vietnam. Accompanying her French husband Victor, an heir to the Michelin rubber fortune, she's certain that their new life is full of promise, for while the rest of the world is sinking into economic depression, Indochine is gold for the Michelins. Jessie knows that the vast plantations near Saigon are the key to the family's prosperity, and though they have recently been marred in scandal, she needs them to succeed for her husband's sake—and to ensure that the life she left behind in America stays buried in the past.

Jessie dives into the glamorous colonial world, where money is king and morals are brushed aside, and meets Marcelle de Fabry, a spellbinding expat with a wealthy Indochinese lover, the silk tycoon Khoi Nguyen. Descending on Jessie's world like a hurricane, Marcelle proves to be an exuberant guide to colonial life. But hidden beneath her vivacious exterior is a fierce desire to put the colony back in the hands of its people—starting with the Michelin plantations.

It doesn't take long for the sun-drenched days and champagne-soaked nights to catch up with Jessie. With an increasingly fractured mind, her affection for Indochine falters. And as a fiery political struggle builds around her, Jessie begins to wonder what's real in a friendship that she suspects may be nothing but a house of cards.

Motivated by love, driven by ambition, and seeking self-preservation at all costs, Jessie and Marcelle each toe the line between friend and foe, ethics and excess. Cast against the stylish backdrop of 1920s Paris and 1930s Indochine, in a time and place defined by contrasts and convictions, Karin Tanabe's A Hundred Suns is historical fiction at its lush, suspenseful best.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Praised by NPR as a demonstration of Karin Tanabe's mastery of historical fiction, A Hundred Suns captivates with its lush, vivid settings and a fast-paced, intricately layered narrative. The Washington Post highlights its cinematic quality and compelling portrayal of French occupation in Indochina, noting the novel’s blend of love affairs, revenge, and secrets. Entertainment Weekly describes it as having a "luscious setting combined with a sinister, sizzling plot," while Kirkus commends its exquisitely paced steps and labels it a smart, riveting psychological thriller. PopSugar lauds the book as an impeccably researched immersion in a beautiful and haunting place.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781250231482

Publisher: St Martin's Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 16 March 2021

Country: United States

Imprint: Saint Martin's Griffin,U.S.

Audience: Children

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 34.0mm

Width: 138.0mm

Height: 211.0mm

Weight: 375g

Pages: 432

About the Author

KARIN TANABE is the author of four novels, including The Gilded Years (soon to be a major motion picture starring Zendaya, who will produce alongside Reese Witherspoon/Hello Sunshine for Sony/Tristar). A former Politico reporter, her writing has also appeared in The Washington Post, Miami Herald, Chicago Tribune, and Newsday. She has made frequent appearances as a celebrity and politics expert on Entertainment Tonight, CNN, and The CBS Early Show.

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