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Lace is a thing like hope.
It is beauty; it is grace.
It was never meant to destroy so many lives.
The mad passion for forbidden lace has infiltrated France, pulling soldier and courtier into its web. For those who want the best, Flemish lace is the only choice, an exquisite perfection of thread and air. For those who want something they don't have, Flemish lace can buy almost anything - or anyone.
For Lisette, lace begins her downfall, and the only way to atone for her sins is to outwit the noble who now demands an impossible length of it. To fail means certain destruction. But for Katharina, lace is her salvation. It is who she is; it is what she does. If she cannot make this stunning tempest of threads, a dreaded fate awaits.
A taut, mesmerizing story, The Ruins of Lace explores the intricate tangle of fleeting beauty, mad obsession, and ephemeral hope.
"As beautifully fashioned as the sought-after lace, this story is sure to impress." - Publishers Weekly
"Artfully drawn characters bring the lyrical and gripping narrative to life, while suspense makes it hard to put down." - Booklist
"The many facets of the story of lace are intriguing, yet Anthony does not fully weave them together. There are simply too many threads. Sweeping, yes. Cohesive, no." - Kirkus Reviews
"A gorgeous wrought tale of two women bound to the cruelty and beauty of a forbidden perfection...Iris Anthony has delivered a stunning achievement." - C.W. Gortner, author of The Queen's Vow
"Exquisite...this is definitely a keeper to be savored. Whoever Iris Anthony is, she's a gifted writer with what is to be hoped is only the first of many wonderful stories to tell." - Sara Poole, author of Poison and The Borgias Mistress
This information about The Ruins of Lace was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Iris Anthony is a pseudonym. The writer behind the name is an award-winning author of eleven novels. She lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area in a house decorated with French antiques and Flemish lace
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