New Orleans, années 1950. Titania, reine des fées et alter ego de Thomas Schwartz, arpente les ruelles et les bars du Quartier français à la recherche de l’homme idéal : le Gaudy Image, cet amant viril et sûr de lui.

How do you find the perfect man? Like most people Titania aka Thomas Schwartz is desperately trying to find out! Set in New Orleans and featuring a colourful cast of louche but loveable characters, the story follows Titania through the backstreets, bars and club of the French Quarter in search of the perfect lover - the Gaudy Image. Originally published in Europe in the 50s to avoid prosecution for obscenity, The Gaudy Image is one of the most important `lost' gay novels. A beautifully written story that is both elegant and caustically humorous, erotic and sympathetic. For fans of Dorothy Baker, Bryan Washington and Zak Salih. William Talsman was the pseudonym of James M Smith a US writer and poet, who is considered to be one of the founders of modern gay literature.