Author:Hugo Vickers
Greta Garbo's enduring legend derives from her incandescent performances as a woman in love in such classics as Camille, Queen Christina and Grand Hotel. For half a century her apparently reclusive existence enhanced her reputation as a remote and enigmatic screen goddess.
Now, in this beautifully illustrated book, Hugo Vickers tells the remarkable story of Greta Garbo and of the two love affairs that dominated her life: with Cecil Beaton and the notorious Mercedes de Acosta. It is a highly revealing portait of an exotic world - at its centre, an enthrallign and demanding star who gave little in return.
Hugely ambitious... Vickers's triumph has been to weave the lives of three bisexual, egotistical monsters into an utterly enthralling narrative.
—— Sheridan Morley , Sunday TimesThis enticing book... is wonderful.
—— ObserverImmensely entertaining.
—— Alexander Walker , Evening StandardA thrilling virtuoso piece of pop scholarship
—— QDu Noyer's erudition and lightness of touch is a reward in itself... An essential addition to the shelves of every rock fan
—— MOJOWonderfully thoughtful and entertaining... Thanks to his gentle erudition, his vivid evocation of the ruined grandeur of the streets and, above all, his thoroughly Liverpuddlian sense of humour, Du Noyer is an inspiring guide
—— The Sunday TimesHaines manages to maintain a degree of objectivity and offers us a perspective on the music industry as it turns to dust. It helps that he is funny. Like an articulate but permanently pissed uncle, he's a master of the clever cuss and an enthusiastic employer of the tangential footnote...This is an enjoyably smirksome read.
—— Time Out"Must never end up like Bobby Gillespie" It's not a bad strategy for life, and happily one the ferociously talented Luke Haines continues to adhere to in his follow-up to Bad Vibes. Resuming from where that excoriatingly brilliant book left off...Grimly amusing.
—— Word