“I walk into the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, and it immediately came to me. I was going to do a heist. I was going to do an all-woman heist.” Jo Piazza on The Parisian Heist
Paris, priceless masterpieces, formidable women, and a very good reason to come out of hiatus.
For this special bonus episode of 15 with Fosca, I’m delighted to welcome back author, journalist, and podcaster Jo Piazza to talk about The Parisian Heist. Last time, we escaped to Sicily. This time, we’re heading to Paris for a delicious mix of art, intrigue, female friendship, and rich people behaving very badly.
We meet Jo van Gogh, Vincent’s sister-in-law, whose determination helped secure his extraordinary legacy, and explore the novel’s other timeline: Paris in 1996, where an unforgettable cast of women becomes entangled in the art world and an audacious heist.
Jo takes us behind the scenes of her research, from writing longhand in the Musée d’Orsay to consulting an art-security expert and personally tasting the dishes that appear in her books. We also discuss our shared affection for the fabulous Stella, why female friendship is central to Jo’s fiction, and the pleasure of reading something that transports you while giving you plenty to think about.
Plus: connecting with more than a thousand book clubs, practical advice for getting words onto the page, her latest release, I Never Knew You At All, co-authored with Christine Pride, and a preview of Jo’s next adventures in fiction, including The Last Ride and The Bone Crew, her dinosaur-inspired middle-grade project.
Come for Paris. Stay for the women plotting their next move.
If you enjoyed our conversation, share it with a friend who loves books, Paris, and fabulous female protagonists. Oder your copy of The Parisian Heist today. It also makes a great holiday gift!
Jo Piazza is a bestselling author, podcast creator and award-winning journalist. She is the national and international bestselling author of The Parisian Heist, The Sicilian Inheritance, Everyone is Lying to You, We Are Not Like Them, You Were Always Mine, Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, The Knockoff and How to Be Married. Her work has been published in ten languages in twelve countries and four of her books have been optioned for film and television. Jo’s podcasts have garnered more than twenty-five million downloads and regularly top podcast charts. An editor, columnist and travel writer, her work has also appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, New York magazine, Marie Claire, Glamour and many other publications. Her latest book, The Parisian Heist, is now available! She lives in Philly with her husband, Nick Aster and three feral children.
Jo Piazza Official Biography
Connect with Jo Piazza:
• Website, books, and events: https://www.jopiazza.com/
• The Parisian Heist: https://www.theparisianheist.com/
• Instagram (@jopiazzaauthor): https://www.instagram.com/jopiazzaauthor/
• Substack — Over the Influence: https://jopiazza.substack.com/
• Podcast — Under the Influence: https://www.jopiazza.com/undertheinfluence
• Explore Jo’s other podcasts: https://www.jopiazza.com/podcasts
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johanna.piazza/
• X (@jopiazza): https://x.com/jopiazza
• Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/jopiazza
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jo-piazza-86223519/
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Podcast Producer: Andrew Niklas Curtis
Recorded via Zoom, post-production Lorenzo Maiani, Faminore Sound Agency