Customer Reviews

Courtesan: A Novel

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COURTESAN by Dora Levy Mossanen
September 17, 2005

Amazon Rating: 4/5 stars

The story of three generations of French prostitutes, COURTESAN is the love story between a Persian jeweler and the daughter and granddaughter of French courtesans, who only wants to find love.

Simone is part of a legacy spanning three generations of expensive courtesans living in Paris. Simone, however, does not have plans to follow in her mother and grandmother's footsteps. Madame Gabrielle, the matriarch of the family, is very disappointed but tries to convince Simone to follow in the family trade by introducing Simone to a Persian jeweler, whose expertise is in red diamonds. Unfortunately for Gabrielle, Simone and Cyrus fall in love and marry. To escape her family's disappointment in her, they move to the mountains of Tehran where they live in peace and happiness.

While the book starts out as a romance, it soon takes on the feel of a mystery, when Cyrus disappears and is presumed dead, and Simone tries to put the pieces together and find her husband's murderers. The center of the mystery is the red diamonds, and Simone believes that he knew something about these diamonds that endangered his life.

While part of COURTESAN focuses on the mystery of the red diamonds and Cyrus's disappearance and probable murder, the other important theme is the family origins of the Honore' family. The reader will learn, through Gabrielle's letters to Simone, the truth about their family, and what Gabrielle tried to hide from her daughter and granddaughter for all those years. In turn, a few of the characters in the book are not who they claim to be, and by the end of the story, the reader will fully understand Gabrielle's epic-like story and how her life as a courtesan came to be.

I enjoyed COURTESAN, but not as much as I loved her debut, HAREM, which I felt, was better written. Despite having said that, I do recommend COURTESAN for lovers of historical fiction. I will definitely read her next novel, whatever it may be.

If you're looking for a great summer read of the lush variety, I recommend "Courtesan", by Dora Levy Mossanen. I was a big fan of her first novel ("Harem"), and eagerly awaited this second book. Now that it's here (I got my hands on an advanced copy!), I am eager to sing its praises to both individuals and book clubs (it has a book club guide at the back of the novel, and I have recommended to my own club coordinator that we tackle "Courtesan" next).

GENRE: Historical fiction, very lush, very well-researched, some magical realism (Mossanen has been called a Persian Isabel Allende)

PLOT (no real spoilers contained below): Courtesan, like Harem, follows three generations of Jewish women. It is set primarily in late 1800s France and Persia. The matriarch of the family, Madame Gabrielle, transformed herself from a rabbi's daughter stuck in a ghetto to France's foremost courtesan. She spends her time speaking with the spirits of past lovers (an array of famous French artistes, politicians, and philosophers), maintaining her magnificent chateau (places and settings play a huge role in the novel -- from the chateau to the famous bed that hosts the womens' exploits), and scheming ways of convincing her granddaughter, Simone, to conform with the family profession. In this novel, courtesanship is not prostitution, but a respectable, lucrative, and indeed empowering profession (the women use their minds more than their bodies).
Gabrielle's daughter is Francoise, who is somewhat vapid by design but with good reason (I won't spoil anything by telling you why). Her daughter, Simone, is the true hero of the novel. The focus is on her search for identity, for love, and for reconciling the demands that society places upon her (everyone wants a piece of her, partly because her skin emits incredible scents and perfumes) with her desire for independence. Her quest takes her to Persia, South Africa, and finally back to Paris. Mossanen, who is Persian by descent though she was born in Israel, does some of her finest writing in describing the travails Simone faces when she follows her true love to that country. (Harem was set in Persia.)
An interesting subplot involves the international diamond trade, especially the trade in red diamonds. I will not say too much here for fear of spoiling some of the book's best surprises. Just know that this novel is much more than a romance book (you might even dispute that it is a romance novel)...there is a murder, a mystery, and it all involves international finance and the neverending quest for perfect diamonds.

GENDER APPEAL: Though I suspect that the majority of readers will be female, the book has much to offer to male readers. There are very compelling male characters (Cyrus, the Shah's jeweler and a major love interest; Alphonse, a Persian butler with a secret role, etc.) As a male reader, I was especially into the mystery aspect of the novel, which marvelously supplements the lush and exotic (and even erotic) main plot.

STRENGTHS: Gorgeous, lyrical writing; vivid characters who stay with you after you put the book down, magnificent settings in three intriguing historical locales (1800s Paris, Persia, and South Africa); a surprisingly suspenseful plot.

WEAKNESSES: The book does jump back and forth quite a bit in both time and location (from Persia to Paris and back again). I did not find the jumps confusing, because there is a consistency of characters and the jumps are well signposted at the beginning of the chapters. Yet there were a couple times that I regretted a jump because I wanted to know the outcome of a subplot sooner rather than later!

OVERALL RATING: I give this second novel a 5 out of 5, because Mossanen has managed to tell another fascinating, magical, engaging tale in a way familiar to readers of her first novel, but with new elements. If you loved Harem, you will love Courtesan. And if you haven't read Harem, you will find Courtesan a great introduction to Mossanen's beautiful writing.

The author of HAREM, Dora Levy Mossanen's latest work is COURTESAN, which, like her previous novel, focuses on the theme of professional seduction and sex. COURTESAN's protagonists are three women from three different generations: Madame Gabrielle, the matriarch and grandmother of the d'Honore family; Gabrielle's daughter, Francoise; and Simone, Francoise's daughter. Both Gabrielle and Francoise are courtesans --- high-priced French prostitutes. They're wealthy and powerful and have been in bed with many wealthy and powerful men. Simone, however, is repulsed by this life and believes in true love. Gabrielle tries her best to convince Simone otherwise, introducing Simone to her world by persuading a Persian jeweler to be Simone's first experience. Unfortunately for Gabrielle, Simone and Cyrus fall in love, marry, and move away to Tehran against Gabrielle's wishes.

The first half of the novel reads like a romance. The focus then shifts to Cyrus and his work with red diamonds. There is a mystery associated with these diamonds, as Cyrus thinks he's discovered something that is illegal and tries to determine what it is. When he disappears and is thought to be dead, Simone goes into mourning but is then determined to find out what happened to Cyrus --- and eventually finds herself in the middle of this mystery.

Cyrus courted Simone with red diamonds when he first met her, and he also wore a red diamond in his ear. The diamonds are central to their story, but at the same time Simone's need to be her own person and not the courtesan her mother and grandmother want her to be drives the story.

The shifts in time Mossanen employed throughout the book were not to my liking as they were choppy and without rhythm, but this did not detract from my enjoyment of the book. What I found most pleasurable were the characters and backdrop of the story. 1900s Persia and Paris offer a romantic setting amid the world of the wealthy courtesans. Madame Gabrielle, with her ability to speak to spirits, was especially fun to read about. She has all sorts of wonderfully interesting dead spirits hanging around her, including Franz Liszt and Oscar Wilde, and they can be found floating under her armpits and sitting on her breasts, giving advice or commentary. Very lighthearted bantering goes back and forth between Gabrielle and her many old lovers --- some long gone, others only recently deceased.

The character of Simone stood out because she's strong and not afraid to defy her family's "heritage." The most riveting part for me was learning about the true history of Simone's family and the fact that Gabrielle had hidden from her daughter and granddaughter their real identity and where they came from.

What Mossanen does best in her books is detail beautiful historically romantic settings and describe characters in such a way that they all come to life as on the big screen. Her stories span long periods and her characters' lives are based on history, but there is always that touch of the spirit world that sneaks into her stories. While COURTESAN could have used more structure, it was enjoyable and I'm looking forward to more of Mossanen's work.

--- Reviewed by Marie Hashima Lofton [...]

The characters were poorly written, and Simone never spends enough time or thought with any other character to make it believeable or to make us care. (including her husband, as they fall instantly in love, they move away, he gets shot.) I've read other books with quick pacing, but here everything is just too convienient, there is no real struggle, and I couldn't believe any of it.
There are also weird devices like her grandmother having spirits of her past (dead) loves hiding in her armpit, cleavage ect. who talk to her, or sing loudly and distract her thoughts. What was that about? I found it extremely annoying and distracting.
It was ultimately a dissapointment, because the setting deserved a better story. Can't say I'll be looking for any more of Ms. Mossanen's work.

This marvellous novel is a lush, romantic symphony in which "the clatter of faraway hooves," and "the rumble of carriage wheels," provide the percussive background for period settings, intriguing characters, and the pursuit of red diamonds. A "lust-tinged air" is present throughout an abundance of such rare, magical scenes, as when stallions are attacked by fireflies, and a lemon drink "laced with darkling beetles" is prescribed to enhance memory. Levy-Mossanen's breathtaking descriptions fulfill all the senses and leave nothing to be desired. COURTESAN is fiction at its most artistically satisfying and intellectually transporting.

I just finished this book and was glad to be done with it. While the locales were exotic and intriguing enough to keep me reading, the writing was uneven at best, almost as thought it was a bad translation or something. Im not sure a better editor could have helped it. The author jumped from locale to locale in a jilting way and most of the relationships were never believable. It is my understanding that her first novel 'Harem' was critically acclaimed but having read this one first I won't bother with Harem.

IN "COURTESAN," DORA MOSSANEN DELIVERS A WONDERFUL TWIST. IN THE STORY, THROUGH THE TALENT AND DARING OF A FRENCH-JEWISH WOMAN, NOW A GRANDMOTHER, CATERING TO MEN IN EXCHANGE FOR MONEY, STYLE, AND STATUS OF A CERTAIN SORT HAS BECOME THE FAMILY BUSINESS. WE, THE READER, HAVE THE GOOD LUCK TO BE ALONG FOR THE RIDE IN THE PLAYING-OUT OF THE PROBLEM THAT ARISES WHEN THE GRAND-DAUGHTER IN THIS DYNASTY MANIFESTS RANK DISLOYALTY AND UTTER BAD TASTE BY ACTUALLY FALLING-IN-LOVE. THIS IS A WONDERFUL, EXOTIC AND STYLISH READ. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT.

Courtesan / 978-0-7432-4678-1

When I picked up Mossanen's "Courtesan" and "Harem" together at the local half price book store, I hadn't realized at the time that I could easily have just read "Harem" in order to get the salient contents of both stories.

"Courtesan" shares so many elements with "Harem" that the two books are almost functionally identical. Both books center around a multi-generational trio of women who are textbook Mary Sue characters. Grandmother, mother, and granddaughter all have implausibly-colored hair (azure blue, topaz yellow, and crimson red) and the author makes a big point of telling us that the carpet matches the drapes. Their eyes are equally implausibly colored as deep turquoise, slate gray, and golden yellow. These Jewish women serve as prostitutes to the local Persian gentry, and without any actual training they have managed to become world-renowned harlots; they even know the super-secret method to eunuch orgasms.

Incidentally, the ghosts of famous dead authors like to wallow in the big breasts and blue armpit hair of the matriarch of the family. I'm not making this up; I wish to god I was. In addition to the many famous and skilled authors Mossanen invokes sexually in this novel, she also invokes Oscar Wilde, who not only does not deserve this abuse, but I'm also fairly certain that he wouldn't be interested in these ladies, if you know what I mean.

The only real difference between "Courtesan" and "Harem", is the technique of switching point of view, timeline, and location randomly throughout the story. This is often done without signaling to the reader that a switch has taken place and what, precisely, the new narrator/setting/timeline combination is now.

The plot is largely basic, once you allow that all the main characters are two dimensional stereotypes. The grand-matriarch BlueHair of the "Honore" family (It's "ironic" because prostitution isn't usually considered an "honorable" profession.) was "forced" into prostitution when her Jewish family suffered starvation and privation during the war. However, "forced" is a bit of a stretch, since she enjoys the profession too much to quit once she is financially secure and she is adamant that her daughter and granddaughter follow in her chosen profession, even if they don't want to. The daughter, YellowHair, is more than happy to go along with this plan because she is a simple, pleasure seeking creature with very few thoughts in her head; however, the bold, beautiful, horse riding granddaughter RedHair has different ideas. When she falls in love and marries her first suitor, a rich, powerful Jewish diamond merchant, her family reacts with disapproval, which is terribly odd considering that she's single-handedly wrapped up the money and power they wanted her to get for herself. Sure, she's only servicing one man instead of hundreds, but this seems a small point to quibble over.

RedHair's True Love is a perfect husband except that he quickly gets himself murdered when he discovers that the suspicious rare "red diamonds" suddenly flooding the diamond market are a mite suspicious. He is murdered to protect the secret, in a blatant disregard for the economics of scare commodities: if the "rare" red diamonds are "flooding" the market, then suspicious or not, they're not going to hold a high value for very long. At any rate, RedHair vows to find the killer and her search is greatly aided by the face that her mother and grandmother have conveniently serviced everyone worth knowing in the jewelry industry, and a certain key player has a lifelong obsession with crimson red hair and has *never* found a true red head until he's presented with RedHair.

Like "Harem", "Courtesan" is plagued with frequent sex scenes that are not erotic and fail to advance the plot. Most of them revolve around some kind of kink: oddly colored female body hair, exhibitionist urination, eunuch orgasm, and so on. Also, Mossanen has still not learned that an author should show, not tell, so the pages and pages that tell us the personalities of her characters are quite worthless and would have been better served to be replaced by a few pages showing us their actions, thoughts, dreams, and/or desires. As it is, it is clear that these women do not HAVE desires except the most one-dimensional caricatures possible.

~ Ana Mardoll