The title La Guerre par d’autres moyens encapsulates the central conflict of the story: a war fought not on battlefields, but through ambition, ego, and emotional sabotage. Power comes in many forms—and every character wants a taste.

Dan Lehman is the former president of France. After losing the election, he has become politically irrelevant and publicly disgraced, caught in the throes of a court case and personal collapse. His life is unraveling, and he teeters on the brink of a very public meltdown. Isolated and broken, his coping mechanism is alcohol—his constant companion from early morning to late night. Dan is a man in conflict: a devoted father to his youngest daughter, yet a destructive and absent husband to Hilda. While it’s difficult to feel outright sympathy for him, Karine Tuil’s prose skillfully draws a measure of empathy, portraying the ravages of addiction and its toll on those around him without ever softening its harsh realities.

Meanwhile, his wife, Hilda Muller, is experiencing an unexpected professional renaissance. A former actress turned First Lady, Hilda is now starring in a film that may be selected for the Cannes Film Festival. This prestigious opportunity marks her return to the spotlight—her rise sharply contrasting with Dan’s decline. At first, Hilda is exhilarated by the role, which was offered to her by the ambitious director Romain Nizan. But as the shoot progresses, she’s haunted by insecurities: Is she good enough? Too old? And perhaps most poignantly—was it wise to star in an adaptation of a novel written by Mariane, Dan Lehman’s first wife?

In La guerre par d’autres moyens, each chapter offers an intimate window into the minds of its characters—Dan, Hilda, Mariane, Romain, and Léonie. All are engaged in their own private wars, pitted against one another in a ruthless pursuit of fame, relevance, and validation. Everyone wants to be seen, to be talked about. But as the stakes rise, one question echoes: at what cost?

La Guerre par d’autres moyens, by Karine Tuil, éditions Gallimard

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Raïssa Djouad

Raïssa is an intern at Albertine Books and a student at Université Grenoble Alpes where she is wrapping up a masters degree in book publishing. She reads across boundaries, enjoying everything from fiction, to non-fiction, children's books, graphic novels and the occasional romance novel. When she's not reading, she dabbles in poetry and film photography.

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