Sleeping with the enemy . . . Coco Chanel, Nazi Agent

Sex drugs and rock ‘n’ roll (well, if not rock ‘n’ roll, then loads of jazz, flappers and the F Scott Fitzgerald crowd) . . . this book certainly has it all.

She’s famous for her business empire, that “Little black dress”, Chanel No 5 perfume and a network of friends and connections across the fashion world during her prime, but few know that Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was a suspected Nazi agent, who betrayed her people to help free a relative, and was long a Jew hater and Nazi sympathiser.

Heady stuff indeed, but here was a complex woman, incredibly driven, extremely creative, who pulled herself up from humble beginnings to achieve her dream and establish herself as a world brand and leader in the world of ladies’ fashion.

Having read this book, complex is a word I would use to wrap up the character of Chanel. As a young woman she would seduce rich and influential men to help kickstart her career and clothing empire, and yet she was a workaholic, who worked herself to the bone to achieve her dream. She was attracted to powerful characters but would let no man hold power over her, and fiercely maintained a degree of independence in all relationships. Yet she was naive in some business dealings, and signed away a great deal regarding the incredible Chanel No 5 success story.

Having – along with a close circle of friends – apparently relied on narcotics for years to deal with daily stresses, she took on a Nazi lover during the occupation of Paris, in part as her last grand love affair, but also to help free a beloved relative from a war camp.

Giving, yet also hugely manipulative, you get the sense Chanel would have done just about anything to achieve her ends.

At the last, it was an old friend, Winston Churchill, who saved her from the wrath of the French people and ensured that the grand icon of French fashion got to live on unmolested and enjoy great celebrity and further achievements after the war.

Insightful, a fascinating look into the life of this social and sexual chameleon, liberator, manipulator and achiever.

Sleeping With the Enemy: Coco Chanel, Nazi Agent is published by Random House/Struik in South Africa.