As a longtime fan of Michelle Moran, I was eagerly anticipating Madame Tussaud. Seriously this book had been haunting blogs, tempting me with giveaways, early reviews and teasing exclamations. I wanted this book a lot, and the second the library had it, I borrowed it! I can say that I'm not disappointed at all, and Madame Tussaud is just as vivid, humanly heartfelt as I had expected! 
 Madame Tussaud, is the book about the character herself, the famous sculptor Madame Tussaud, known as Marie in the book. However, Moran's novel does not strictly focus on Madame Tussaud's late career but rather her early days of working at her father's salon and life in revolutionary France. Under the days of Robespierre, Marat, and the other great men of the day, Marie coped with the ceaseless bloodshed, and whirlwind times. Both engrossing in its historical detail and multidimensional portrayal of characters, Moran has crafted another winner of a historical novel for the bookshelves. 
 Marie Grosholtz, is our young Madame Tussaud, still unmarried, and youthful. Madame Tussaud focuses on her life as a messenger to the news of the day as well as romantic relationships with the handsome boy Henri, their neighbor. All the characters in Madame Tussaud are undeniably likable and appealing to the reader, and the relationships among such a close group of family, is endearing in such turbulent times. I was completely absorbed into the atmosphere of historical France, the uncertainty of the guillotine in the Reign of Terror, the pulsating changes and coup of the royal family as well as the feeling of the mere meaningless of bloodshed over those who died. Moran orchestrates each feeling completely realistically, without forcing any character to end up contrived or cut short - the prose is indeed perfect! Any decision that Marie made or terrible pain the family suffered was intimately felt by the reader, swaying emotions from wave to wave. 
 Madame Tussaud is so impressive in its literary prose that I can't think of a way to recommend it more. Sure, you might like it more if you like history, but Moran's writing is fluid enough to bridge any gaps. You don't need a background history lesson in feel the complex emotions of the times, Moran transports you there with a whirl of her pen. Endlessly laudable and completely wonderful, Madame Tussaud is one of my favorite historical fiction novels of 2011!