Publishers Weekly
04/08/2024
Aubray’s fun and surprising third novel (after 2021’s The Godmothers) follows a 20-year-old American woman on the French Riviera during the birth of the Cannes Film Festival in summer 1939. Earlier in the year, Annabel Faucon faced the untimely deaths of her mother and father, from the flu and a heart attack, respectively. Her uncle JP, who manages the Grand Hôtel du Cap des Rêves, invites her to visit and offers her a job typing up scripts for F. Scott Fitzgerald, who befriends Annabel and warns her about fickle Hollywood types. Annabel also acts as a translator and tour guide for matinee idol Jack Cabot and his German actor girlfriend Téa Marlo. Annabel quickly falls for Jack, who’s trying to scout locations to make his own film. The initial two-thirds of the novel verge on frothy escapism as Annabel hobnobs with the rich and famous, who conveniently take a shine to her, but all the while Aubray has set the stage for deeper themes of exploitation, the reach of fascism, and the limits of political loyalty, as Téa is frequently courted by Nazi officials who want her to do favors for their regime and Jack schemes to make Annabel a star. Readers will be swept away. Agent: Susan Golomb, Writers House. (Apr.)
#1 New York Times bestselling author Kristin Hannah
The Girl from the Grand Hotel is right up my alley. I love French history, the Cote d’Azur, and old Hollywood, so what’s not to love about this delicious novel inspired by true events and set in one of the most beautiful, most romantic places in the world? Camille Aubray captures the era in vivid and memorable detail.”
People magazine’s “People Picks the Best Books” on Cooking for Picasso
A delicious, atmospheric novel. You’ll be glad you’re along for the ride.”
Booklist on Cooking for Picasso
With lively characters and a twisting plot, Aubray’s novel is a smart and satisfying tale of family, creativity, romance, and intrigue.”
Booklist
With sparkling characters and a riveting plot, Aubray’s latest will appeal to fans of old Hollywood and historical fiction in general.”
Margaret Atwood on Cooking for Picasso
A tasty blend of romance, mystery, and French cooking…Read on!”
New York Times bestselling author Fiona Davis
Huge congrats to Camille Aubray for a terrific read! The Girl from the Grand Hotel is a delicious romp through the South of France, filled with a cast of Hollywood legends and wrapped in a tense spy thriller. I loved her dead-on depictions of bold-faced names of the day, like F. Scott Fitzgerald and Charles Laughton, and was swept away by the fast-paced story and canny twists. An exhilarating ride!”
celebrity chef and New York Times bestselling auth Jacques Pepin
Hollywood movie stars mingle with Nazi spies in a feverish atmosphere combined with a touching love story. An intense page-turner you won’t want to put down!”
People magazine (“People Picks the Best Books”) on Cooking for Picasso
A delicious, atmospheric novel. You’ll be glad you’re along for the ride.”
Booklist on The Godmothers
This is historical fiction at its best.”
People Magazine (“People Picks the Best Books”) on Cooking for Picasso
A delicious, atmospheric novel. You’ll be glad you’re along for the ride.”
Jacques Pépin
The Godmothers is my type of book: captivating, well written, and full of love and drama.”
