Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc, all opinions expressed are my own.

I was drawn to this book because I loved the author’s other books like Sarah’s Key and A Secret Kept. I thought this one might be similar. This book was nothing like those, focusing mostly on AI and a bit of a futuristic theme, I didn’t find it as compelling. I love de Rosnay’s writing style and development of settings and characters, but this book didn’t hold my interest as much as her others.

That being said, if you enjoy reading about how artificial intelligence could work in your daily life (maybe a bit too well), this could be a book you would enjoy.

New York Times bestselling author Tatiana de Rosnay's Flowers of Darkness explores how artificial intelligence tampers with love, sex, and the basis of artistic creation in a new future Paris..
Clarissa finds herself with a bevy of concerns about her life in a high tech Paris world after the Tower terrorism.
She resides in a residence that has all the perfect amenities, or does she? CASA is ready to help it’s residents with all its robotic ways to imitate humans, however, there is a lack of artistic and creative ability.
Read this extraordinary novel that is filled with suspense, relationships, love, Paris and tenderness along the way.
I could not put this book down. I hope there is a second book to continue this amazing, grabbing novel.
Warning:Some content was disturbing.

Thank you Net Galley and Tatiana de Rosnay for the ARC copy to read and review.

I finished this book a couple of days ago but I have been thinking about what I wanted to say about it.📚

I love Tatiana deRosnay, I have read almost all of her books. I love how she writes and most often than not her books take place in Paris, my fave city.❤🇨🇵

This book takes place in Paris, where Clarissa after leaving her husband is accepted into CASA a new artist residency, that's ultra modern and a view of Paris. Its the perfect place for a writer to write and live. But, what exactly is the motive behind CASA? What kind of information are they collecting? What do they want to know? Clarissa is a little paranoid and still trying to grasp how her marriage ended.

I loved how the story was weaved. I love deRosnay's writing, she knows how to tell a good story. I loved the plot of the book, it was unlike anything I have read. I had a hard time putting it down and wanted to know exactly what was going on with CASA.

Definitely a book to read if you are curious about artificial intelligence and the reason as to why and if its something we really need.

Flowers of Darkness
By: Tatiana de Rosnay
⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the ARC. This book will be available February 23rd, 20

This novel compellingly juxtaposes a future France, ruled by technology, and the softer world of the recent past. This was a fascinating way to comment on where we're headed in the world as a macro concept, but also what our trajectory means on the micro scale: to our hearts and hopes. The author eases us into the reality of this future world because it doesn't look a lot different than our world today, which highlights just how close the collapse of nature and threats from AI are to us now. The plot veers from this Black Mirror-type future to remembrances of places of sanctuary and creativity which reminds us how we need to maintain our connection to places of peace to remain fully human. A very unique book in that it's not a dystopian speculative fiction novel per se, nor is it a thriller, though it borrows elements from both genres. I found the ending a bit abrupt and somewhat unresolved, which is why it didn't make it to 5 stars.

Thank You NetGalley/Publisher & Author for this gifted e-ARC!

Summary:
CASA is a brand new artist residency in an ultra-modern apartment, with a view of all of Paris. A dream for any novelist in search of tranquility. But is this residency a dream or a nightmare? Since moving in, Clarissa Katsef has had ominous discomfort, the feeling of being watched. Who is behind CASA? Is Clarissa right to be wary or does she too easily give in to paranoia, falling victim to an overly fertile imagination? Meanwhile, Clarissa is still haunted by the betrayal that led her to divorce.

Review:
This book was an "OK" book to read.
I found it kind of hard to follow at times, which is a turn off for me.
I liked the characters on some levels.
I think the book could have been written a little better on some parts.
Overall..... decent book to read when you're bored.

Rating: 3/5

I loved this book for so. many reasons! There are several layers that unfold and all of them create the almost-gothic atmosphere. Clarissa is recently divorced for the 2nd time and in a near-future Paris things have changed as terrorists have leveled several historic sites. So when Clarissa discovers CASA--a newly-renovated high-rise apartment building--is seeking artists to rent to, she jumps at the chance as she is a writer who is obsessed with the "potency of the inner memory of houses" and admires both Virginia Woolf and Romain Gary, two tragic writers with their own histories of depression; she even names her new virtual assistant Mrs. Dalloway in honor of Woolf. And the apartment seems amazing...until she begins to discover that not only are all her needs being taken care of, but she feels more than "watched" and even the cat senses something is "off." The plot slowly unfolds as we also ascertain just why she is divorcing her second husband. Technology...what a blessing! Or is it? When is it too much and what can we do about it! A very prescient look at what we (may) have become!

Flowers of Darkness is a novel set in Paris - not the Paris that we know but a future Paris where terrorists have destroyed the Eiffel Tower. Paris is very different now as is most of Europe due to terrorist destruction of Big Ben in London, the Piazza San Marco in Venice and the Sistine Chapel. Yet people's lives, though changed continue to go on with many of the same problems.

Clarissa, a 50ish writer, has just left her second husband and is looking for somewhere to live. She is excited to be accepted by CASA, a brand new artist residency in an ultra-modern apartment, with a view of all of Paris. In her new apartment, Clarissa has a virtual personal assistant to take care of her and the promised tranquility to write her new book. However, she begins to feel that something is wrong with the apartment as she hears strange noises and begins to feel that she is being watched all the time. Interspersed with Clarissa's plan to find out what is really going on in the apartment two other main factors in her life come to light - the story of how Clarissa's husband betrayed her and her beautiful relationship with her daughter, Jordan and her 15 year old grand-daughter, Andy.

The novel is beautifully written and the story comes to light very slowly - almost dreamlike as it unfolds. The main character is well written and we feel all of her pain and sadness with her life after leaving her husband. The main theme of the novel is artificial intelligence and how it can and will change our lives in the future and affect something precious to all of us -- our privacy.

Tatiana de Rosnay’s Flowers of Darkness provides a compelling insight into our relationship with artificial intelligence, and what the future could be like as it becomes more integrated into our daily lives. The novel also explores how homes and architecture create ties that bind us to places and memories.

Clarissa Katsef is a novelist in the near future where people seldom read, and the art of writing is on the decline. She has recently left her second husband and is offered a beautiful apartment in Paris, housed with artists who have agreed to be constantly monitored and studied by virtual assistants, in exchange for their luxurious living spaces and ability to pursue their art without distractions. C.A.S.A. is hoping to develop AI with the ability to have the imagination necessary to create works of art. Clarissa soon has misgivings. She finds her assistant, whom she has named Mrs. Dalloway, in homage to one of her favorite writers, Virginia Woolf, to be too invasive, and the video monitoring oppressive.

Another thread of the story is the family dynamics between Clarissa’s elderly father, her daughter, her grand-daughter, and her first and second husband. Continuing the theme of AI, there is the extraordinary relationship that Clarissa discovers exists between her first husband and a ‘sex robot’.

All in all, an interesting read, but a very abrupt ending, however, the prose was beautiful and thoughtful and makes this book worth a look at.

There is a pervasive weirdness in this novel, one I was not prepared for. I understand it represents the post-modern world, but I found the contrast between ordinary emotions and sci-fi elements jarring.

The story is about adultery, ordinary theme, but it is the adulterers partner that provides the weird strain running through this novel. So, can we still be human, with all our human values and emotions in a world that has evolved into technological innovation for everything.

Generally I don’t love this kind of book with its sci-fi undertone, but it’s well-written. I love the nod to great authors.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to review this novel by a very special author.

FLOWERS OF DARKNESS
BY TATIANA DE ROSNAY

Many, many years ago in my Introduction to Psychology class at my university my professor lectured on artificial intelligence. He had said so far with all the progress that has been made in the field not yet was it developed to be equivalent to the human brain. But what would happen in life if it in fact was able to think for itself or create or have its own imagination? That is what one of the main question's this novel explores.

It also gives a nod to great writer's such as Daphne du Maurier by naming one of the artist's residence benefactors called Dr. Dewinter. C.A.S.A is a state of the art ultra modern apartment building in Paris that is dedicated to providing homes to every kind of artist. There are writer's, sculptor's and painter's who all live there and they are all bilingual. It is very hard to get accepted to this program.

Clarissa is the main character who names her virtual assistant who is artificial intelligent Mrs. Dalloway which beckons her love for Virginia Woolfe. Clarissa can't escape the eery feeling that she is always being watched and studied. That is because her perfect penthouse apartment on the top floor has cameras in every room except the bathroom. As time goes on this feeling of being continually spied on deeply unsettles her.

Clarissa has just left her second husband Francois for cheating on her. Her first husband Toby is still a close friend of Clarissa's and father to her daughter Jordan and grandfather to their granddaughter Andy. Andy often stays with Clarissa at the C.A.S.A. residency and believes Clarissa's growing unease of her new apartment. Is Clarissa paranoid or is her growing sense of believing that their is something more sinister going on?

This was a very unique premise and it is executed very well with beautiful writing from Tatiana de Rosnay. This novel was creepy and fast paced and can easily be devoured in one sitting. I highly recommend this well written book to reader's of all genres. I really loved, loved, loved this narrative that is peppered with quotes throughout from Romain Gary and Virginia Woolfe.

"Moments
like this
are buds
on the
tree of
life.
Flowers
of
darkness
they are." Virginia Woolfe, Mrs. Dalloway, 1925

Publication Date: February 23, 2021

Thank you to Net Galley, Tatiana de Rosnay and St. Martin's Publishing for generously providing me with my ARC of this breathtaking novel in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

#FlowersofDarkness #TatianadeRosnay #StMartin'sPublishing #NetGalley

"Imagine a world, not that different from ours, not that far away, where everything would be dictated by robots. A lack of inspiration? Writer's block? Tiredness? That fluctuating artistic temperament? Over. Done...We will end up being told what books to read, what movies and exhibits to see; we could be forced to appreciate a fake culture entirely conceived and controlled by machines...Humans will stop creating and imagining. The end of surprises, make-believe, the end of possibilities, of the unexpected. On every front, it'll be the victory of robots."

Tatiana de Rosnay's haunting tale has readers envisioning a world where humanity is replaced by machinery. Even now, as technology advances, AI is becoming commonplace. Where once it was limited to menial jobs and tasks, it's moved into manufacturing, medicine, smart houses and gadgets making our lives easier but at what cost? Are we turning our control over to machines?

When Clarissa moved into the artistic community rebuilt after the attacks, she feels secure in her solitude. A smart house that anticipates her wishes and shields her from the past is a dream come true. That dream quickly becomes a nightmare as she feels like she's being watched. Readers travel along with the protagonist on a journey to discover the truth and if Clarissa able to put the past to rest?

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early edition in exchange for an honest review. I had difficulty with this book as it's not an easy read. That being said, the author pushes readers outside of their comfort zones preying on fears about the future.

Thank you to NetGalley.com for the opportunity to read this book. Every time I begin a Tatiana De Rosnay book I expect another Sarah’s Key. And every time I am disappointed. Virginia Woolf meets AI in a terror destroyed Paris at some time in the future. Much of Europe has suffered terrorist attacks. AI is a taken for granted part of everyday life, yet “Clarissa” seems completely baffled by it even though she has a granddaughter who is willing to help her navigate this “new” world she seems lost in. Newly separated from her husband who has had yet another dalliance (in that French way Clarissa seems to have taken in stride until now) she grabs a couple of things and flees. We do not know why this affair has her so distraught. She immediately finds herself in the position of being the “perfect” candidate for an artist’s residence in a newly rebuilt part of the city. She questions nothing. The reader should question everything. I frequently wanted to give Clarissa a slap because she is so out of touch.

There are too many story lines. There is too much retelling of the same story. Clarissa’s actions are in contradiction to what she claims she should do. Is she in the early stages of dementia or has she never grieved her losses which causes these odd behaviors? And in July 2020 Covid is responsible for the deaths of more than 145,000 Americans. There is no way De Rosnay could have envisioned the world her book would be published in, but I would not have chosen to read this book right now.

I was excited about this book. Unfortunately, it just didn't capture my attention. Maybe it was a little to sci-fi for me? I'm not sure what was missing but it never caught on for me and I skipped around and just got bored.

What grabbed me about this book is the commentary about our post 9/11 world and our obsession with safety mixed with our quickly advancing technology and what technology can do to us. I live my tech, but this provides an interesting viewpoint. I loved having an older that 20 year old protagonist and reading about female relationships. It's a breath of fresh air. The story of why she left her husband is fascinating and watch for that twist!

I was quite disappointed in this book. In my opinion, it was a laborious and boring read. I also thought the premise was a bit far fetched. The ending.....so abrupt! I found myself saying aloud, “WHAT?, it’s ended?” Anything else I could add would contain spoilers, so I will not utter another word. Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin;s Press for this ARC and the opportunity to read and review it.

I expected more from this story. The plot kept building and building but didn’t quite make it to the ominous. I enjoyed the backstory and family dynamics of the main character, a quirky writer who moves into a CASA building filled with only artists and other creatives. The ending was very odd to me; it felt like I was only midway through to story then it ended suddenly. The plot seemed to drag out. This story had so much potential and energy yet it came out full of inertia. Wish the author would write a sequel, as it seemed there were enough unanswered questions to fill a subsequent book.
Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

“Moments like this are buds on the tree of life. Flowers of darkness they are...”
.... Virginia Woolf,
Mrs. Dalloway, 1925

“Instead of screaming,
I write books”
.... Romain Gary

The breathtaking writing in “Flowers of Darkness”, is like a delicious fruit salad. The ingredients include:
....a unique-creative story,
....memorable characters, .....and C.A.S.A residents.
....literary mystery suspense,
....consequences of what seem like inconsequential actions.
....a little blindsiding
....betrayal, lies, secrets, distrust, skepticism,
....compelling place and setting....with Artificial Intelligence (AI), Surveillance cameras.
....loneliness- sorrow - love - hope - threats - courage, intrigue,
....dystopia/ science fiction-‘light’. [the last 30% was a little over the top for my taste], ...but I LOVED sooooo many other things about this book ...which both energized my ‘old-school’ thinking—in the first 70% .....yet challenged me in a ‘REALLY????’.....kind-of-way....in the last chapters....( don’t mind me - I bumped up against my ‘yuck’ judgement)....
........THE PART I AM NOT GOING TO SHARE...( no funny- business-spoilers from me)...
....outrageous possibilities.....THEY SHOULD MAKE A MOVIE from this novel.
....Chablis: the purring soft-fur cat, is a spotlight-scene-stealing heart-warmer, luv-bug.
....You’ll meet ‘Mrs. Dalloway’.....Clarissa’s virtual assistant.
....AND.....there are wonderful tidbits mentioned about Virginia Woolf, and Romain Gary.

We meet Clarissa Katsef....an older woman - author - who didn’t publish her first book until she was fifty years old. Clarissa had just left her second husband, Francois, after twenty years.
She moves into an ultra-modern apartment in Paris. The building is brand new. Artists all had to apply to get into the residency called C.A.S.A. Many people/artists were turned away, ( it was competitive), but for those who were accepted, rent was inexpensive.
Rule/protocols were expected to be followed.
Clarissa was on the top floor - the eight floor - her view was spectacular.
Not everything ‘inside’ her apartment is spectacular....but the storytelling is fascinating.

Jordan was forty-four...(a hydrologist). She was Clarissa’s daughter - lived in London.
Toby, was Clarissa’s first husband. He lived in London.
Clarissa’s father, ( also lived in London), was 98 years old.
Francois was Clarissa’s second husband. He could have lived in a dirt hole as far as Clarissa was concern.
Andriana, (Andy), was Jordon’s daughter; Clarissa’s granddaughter.
Andy, is a spunky, adorable, bright, wise, charming, kick ass fourteen year-old. She calls her grandmother, ‘Mums’.....and I loved it!

There’s a lot going on in this story - easy to follow - but it wasn’t a speed-rush. I savored the writing, and enjoyed my thoughts between readings.
This novel was constantly on my mind; cinematically visually real....( reading and/or on reading breaks)....this book remained in the thoughts a lot.

This book might not be for everyone - ( parts definitely might be though)....
Personally- I’m THRILLED I READ IT. It’s soooo interesting!!....I hope to have lengthy conversations with other readers.

Lots of LOVELY writing:
“Physically, Jordan had inherited her father dark hair, his green eyes; she had her mothers startling height, her powerful yet graceful shoulders. She had Toby’s kindness, his interest in other people. She had Clarissa‘s belligerence, her sense of humor. But she was also very much herself: both clever and dreamy, tolerant and demanding. You couldn’t fool Jordan. She was rude and highly intuitive”.


“Virginia Woolf didn’t write to seduce readers, to hook them in from the start with glib techniques, no, not at all. Virginia Woolf cast a spell on her readers, leisurely, gently, so that they did not know at first how they had been lured, so that they followed, enchanted and docile. But she made them think; she made them wonder. She surprised them at times; she destabilized them. And that is what Clarissa admired the most: The beauty and the depths of her prose, and how Virginia Woolf let her readers into her characters’ minds, how Mrs. Dalloway‘s entire life was revealed in one single day, by dint of the ceaseless coming and going between past and present”.


And great dialogue:
....Clarissa is speaking with her granddaughter, Andy.

“Remember what you said about my apartment?” ( Clarissa begins speaking)
“Yes. That I felt someone was watching me all the time”. ( Andy speaking)
“Well, that’s exactly what’s going on. The artists who live in the residence are all spied upon”. ( Clarissa)
“Have you talked with Mom about this?”
“No”.
“Why not?”
“Your mom thinks I exaggerate. She worries about me. She thinks I forget stuff. She sees me as a disturbed old lady”.
“That’s because she loves you. And you do forget stuff, sometimes. You repeat things, too. It doesn’t bother me”.

Clarissa wanted to know why she was being watched. Were her dreams being tampered with? And Dr. Dewinter, ( the AI hotshot owner of C.A.S.A), what did she want?”

Last.... you’ll learn more about Clarissa’s two husbands- Toby and Francois. ( the what, why, when, and how comes).

Much more I could share....but I haven’t given any spoilers.
Perhaps a few flaws.... but I found this book ( overall)....very engaging.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press, Netgalley, and Tatiana denRosnay

Tatiana de Rosnay is bilingual and has published books in both French and English. Flowers of Darkness, like some of her more well-known books (Sarah's Key and A Secret Kept), is set in one of the neighborhoods of Paris. Clarissa Katsef, the main character, presents two parallel threads of story.

One of these threads is the backstory of how Clarissa came to apply for and live in C.A.S.A., a special artists' apartment retreat entry to which requires a thorough and very personal interview. Clarissa's backstory, which she comes back to time and time again, is that of a successful and perhaps world-renowned writer, who discovers quite unexpectedly that her husband of twenty five years is having an affair. As Clarissa comes to turns with this betrayal, she plays detective and finds the secret love shack and eventually steels up the nerve to confront the vile adulteress who tore her world apart. Clarissa immediately walked out on her husband and decided to start life anew, leaving the wreak of her old life behind. It is a haunting, dreamlike story and Clarissa's bold decision to leave her life set her adrift and closed her off from her old world.

The second thread of the story is all about C.A.S.A., a gorgeous penthouse artist's retreat in a modern building where the occupants' every need is catered to by a virtual assistant extraordinaire, named Mrs. Dalloway. Move over Siri. Step aside Alexa. And this perhaps is where things get strange. The virtual assistant is quite personal and there are cameras everywhere. And mysterious feelings that someone is always watching. At times, it is so creepy that it feels more like a B.F. Skinner experiment than a modern apartment. And that's where perhaps we are in modern life with Google and Facebook and the ubiquitous cameras that are everywhere always watching, always knowing, always analyzing. What kind of strange mind control experiment has she gotten herself into?

Both threads of the story have a closed-off feeling, a sense of being caged up, separated, and corralled. It is a slow story, not filled with wild action, but there is a sense of a build up, of expectations rising, of a master reveal like when the curtain is lifted to reveal the wizard in the Emerald City throne room. Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain! For me, the ending was more a whimper than a bang and the build up of the expectations that were never fully realized, leaving the read oddly dissatisfying. I expected more at the end.

Hmmmmm... I finished reading this book yesterday (I read it in one sitting) but I wanted to wait 24 hours before leaving a review as I’m not sure how I feel about it. It wasn’t what I was expecting - the Artificial Intelligence/robots/cameras etc jarred with the narrative of the bilingual, elderly protagonist (I’m not sure if this was intentional?!)

I did however, love the relationships between mother, daughter and granddaughter. I also didn’t guess the twist about the protagonist’s husband’s infidelity!

Overall, some beautiful prose, some lovely relationships but something just didn’t gel for me.

Wait a minute... this book is about artificial intelligence, love and sex? And it's a sci-fi-thriller set in Paris?

GIVE IT TO ME NOW.

What can I say, this premise along with the futuristic/artsy cover made me drop my tbr pile to read this instead. And it certainly was a strange and unique a book as expected. The plot follows Clarissa, a recent divorcee who decided to move into a new, unique artist residency in Paris called CASA. Clarissa did not only lose her husband, but also her child. Now, although she is haunted by the dark memories, she wants to start fresh at the highly selective CASA program. On the surface, the residency is set in an ultra modern apartment with the creme de la creme of aspiring artists.

...But the reality is much weirder than it seems. Clarissa hears odd sounds and feels that she's being watched. Her subconscious knows something is very wrong, but it's difficult to explain - is she just paranoid? Big Brother seems to be watching, though is that even okay, given what the residents get in return?

Read this book if you like dystopian thrillers and sci-fi novels. Read it if you've ever wondered what role artificial intelligence will play in our private lives.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.