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Guest Blog featuring Jeanne Mackin’s The Last Collection w/a rafflecopter giveaway! @JeanneMackin1 #historicalromance

The Last Collection

by Jeanne Mackin 

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GENRE: Historical Romance

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BLURB:

An American woman becomes entangled in the intense rivalry between iconic fashion designers Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli in this captivating novel from the acclaimed author of The Beautiful American.

Paris, 1938. Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli are fighting for recognition as the most successful and influential fashion designer in France, and their rivalry is already legendary. They oppose each other at every turn, in both their politics and their designs: Chanel’s are classic, elegant, and practical; Schiaparelli’s bold, experimental, and surreal.

When Lily Sutter, a recently widowed young American teacher, visits her brother, Charlie, in Paris, he insists on buying her a couture dress—a Chanel. Lily, however, prefers a Schiaparelli. Charlie’s beautiful and socially prominent girlfriend soon begins wearing Schiaparelli’s designs as well, and much of Paris follows in her footsteps. 

Schiaparelli offers budding artist Lily a job at her store, and Lily finds herself increasingly involved with Schiaparelli and Chanel’s personal war. Their fierce competition reaches new and dangerous heights as the Nazis and the looming threat of World War II bear down on Paris.

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“Sophisticated couture wars and looming world wars take center stage in Mackin’s latest, with a plot that buzzes with love triangles and political intrigue. A gorgeous meditation on art, fashion, and heartbreak. Stunning.”

–Fiona Davis, national bestselling author of The Masterpiece

“Exquisitely melding world politics and high fashion, THE LAST COLLECTION is a smart, witty, heartfelt, and riveting look at the infamous rivalry between Coco Chanel and Elsa Schiaparelli set against a gripping period in history. Mackin’s powerful novel brings these characters to life and transports the reader, juxtaposing both the gaiety and tension of Paris on the brink of war. As elegant and captivating as the designs depicted in the novel, THE LAST COLLECTION is the perfect read for both historical fiction lovers and fashion aficionados. Simply stunning.”

–Chanel Cleeton, USA Today bestselling author of Next Year in Havana

“A wonderful story of two intensely creative women, their vibrant joie de vivre, and backbiting competition played out against the increasingly ominous threat of the Nazi invasion of Paris. Seamless research makes every character leap to life and kept me totally engaged from beginning to end.

–Shelley Noble, New York Times bestselling author of Lighthouse Beach

“A vibrant portrait of two designers cut from very different cloth, Jeanne Mackin’s THE LAST COLLECTION pits bold Coco Chanel and colorful Elsa Schiaparelli against each other in a fiery feud even as the ominous clouds of World War II darken the horizon. A captivating read!”

–Stephanie Marie Thornton, author of American Princess

“As Hitler and the Nazis gather strength and the world braces for war, Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel, whose politics differ as much as their couture, wage a war of their own. Lily Sutter, the woman who finds herself in the middle of their feud, has a battle of her own as she struggles to make a new start amidst extreme grief and loss. From New York to Paris, Jeanne Mackin takes the reader on an enthralling journey, complete with such vivid descriptions of the clothing, you can practically see them on the page. Beautifully rendered and meticulously researched, THE LAST COLLECTION is a must read.”

–Renée Rosen, author of Park Avenue Summer

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Excerpt One:

Of the three primary colors, blue is most suggestive of paradox: it is the color of longing and sadness, and yet it is also the color of joy and fulfillment.  On a ship, at night, blue water merges into blue sky, so blue is the color of places with no borders, no edges.

If you throw salt into a fire, the flames will burn blue. Salt rubbed into a wound renews the pain, intensifies it.  Seeing others kiss and embrace was salt in my wound, a blue flame burning the length of me.

Blue best represents the contradictions of the heart, the need to be loved and cherished at the same time that we wish for freedom.

Blue, the color of the Worth gown that the little girl Elsa Schiaparelli found in her Roman piazza attic, the color of the covers of the penny romances Coco Chanel found in the orphanage attic.

Blue is what made Elsa Schiaparelli’s daring color, shocking pink, so special: it is pink infused with blue, turning a demure blush into an electric surge. Schiaparelli turned girlish pink into the color of seduction by adding that touch of blue.

And always, there is the blue of the Paris sky on a June day.

Listen. I’m going to tell you a story about fashion, and politics. And, of course, about love. The three primaries, like the primary colors.

3 Dressing for Disaster – Elsa Schiaparelli’s War Time Collections

 

When I was a child growing up during the cold war, an era in which schoolchildren were taught to believe that ducking under a desk would protect them from incoming nuclear missiles, my mother made certain adaptations to my clothing. My coats and sweaters always had pockets, and in the pockets were kept coins for pay phones (we had such things then) and enough money for a few candy bars, to delay starvation while I waited for the Red Cross to arrive. My address was permanent-marked into the labels, in case I got lost or confused.  And the clothes themselves, those you saw and those you didn’t, were kept spotless so that I wouldn’t shame my family in front of the ambulance workers.  (I sometimes imagined myself, injured and bloodied, laying on a stretcher as the nurse, surrounded by nuclear oblivion, mutters “Look out how dirty this little girls socks are! Shameful!”

 

My mother dressed me for disaster.

 

We children, innocent still in matters of mortality, laughed at it. Most of our mothers did this, and the coins in our pockets were useful for after-school snacks.  It wasn’t till I was older, though not that much wiser, I suspect, that I reflected on what it  might mean for a mother to send her child off to school prepared for disaster falling from the skies.

 

When I began reading about my favorite fashion designer, Elsa Schiaparelli, I learned that decades before she had done our mothers one better. Her fashion collections shown in Paris just before World War II anticipated much of what was to come:  the fleeing the home so quickly one couldn’t pack a suitcase, dark nights without electricity or comfort, days of travel with limited access to washrooms. She began designing for disaster, conjuring day-dresses with overnight case-size pockets for grabbing and storing things on the way out, and other adaptions to help a stylish-minded woman keep her appearance, and her cool, in the midst of turmoil.  

And she kept her famous sense of humor:  just as she had once designed a hat in the shape of a shoe, now she transformed a gas mask into an evening bag. 

 

Other innovations:

 

-a dress with a movable hem, that can be worn for day or night, to cut back on baggage

-the siren suit, with wide legs and a fitted bodice and pockets sized for identity papers and a flashlight

-a stylish first aid kit that also included lipstick and powder puff

-a waterproof three piece suit

-booties instead of shoes, for easier walking or running as needed

 

In fact, during the war years and the lead up to them, Elsa Schiaparelli’s designs often referred to the famous fighting Scottish clans, the Ogilvy, and their motto: “Nemo Me Impune Lacesset” – No one provokes me with impunity.  A great motto for a woman who know how to prepare for disaster with aplomp.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Jeanne Mackin ‘s latest novel, The Last Collection, A Novel of Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel takes the reader to Paris, just before world war II, and the intense, dangerous rivalry between the two queens of fashion. Her previous novels include A Lady of Good Family, the award winning The Beautiful American, The Sweet By and By, Dreams of Empire, The Queen’s War, and The Frenchwoman. 

Her historical fictions explore the lives of strong women who change their worlds…because we know the world always needs a lot of change! She has worked all the traditional ‘writers’ jobs’ from waitressing to hotel maid, anything that would leave her a few hours each morning for writing. Most recently, she taught creative writing at the graduate level.  She has traveled widely, in Europe and the Middle East and can think of no happier moment than sitting in a Paris café, drinking coffee or a Pernod, and simply watching, while scribbling in a notebook.

JeanneMackin.com

Facebook.com/JeanneMackinauthor

Twitter.com/JeanneMackin1

Penguin Random House – https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/531859/the-last-collection-by-jeanne-mackin/

Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H71Q5FQ/ref=dp-kindle-redirect

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE

One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

a Rafflecopter giveaway ” rel=”noopener” target=”_blank”>Rafflecopter Link

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