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Ze bestaan echt: die mannen en vrouwen die bereid zijn hun ziel te verkopen, hun vrienden te verloochenen, enkel om dat ene moment van beroemdheid te bereiken en te behouden…
Om aandacht voor zijn nieuwste film te trekken, laat de megalomane Italiaanse regisseur Oscar Martello zijn vriend en scenarioschrijver Andrea samen met de glamoureuze actrice Jaracanda Rizzi vlak voor de première van de aardbodem verdwijnen. De daaropvolgende speculaties in de roddelpers zijn fantastische pr en maken Oscars nieuwe film in een klap voorpaginanieuws.
Op hun geheime verblijfplaats doet Jaracanda aan Andrea duistere ontboezemingen over Oscar, die Andrea doen twijfelen aan de echtheid van zijn vriendschap met de regisseur. Kort daarna verdwijnt Jaracanda spoorloos en is onvindbaar. Is het haar lijk dat drijvend gevonden wordt in een Amsterdamse gracht? Heeft de cynische, mondaine Oscar ook hierin de sinistere regie?
Bestaat er überhaupt zoiets als echte vriendschap in een wereld waarin het alleen lijkt te draaien om beroemd worden, beroemd zijn en vooral beroemd blijven? Of is iedere vriendschap uiteindelijk gedoemd te worden vergiftijd door eigen belang en verraad?
Om aandacht voor zijn nieuwste film te trekken, laat de megalomane Italiaanse regisseur Oscar Martello zijn vriend en scenarioschrijver Andrea samen met de glamoureuze actrice Jaracanda Rizzi vlak voor de première van de aardbodem verdwijnen. De daaropvolgende speculaties in de roddelpers zijn fantastische pr en maken Oscars nieuwe film in een klap voorpaginanieuws.
Op hun geheime verblijfplaats doet Jaracanda aan Andrea duistere ontboezemingen over Oscar, die Andrea doen twijfelen aan de echtheid van zijn vriendschap met de regisseur. Kort daarna verdwijnt Jaracanda spoorloos en is onvindbaar. Is het haar lijk dat drijvend gevonden wordt in een Amsterdamse gracht? Heeft de cynische, mondaine Oscar ook hierin de sinistere regie?
Bestaat er überhaupt zoiets als echte vriendschap in een wereld waarin het alleen lijkt te draaien om beroemd worden, beroemd zijn en vooral beroemd blijven? Of is iedere vriendschap uiteindelijk gedoemd te worden vergiftijd door eigen belang en verraad?
280 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
April 15, 2017
Αδίστακτοι παραγωγοί του κινηματογράφου και της τηλεόρασης που πίσω από τις μεγάλες παραγωγές ξεπλένουν χρήμα, γυναίκες διψασμένες για εκδίκηση, σεναριογράφοι με βίαιο παρελθόν και ερωτοχτυπημένο παρόν,ψωνισμένοι σκηνοθέτες της μιας επιτυχίας, ντίβες ηθοποιοί που κατρακυλούν στα χάπια και στο αλκοόλ, λεσβίες αντζέτισσες, πληρωμένοι κριτικοί, διψασμένοι για αίμα παπαράτσι, κόμισσες της καλής κοινωνίας που στήνουν βραδιές φιλανθρωπίας με αδιαφανές χρήμα, εμμονικοί επιθεωρητές της Αστυνομίας με βαρύ παρελθόν που προσπαθούν να βρουν την άκρη του νήματος (και του χρήματος), πολυτελείς επαύλεις, έργα τέχνης, διαμερίσματα με θεά τον Τίβερη, γεύματα στη Ρώμη και στο Παρίσι, σεξ και κοκαΐνη : με σαφέστατες αναφορές στο Ντόλτσε Βίτα (όχι αυτό με την Παναγιωτοπούλου, ανόητοι) αλλά με φρενήρη σκηνοθεσία Ταραντίνο (ειδικά η ταινία μέσα στο βιβλίο ("Όχι, δεν παραδίνομαι !"-με θαυμαστικό στο τέλος) είναι ξεκάθαρος Ταραντίνο), είναι ένα βιβλίο,ίσως ρηχό, με χαρακτήρες larger than life, που ανυπομονείς να το δεις στο σινεμά, γιατί φωνάζει από την πλοκή μέχρι το καδράρισμα να γυριστεί στο σινεμά.
September 20, 2021
2,5* για την ακρίβεια, γιατί πέρασα καλά μαζί του, παρόλο που η υπόθεση δεν με άγγιξε καν και δεν συνδέθηκα με κανένα χαρακτήρα. Αυτό βέβαια που σκεφτόμουν όλο το διάστημα της ανάγνωσης είναι το πόσο τυχερή ήμουν που το βιβλίο αυτό το δανείστηκα και δεν πλήρωσα το απίστευτο ποσό που αναγραφόταν σε σελίδα του! Εσένα καλέ μου φίλε που μου το δάνεισες ξέρω ότι σου άρεσε, αλλά και πάλι δεν μπορώ να πω "χαλάλι"! Σόρυ...
August 17, 2018
Ήταν ευχάριστο και ευκολοδιαβαστο. Είχε ωραία περιγραφικά στοιχεία κ ο τρόπος γραφής έρεε ανεμπόδιστα. Ενώ μου άρεσε ο τρόπος που ο συγγραφέας έμπλεκε την ιστορία και τους πρωταγωνιστές δεν κατάφερε να δώσει περισσότερο βάθος. Νομίζω ότι είχε τα φόντα λόγο γραφής να εξελιχθεί σε κάτι ακόμα καλύτερα αλλά οι χαρακτήρες ενώ είχαν στοιχεία για ανάπτυξη χωρίς να γίνουν βαρετοί δεν αναπτύχθηκαν νομίζω κατάλληλα (ή έστω βαθύτερα). Έτσι, παράμ παπάμ επειδή δεν παύει να είναι ένα καλό ανάγνωσμα που δεν το άφησα από τα χέρια μου, έχουμε 3 αστεράκια.
March 17, 2021
Meh I can't do an decent review on this, completely unintressed in the story and forgot most of what I've read.
February 12, 2017
Υπέροχο γράψιμο, φανταστικά κάδρα, αβανταδορικο σκηνικό.Δεν καταφέρνουν να σώσουν το αστείο σενάριο κ τους τόσο αδύναμους χαρακτήρες
December 21, 2017
**ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review**
Italian and roman culture and how it's rich influence adds color and life to the TV and film industry. It all comes to life in Pino Corrias' novel We'll Sleep When We're Old.
"He was likable, he was munificent, he offered advice. He listened to secrets. He dispensed opinions."
The colorful story of Oscar Martello, a self made man (who wouldn’t mind reminding you of his hardships and success whenever he encounters you) who is the president of a film production company sheds light on the way he deals with life’s inconveniences in the most creative and corrupt way possible.
Oscar is a man who absolutely lives for attention. Upon the approaching release of a film that he firmly believes will be an utter disaster due to the unrealistic characters and the actors who don't portray them the way he believes they should, the blame falls on the director for not producing the best version of what the film should be.
Of course something has to be done to get better publicity before the movie premieres and this is where we see why Oscar is as good as he is rumored to be.
His best friend Andrea Serrano, also a script-writer that Oscar swore he helped out of the gutter, and well-known actress, Jacaranda Rizzi are both constants in the progress of the story and get pulled into his little plot.
What was truly interesting is the way in which these aristocrats were portrayed, they are the way you would expect them to be among each other at a fancy overpriced dinner, talking in hushed judgmental tones. They are snobby and rich and it makes you want to be them and hate them simultaneously.
There is certainly no shortage of eccentric characters and cringe-worthy moments with Oscar involved, and this book deserves a prestigious 5 star rating!
Italian and roman culture and how it's rich influence adds color and life to the TV and film industry. It all comes to life in Pino Corrias' novel We'll Sleep When We're Old.
"He was likable, he was munificent, he offered advice. He listened to secrets. He dispensed opinions."
The colorful story of Oscar Martello, a self made man (who wouldn’t mind reminding you of his hardships and success whenever he encounters you) who is the president of a film production company sheds light on the way he deals with life’s inconveniences in the most creative and corrupt way possible.
Oscar is a man who absolutely lives for attention. Upon the approaching release of a film that he firmly believes will be an utter disaster due to the unrealistic characters and the actors who don't portray them the way he believes they should, the blame falls on the director for not producing the best version of what the film should be.
Of course something has to be done to get better publicity before the movie premieres and this is where we see why Oscar is as good as he is rumored to be.
His best friend Andrea Serrano, also a script-writer that Oscar swore he helped out of the gutter, and well-known actress, Jacaranda Rizzi are both constants in the progress of the story and get pulled into his little plot.
What was truly interesting is the way in which these aristocrats were portrayed, they are the way you would expect them to be among each other at a fancy overpriced dinner, talking in hushed judgmental tones. They are snobby and rich and it makes you want to be them and hate them simultaneously.
There is certainly no shortage of eccentric characters and cringe-worthy moments with Oscar involved, and this book deserves a prestigious 5 star rating!
January 15, 2018
Oh I did enjoy this believable window into a bizarre world, most of us would never have entry too. I might not like the various characters, but I did find the whole book 'SUCH FUN'...
April 20, 2018
Je reculais un peu devant cette lecture car, malgré le titre plutôt aguicheur, les gens autour de moi et autres jurés du meilleur roman Points était deçus et très critiques.
Une fois n'est pas coutume, je serai plus indulgente. Pino Corrias dépeint le monde du cinéma italien, un monde très berlusconien, très cynique, le monde dans lequel tout tourne autour de l'argent, de l'alcool, de la drogue et du sexe. Il serait plus juste de dire que ce n'est pas le monde du cinéma (à aucun moment il ne s'agit ni de création ni d'émotion) mais le monde d'"autour du cinéma". On ne voudrait pas l'approcher et on plaindrait les gens qui sont obligés (le sont-ils vraiment?) d'en être. Ces gens-là, d'ailleurs, doivent ressentir la même chose envers nous autres.
On n'a aucun doute de ce que l'auteur pense de ce monde qu'il a l'air de très bien connaître: il le décrit d'une façon presque caricaturale, c'est un tableau fait de clichés (je pense que c'était voulu... et j'espère que je ne me trompe pas).
Mais il y a aussi une histoire, avec sa part de suspense et de possibilités qui ne peuvent que réjouir le lecteur. Et honnêtement, j'ai été plutôt happée par cette histoire, surtout quand elle se déplace à Paris, et là, non seulement l'auteur réussit à montrer ce Paris parallèle des gens qui y sont de passage où qui y cherchent un réfuge, mais il abandonne les clichés, on commence à s'attacher aux personnages et espérer mieux les connaître. Mais l'auteur rompt ce fil et en commence un autre, on fait connaissance de Raul Ventura, encore un personnage qu'on voudrait mieux connaître, hélas, Pino Corrias ne nous donnera pas vraiment cette occasion non plus.
Il faut dire que le roman est écrit d'une façon très dynamique, on a l'impression de "lire un film". J'entends bien: pas un scénario, pas un texte qui ne demande qu'à être adapté au cinéma, mais un roman écrit comme si c'était un film. Les titres un peu bizarres de chapitres le deviennent beaucoup moins si on les prend comme titres de "tableaux" ou de scènes à tourner. Pour ceux qui n'auraient pas compris, l'auteur rajoute quelques indications pour qu'on rapproche l'écrit du visuel (ce qui n'est pas très sympa, il faut avoir plus de confiance en ses lecteurs). Du coup, on connaît l'âge et le physique de tous les personnages, les bribes de leurs histoires mais dès qu'on sort des clichés, on ne sait plus grand-chose d'eux, de leur psychologie, de ce qui les fait agir d'une manière ou d'une autre. Normal, dans un film, c'est le boulot du réalisateur et des acteurs. Dans un roman, c'est quand même le boulot de l'auteur, et là, Pino Corrias est plutôt absent.
On entend sa voix d'auteur à la fin, et là, c'est vraiment raté. Il n'y a plus d'histoire, il n'y a plus d'humour, c'est écrit d'une façon presque journalistique, cela détonne, c'est trop long, et si au début, on tournait vite les pages, à la fin, on n'attend que le livre se termine.
Je ne peux donc pas dire que c'est de la grande littérature ou que c'est une lecture indispensable mais je ne peux pas non plus renier un livre qui m'a fait passer quelques heures de lecture divertissante. Oui, c'est cela, c'est un livre divertissant, ce qui n'est absolument pas un défaut. Etait-ce l'intention de l'auteur? Je l'ignore.
Une fois n'est pas coutume, je serai plus indulgente. Pino Corrias dépeint le monde du cinéma italien, un monde très berlusconien, très cynique, le monde dans lequel tout tourne autour de l'argent, de l'alcool, de la drogue et du sexe. Il serait plus juste de dire que ce n'est pas le monde du cinéma (à aucun moment il ne s'agit ni de création ni d'émotion) mais le monde d'"autour du cinéma". On ne voudrait pas l'approcher et on plaindrait les gens qui sont obligés (le sont-ils vraiment?) d'en être. Ces gens-là, d'ailleurs, doivent ressentir la même chose envers nous autres.
On n'a aucun doute de ce que l'auteur pense de ce monde qu'il a l'air de très bien connaître: il le décrit d'une façon presque caricaturale, c'est un tableau fait de clichés (je pense que c'était voulu... et j'espère que je ne me trompe pas).
Mais il y a aussi une histoire, avec sa part de suspense et de possibilités qui ne peuvent que réjouir le lecteur. Et honnêtement, j'ai été plutôt happée par cette histoire, surtout quand elle se déplace à Paris, et là, non seulement l'auteur réussit à montrer ce Paris parallèle des gens qui y sont de passage où qui y cherchent un réfuge, mais il abandonne les clichés, on commence à s'attacher aux personnages et espérer mieux les connaître. Mais l'auteur rompt ce fil et en commence un autre, on fait connaissance de Raul Ventura, encore un personnage qu'on voudrait mieux connaître, hélas, Pino Corrias ne nous donnera pas vraiment cette occasion non plus.
Il faut dire que le roman est écrit d'une façon très dynamique, on a l'impression de "lire un film". J'entends bien: pas un scénario, pas un texte qui ne demande qu'à être adapté au cinéma, mais un roman écrit comme si c'était un film. Les titres un peu bizarres de chapitres le deviennent beaucoup moins si on les prend comme titres de "tableaux" ou de scènes à tourner. Pour ceux qui n'auraient pas compris, l'auteur rajoute quelques indications pour qu'on rapproche l'écrit du visuel (ce qui n'est pas très sympa, il faut avoir plus de confiance en ses lecteurs). Du coup, on connaît l'âge et le physique de tous les personnages, les bribes de leurs histoires mais dès qu'on sort des clichés, on ne sait plus grand-chose d'eux, de leur psychologie, de ce qui les fait agir d'une manière ou d'une autre. Normal, dans un film, c'est le boulot du réalisateur et des acteurs. Dans un roman, c'est quand même le boulot de l'auteur, et là, Pino Corrias est plutôt absent.
On entend sa voix d'auteur à la fin, et là, c'est vraiment raté. Il n'y a plus d'histoire, il n'y a plus d'humour, c'est écrit d'une façon presque journalistique, cela détonne, c'est trop long, et si au début, on tournait vite les pages, à la fin, on n'attend que le livre se termine.
Je ne peux donc pas dire que c'est de la grande littérature ou que c'est une lecture indispensable mais je ne peux pas non plus renier un livre qui m'a fait passer quelques heures de lecture divertissante. Oui, c'est cela, c'est un livre divertissant, ce qui n'est absolument pas un défaut. Etait-ce l'intention de l'auteur? Je l'ignore.
February 18, 2017
Twijfel tussen 2 of 3 sterren. 3 voor de spannende opbouw. Maar uiteindelijk geef ik toch maar 2 omdat ik moeite had met taal en stijl. Er waren teveel ellenlange opsommingen en teveel zinnen zonder begin of einde.
January 28, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. The characters are all highly flawed individuals desperately grasping for a lifestyle that provides security, but at the same time,excitement. Everyone hustles. Everyone looks out for themselves first. Even the “good guy” Andrea is distrustful and behaves selfishly. And at the center of it all is Oscar, controlling the narrative, juggling real-life complicated story lines with ease. When things don’t go his way, Oscar’s mad-genius takes over and he hatches the most complicated plan to save his movie, and later, himself.
I’ve read other reviews describing women in this work as “hated”. I get the impression that the author doesn’t care for any of his characters as he shows how money and fame create sociopathic and self-destructive personalities. Oscar sees these weaknesses and exploits them. Women have always lacked the opportunities to achieve and advance that men have. But regardless of this, all of the characters degraded themselves in some way for personal advancement.
Oscar causes many of his friends and acquaintances to question themselves and what they know as truth based on his quick-witted and confusing comments. He is impressive in this way, despite being a deplorable human being.
I’ve read other reviews describing women in this work as “hated”. I get the impression that the author doesn’t care for any of his characters as he shows how money and fame create sociopathic and self-destructive personalities. Oscar sees these weaknesses and exploits them. Women have always lacked the opportunities to achieve and advance that men have. But regardless of this, all of the characters degraded themselves in some way for personal advancement.
Oscar causes many of his friends and acquaintances to question themselves and what they know as truth based on his quick-witted and confusing comments. He is impressive in this way, despite being a deplorable human being.
December 13, 2017
Protagonist Oscar Martello is a rich and corrupt Roman media producer. He's named script writer Andrea Serrano as his best friend and shipped him off to an apartment in Paris with his leading actress, Jacaranda Rizzi. The main purpose of their hasty disappearance is to drum up public interest in their upcoming film release, but not everyone is in on the plan and things go unsurprisingly awry.
The Kirkus Review of this title is spot on. While the story flows at a decent pace, with details from the past woven in, some readers may take issue with the author's use of commas. Many sentences contain such numerous examples that the reader is unable to even remember at the end what has been exemplified. The characters are unlikable, therefore making the book cold and devoid of emotion. A crass voice may also put some readers off. This novel is recommended for those interested in reading about corruption and scandal in European cinema and TV.
I received an advance uncorrected proof of this book as a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the author/publisher for participating in the giveaway.
The Kirkus Review of this title is spot on. While the story flows at a decent pace, with details from the past woven in, some readers may take issue with the author's use of commas. Many sentences contain such numerous examples that the reader is unable to even remember at the end what has been exemplified. The characters are unlikable, therefore making the book cold and devoid of emotion. A crass voice may also put some readers off. This novel is recommended for those interested in reading about corruption and scandal in European cinema and TV.
I received an advance uncorrected proof of this book as a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the author/publisher for participating in the giveaway.
October 30, 2017
From the perspective of someone who knows absolutely nothing about Italy or Italian cinema, this was a fairly interesting read, with some lovely descriptions of the atmosphere and landscapes of Rome and other places the characters visit. However, I found the characters to be not very relatable, and despite backstories I never felt like I knew them or really cared about what happened to them, although I was invested enough to read to the end to find out what happened to them. The ending was neither surprising nor very satisfying, but honestly that's true for the rest of the book as well. There were some small twists in the story, the last of them I found to be completely contrived and not very believable, but whether it was true or not was pretty irrelevant to the rest of the story so it really didn't matter.
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway, with no obligation to review.
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway, with no obligation to review.
August 31, 2020
I think I may stop engaging with Goodreads as the reviews I read are typically based on "I didn't like the main character" or some other dislike of the reviewer. Come on people---review the book and leave your personal prejudices at the cover. Had I read the reviews before starting this book I never would have read it.
This is one of the books I picked up at the library because I liked the title and it turned out to be a novel full of deep character and nasty plot twists. Corrias’ style is succint and yet very descriptive and it was easy to stay engaged through the whole novel. It is an “expose” of the life of Italian filmaking, yet it is probably the story of the universal film industry.
Not any particularly "nice" people, but a very strong piece of work.
This is one of the books I picked up at the library because I liked the title and it turned out to be a novel full of deep character and nasty plot twists. Corrias’ style is succint and yet very descriptive and it was easy to stay engaged through the whole novel. It is an “expose” of the life of Italian filmaking, yet it is probably the story of the universal film industry.
Not any particularly "nice" people, but a very strong piece of work.
February 18, 2018
Personally, not a big fan of this book. I realize it is translated from Italian, but the sentences are so long that I find myself having to go back and reread them more than once because I forget what they are about! The characters are not very interesting (all they are into are sex, drugs and infidelity it seems...). I am normally a very quick reader as reading is my favorite way to wind down and relax but this book does nothing for me. Character development, storyline etc. - none of it is deep enough or keeping my attention.
October 22, 2018
Right from the start I didn't like the main character however the other characters and the writing about them seemed, different.
At the end, I had this aha moment. The main character is brash, crude, a crook and generally unlikable...but everyone "likes" him. And as long as you are on his side, everything is wonderful, perfect, awesome, etc....
Cross him or disagree, it goes quickly into the toilet. You are worthless, scum, terrible, a waste of breath...
I felt like I was reading about someone who is constantly in the news...
At the end, I had this aha moment. The main character is brash, crude, a crook and generally unlikable...but everyone "likes" him. And as long as you are on his side, everything is wonderful, perfect, awesome, etc....
Cross him or disagree, it goes quickly into the toilet. You are worthless, scum, terrible, a waste of breath...
I felt like I was reading about someone who is constantly in the news...
January 17, 2018
Despite the good review in a magazine, I was unimpressed.
The plot was thin & fairly predictable.
The author rambled through excessively long descriptions of everything. What only needed a sentence or two got two or three paragraphs. The book could have easily been 100 pages shorter and lost nothing. I ended up skimming more than reading because of it.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend the book.
The plot was thin & fairly predictable.
The author rambled through excessively long descriptions of everything. What only needed a sentence or two got two or three paragraphs. The book could have easily been 100 pages shorter and lost nothing. I ended up skimming more than reading because of it.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend the book.
August 23, 2023
I did not enjoy the style of this book, e.g. presenting the characters at the beginning, but not all of them; indulging in useless details (how important to the story is if they ate boiled fish or drank a certain white wine??); hiding details everyone could have imagined and revealing them as if they would provide the explanation to certain behaviours....not at all convinced!!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 30, 2018
It is rare that I don't finish a book but this is the rare book that I couldn't get past the first 50 pages. It felt like I had started reading the biography of Harvey Weinstein- movie mogul gets what he deserve for despicable behavior.
February 27, 2021
Niet mijn type boek. Het thema van de jetset lag mij niet, het voelde eerder alsof je een roddelblaadje aan het lezen was. De plotwendingen die waarschijnlijk bedoeld waren om verrassend over te komen waren allesbehalve spannend en het hele verhaal kon mij eigenlijk niet echt boeien.
February 1, 2018
Couldn't get into it.
February 28, 2018
Got to page 29....boring me nearly to death. Life is too short. Done!
March 18, 2018
Couldn't get into this at all. Returned it to the library halfway into first chapter.
May 6, 2018
Roman sur le cinéma italien, assez rigolo et bien rythmé, mais qui s’essoufle et se perd. Divertissant.
Read
December 13, 2019This book was amazing. If you want to check it out you can buy it from Dollar Tree.
Read
March 24, 2020Niet te lezen . Langdradige zinnen die eindeloos
Gezwets
Weerspiegelen. Totaal irrationele zinnen vol onzin of samenhang
Gezwets
Weerspiegelen. Totaal irrationele zinnen vol onzin of samenhang
May 4, 2022
Weird shit. Felt like I was being pushed the whole way through. This was written by a man and it shows, lots of references to sex and every woman was described as a busty skinny super model.
August 10, 2020
Read it very slowly, but I finished it anyway.
February 22, 2018
We’ll Sleep When We’re Old was the first selection from the ODU Alumni Big Blue Book Club that I participated in. I will not let this book deter me from future ODU book club participation. I heard it was originally written in Italian, so I tried to keep that in mind with the multiple 10-12 line run-on sentences. The story itself was interesting. I love behind the scene movie/Hollywoodish stories but the characters were just awful. I wasn’t cheering for any of them. Even the “good” guy was a douche. I got through it quick thankfully and would NOT recommend it.
February 17, 2017
Interesting story, easily to read but without any characters to connect to.
January 16, 2018
Oscar Martello is a misogynistic, bullying, corrupt and famous movie producer in Rome. His hedonistic world of celebrity comes to life with striking detail in We'll Sleep When We're Old, the debut novel by Italian journalist and television producer Pino Corrias.
Martello loves power and money more than anything: "I'm an anarchist, I dismantle power and I pocket it." He lies, cheats and carelessly betrays friends, wives, lovers and coworkers with tacit approval because his influence seems limitless. When one of his movies appears to flounder, Martello devises what seems to be the perfect publicity stunt to turn critical opinion and ensure his profit. He secretly sends Andrea Serrano, a screenwriter and the closest thing to a friend Martello has, and Jacaranda Rizzi, the beautiful but unstable star of the movie, to Paris in a disappearing act. The media frenzy over the actress's whereabouts will boost the movie, Martello knows, and he's right. But when Jacaranda leaves Paris and cannot be found and, simultaneously, Italian police investigate Martello's connection to money laundering and corruption, his world begins to collapse and his capacity for cruelty comes back to haunt him.
We'll Sleep When We're Old, with action between Rome and Paris, vividly describes the debauchery in Martello's world of La Dolce Roma, where "everyone is so damned guilty that no one ever really is." Even the most unlikable characters--of which Martello tops the list--are multidimensional and not merely vile. Fans of Elmore Leonard and Boogie Nights will enjoy this wild ride.
reviewed for Shelf Awareness 1/16/18
Martello loves power and money more than anything: "I'm an anarchist, I dismantle power and I pocket it." He lies, cheats and carelessly betrays friends, wives, lovers and coworkers with tacit approval because his influence seems limitless. When one of his movies appears to flounder, Martello devises what seems to be the perfect publicity stunt to turn critical opinion and ensure his profit. He secretly sends Andrea Serrano, a screenwriter and the closest thing to a friend Martello has, and Jacaranda Rizzi, the beautiful but unstable star of the movie, to Paris in a disappearing act. The media frenzy over the actress's whereabouts will boost the movie, Martello knows, and he's right. But when Jacaranda leaves Paris and cannot be found and, simultaneously, Italian police investigate Martello's connection to money laundering and corruption, his world begins to collapse and his capacity for cruelty comes back to haunt him.
We'll Sleep When We're Old, with action between Rome and Paris, vividly describes the debauchery in Martello's world of La Dolce Roma, where "everyone is so damned guilty that no one ever really is." Even the most unlikable characters--of which Martello tops the list--are multidimensional and not merely vile. Fans of Elmore Leonard and Boogie Nights will enjoy this wild ride.
reviewed for Shelf Awareness 1/16/18
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