DELIRIUM: THE RIMBAUD DELUSION
The hunt for the spiritual in the form of the search for the missing, and possibly non-existent, manuscript of La Chasse Spirituelle.
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RIMBAUD |
Andrea Mann,
an avid fan of the French Symbolist poet, Arthur Rimbaud, visits his
home town of Charleville to recover from the breakup of a long-term
affair.
Andrea meets
an attractive youth who believes he is a reincarnation of Rimbaud, and through him becomes embroiled in a
manipulative relationship with a man known only as Albert.
Albert, a Magician and Trickster,
claims to have discovered the lost manuscript of Rimbaud’s long
prose poem, La Chasse
Spirituelle.
Through Albert's trickery and mind games Andrea is drawn into an hallucinatory world where she no longer knows what is real and what is not.
Interwoven with this main narrative is an account
of the lost manuscript’s whereabouts from its creation to the present
day. Told through diaries, letters, blogs and other devices, this
includes the story of the explosive love affair of the poets, Rimbaud
and Verlaine, and an account of how the poem was originally
misplaced.
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Delirium: The Rimbaud Delusion
ebook released 1st August 2014. Info HERE
For advance notice of the release date and special offers do sign up for the Delirium email newsletter in the column on the right.
My Blog posts about Rimbaud and/or Delirium: The Rimbaud Delusion:
- Inspiration for Delirium Part 1
- Inspiration for Delirium Part 2
- Inspiration for Delirium Part 3
- Inspiration for Delirium Part 4
- Inspiration Part 5 - Terence Tanfield
- Rimbaud for all Seasons
- Death of Rimbaud
- Rimbaud's Birthday
- Charleville - Rimbaud's hometown and setting for Delirium.
- Charleville & Rimbaud - the uneasy relationship
How
many times had I dreamt of coming across the yellowing manuscript of
La Chasse Spirituelle? Inside an old book on a stall in Paris,
perhaps. Or in the attic of some befriended ancient. How many
daydreams had I enjoyed over the possibility that one day...?
I
shook myself. It couldn’t possibly be true.
1872:
The explosive love affair between flamboyant French poets Arthur
Rimbaud and Paul Verlaine rocks French society. They flee to London,
abandoning the manuscript of La
Chasse Spirituelle
to Verlaine’s scorned young wife. When a lawyer's clerk salvages it
from a dusty deed box, the manuscript begins its journey down the
decades, revealing the secrets and betrayals of its various keepers.
2004:
Andrea Mann, disenchanted with life and love, travels to France.
Driven by her obsession with Rimbaud, she’s chasing her dream –
the missing manuscript. Beside the poet’s grave at
Charleville-Mézières, she meets a beautiful young man who shows her
a single page – from La
Chasse Spirituelle.
Andrea
embarks on a desperate quest. Drawn into a manipulative relationship
with the youth and his Svengali-like mentor, the mysterious Albert,
she faces unwelcome truths. The closer she gets to the manuscript,
the further she veers from reality.
But
is Albert’s copy genuine? And can La
Chasse Spirituelle
fill the void in Andrea’s soul?
Paperback will be available in October 2014.
Proof Copy:
DELIRIUM: The Rimbaud Delusion
was voted BOOK OF THE DAY
by Indie Book of the Day
on 26 January 2015.
EASY TWEET:
Find out more about flamboyant French poet #Rimbaud - the first punk. http://barbarascottemmett.blogspot.co.uk/p/delirium-anovel-by-barbara-scott-emmett.html @BSE_Writer
