Chanel's apartment, Aimée Leduc and Murder in the Rue de Paradis

You've got to read this article in the Telegraph if you've ever worn Chanel No. 5 or bought a knock off Chanel
bag as I have...it's a fascinating, a 'visit' to Coco Chanel's apartment on rue Cambon!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/main.jhtml?xml=/fashion/2008/02/27/efchanel127.xml&DCMP=ILC-traffdrv07053100

And yes, there is a link to Aimée Leduc and Coco Chanel...Aimée wears Chanel No. 5 even though her refrigerator may be empty. Some things are more important.

Tomorrow, January 28th is La Soiree Officiel, the launch party for Murder in the Rue de Paradis at my local independent mystery store. I'll talk about Paris and the 10th arrondissement where the story takes place - a fascinating little known quartier with the Canal Saint Martin, the Gare du Nord and warrens of passages with names like Passage du Desir. I hope wherever you are that you join me at one of the independent bookstores they're all on www.carablack.com at events. On my book tour I’m doing events at independent bookstore exclusively because frankly mes amies, the independents need our help and support. In this age of the internet (and you know who I mean) our indie bookstores are struggling, sadly many are closing and as far as I’m concerned, we NEED them. Real bricks and mortar stores when one can spend an hour browsing, talking to the bookseller, getting recomendations and finding new authors. I always learn about a new book, a new series, or a new author from my bookseller.

So spray the Chanel and hope to see you.

French Women

This is from an article last Sunday in the Washington Post...

What do you think?

The actress Nathalie Baye, who's 59 and looks it, has made some 20 films in the past decade, including romantic roles. She told an interviewer that at the 2003 César awards (France's version of the Oscars), Meryl Streep asked her whether "things were as difficult in France as in the U.S. for actresses of a certain age. I told her that thankfully, French cinema is very faithful to its women."

These French actresses are products of the generation of '68, France's sexual and social revolution. But in the French version, women weren't expected to forgo high heels and chivalry in exchange for equality. So it's not surprising here when successful women retain their charms. In the United States, the two can seem mutually exclusive. The right-wing talk-show host Rush Limbaugh felt free to question Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's candidacy in December by sneering, "Will Americans want to watch a woman get older before their eyes on a daily basis?"

Of course, things aren't all rosy in French bedrooms. France has its share of lonely widows and divorcees. All the Frenchwomen I spoke to also stressed that older women must keep up their looks to stay appealing. Liftees are becoming a more frequent sight.

In the United States, men tend to treat older women who've done age-erasing work with either horrific awe or chaste respect. France is more sanguine. Last year, Paris Match magazine put a photo on its cover of a topless 50-something Arielle Dombasle -- looking like a reengineered 16- year-old -- to celebrate her new cabaret act.