I must start by saying that I simply devoured this book. Its romp through seamy Paris nightclubs; its exacting portrait of a passionate affair; and its exploration of both mileus with a deft mixture of immediacy and intellectual detachment had me absolutely obsessed with it — I just had to know what was happening next.

Set in the heyday of 1980s club scene, the unnamed narrator — who had been writing a dissertation for a degree in theology — gets drafted to DJ in one Paris’s hottest clubs, which comes with unfettered access to every other club in the city, and which leads to meeting A***, a dancer of sublime beauty who inspires all-consuming infatuation. To say anything further plot-wise would spoil the fun of the reading experience, but take my word that the trajectory and style of the writing are breathtaking, and that Emma Ramadan’s translation is superb.

Tom Roberge

Tom Roberge grew up in Connecticut and has lived in New York since 2001. In that time he's worked at McNally Jackson Booksellers, the literary magazine 'A Public Space', and the book publishers Penguin Books and New Directions. He is co-host - along with Open Letter's Chad Post - of the Three Percent Podcast.

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