{"product_id":"2940169780772","title":"The Mistress of Paris: The 19th-Century Courtesan Who Built an Empire on a Secret","description":"\u003cp\u003eComtesse Valtesse de la Bigne was painted by Édouard Manet and inspired Émile Zola, who immortalized her in his scandalous novel \u003ci\u003eNana\u003c\/i\u003e. Her rumored affairs with Napoleon III and the future King Edward VII kept gossip columns full.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut her glamorous existence hid a dark secret: she was no comtesse. She was born into abject poverty, raised on a squalid backstreet among the dregs of Parisian society. Yet she transformed herself into an enchantress who possessed a small fortune, three mansions, fabulous carriages, and art the envy of connoisseurs across Europe. A consummate show-woman, she ensured that her life-and even her death-remained shrouded in just enough mystery to keep her audience hungry for more.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSpectacularly evoking the sights and sounds of mid- to late nineteenth-century Paris in all its hedonistic glory, Catherine Hewitt¿s biography tells, for the first time ever in English, the forgotten story of a remarkable woman who, though her roots were lowly, never stopped aiming high.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Blackstone Audio, Inc.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47102125179120,"sku":"2940169780772","price":22.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940169780772_p0.jpg?v=1769900075","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940169780772","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}