Hello, Cruel Heart

By Maureen Johnson

A young designer's ambition clashes with a life of crime in 1967 London.

3.8/5 Goodreads · 1,646 ratings

336 pages

$17.99Save 6%

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Bookroo's summary

In 1967 London, sixteen-year-old Estella dreams of fashion fame but is entangled in petty crime with her makeshift family. A chance encounter with high society offers a glimpse of glamour and success. As Estella navigates parties, rock stars, and cutting-edge fashion, she must decide if the cost of her dreams is worth the price. Will she embrace her ambition or remain trapped in a life of heists and disguises?

From the publisher

An electric new story of teenage Cruella de Vil in an original novel inspired by the upcoming Walt Disney Studios Live Action Film, Cruella. Swinging London, Summer 1967. Sixteen-year-old Estella, gifted with talent, ingenuity, and ambition, dreams of becoming a renowned fashion designer. But life seems intent on making sure her dreams never come true. Having arrived in London as a young girl, Estella now runs wild through the city streets with Jasper and Horace, amateur thieves who double as Estella’s makeshift family and partners-in-(petty)-crime. How can Estella dedicate herself to joining the ranks of the London design elite when she’s sewing endless costumes and disguises for the trio’s heists? When a chance encounter with Magda and Richard Moresby-Plum, two young scions of high society, vaults Estella into the world of the rich and famous, she begins to wonder whether she might be destined for more after all. Suddenly, Estella’s days are filled with glamorous parties, exclusive eateries, flirtations with an up-and-coming rock star, and, of course, the most cutting-edge fashions money can buy. But what is the true cost of keeping up with the fast crowd–and is it a price Estella is willing to pay?

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