A hero(ine)’s Progress through 7 stories

 

 

… a hero and the myth of freedom.

The Voice of Aliette Nouvelle is a “what if” story inspired by a myth that’s out of step with history. Jacques Normand is drawn from the actual modern outlaw Jacques Mesrine. During the 70’s and 80’s “our Jacques” was France’s Public Enemy No. 1 - a charmingly macho, and very deadly, social hero. For many French, a symbol of freedom. What if our Jacques did not die in a hail of bullets à la Bonnie & Clyde? And, some ten years after his disappearance, a young cop quietly building a name for herself is assigned to track him down? Inspector Aliette Nouvelle embodies a more subtle heroic style befitting a changing world, a different view of freedom. Aliette meets Jacques head-on. And wins the mantle of freedom.

 

 

… a hero in the realm of the Goddess

All heroes require spirituality. In All Pure Souls our hero - raised a good but not overly serious Catholic - is challenged by the Goddess. Aliette confronts a group of women who see spiritual context as a zero-sum political proposition. For them it’s a sexual battle with no holds barred. And the weak are sacrificed for the cause. Aliette comes away from the case understanding that the Goddess does not need to be engaged in perpetual war with patriarchal spiritual structure. To the contrary, the Goddess shapeshifts with love–infused liquidity to make the deepest changes flow.

 

 

… a hero must separate essential love from gaudy romance

Heroes need love too. But love as a private, most intimate human connector. In Stifling Folds of Love, high-profile celebrity romance gets in the way of the real thing in the heart. And in the body. Inspector Aliette Nouvelle battles through jealousy, the bright lights colouring illusory celebrity fairy tales, and not a little despair for some men’s weakness. She perseveres for the sake of love...

 

 

… a hero runs wild escaping her broken heart

But when love turns out to have been falsely conceived, heroes get crazy. In The Unknown Masterpiece, Aliette’s love life is falling apart. The man she thought she loved is not the man she imagined. Heart in a tail-spin, the inspector acts in ways you might find unseemly as she struggles to free herself, heart and soul - and body! - from a profound mistake while delving into an art-fraud-related killing, which also stems from misbegotten love.

 

 

… a hero gets a second chance, but has she learned?

So our hero moves on. In Walls of a Mind, Aliette starts a new life in the south of France. She is promoted. She buys herself a cool new car. She meets a great new man. There is an apparently politically motivated murder in wine country. Now Chief Inspector Nouvelle finds herself in new territory, in the midst of dirty, deadly dealing in the name of beliefs – professional, political and spiritual. Aliette Nouvelle is older now, but is she any wiser?

 

 

… a hero in a world of deadly force

Whither a middle-aged cop? In Tropéano’s Gun, the messy conclusion to her first big case in the south brings an order from Division: Chief Inspector Nouvelle must wear the sidearm she has mostly ignored throughout her career. And she must attend a therapy program, to help her come to terms. Can an enforced regime of World Technique “sand play” therapy bring a hero to a new view of the world? And of herself? Someone is killing street kids. Then a fellow cop goes down. There’s a link to racist police politics. Brand new Sig2022 strapped to her hip, Aliette wanders bleak night streets, soul in turmoil, searching for a killer. Is she ready to use her gun?

 

 

…a hero caught in the space between Eros and Mother-hen

This 7th book was inspired by the plight of musician Bertrand Cantat after his release from prison for the murder of his film star lover. In While the Music Lasts, Aliette Nouvelle finds herself trying to protect disgraced rock star Luc Malarmé from a town that will not forgive. As a woman, she keenly feels the man’s erotic magnetism. By the same token, the chief inspector also feels a maternal attachment to her two junior inspectors, Bénédicte Barnay and Isabelle Escande – who have their own feelings about Luc. The power of music makes life difficult for the police.