La Fontaine des Innocents

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It begins with night falling on a December evening in 1989, around the Fontaine des Innocents in the Halles district of Paris. A young woman, Anne-Marie Bermont, is assaulted in the midst of the crowd. This incident, though commonplace in a large city like Paris, disrupts her existence. Max Gallo follows Anne-Marie, a victim of a changing society, and conducts an investigation revealing a multitude of characters whose lives intertwine. The figures of contemporary Paris and its places take shape around Anne-Marie, offering a glimpse into Parisian life at the end of the century. The narrative becomes a living testimony, where the characters are more authentic than those in the newspapers. A crime occurs, disturbing the balance of the protagonists, while those close to power attempt to cover it up. A fierce struggle ensues between those seeking the truth, such as police and journalists, and those who want to suppress the matter, involving Anne-Marie against her will. Gallo's work explores the atmosphere, lost ambitions, hypocrisies, and passions of modern Paris, marking the end of an era of innocence.