In their first novel Gottfried and Andrea von Siebenthal recount the fascinating true story of
Emilie Steffen-von Siebenthal (1846 -1922) in a fact-filled and imaginative way: Born in Gstaad
into a poor family of 14 children Emilie like many other people from the region leaves her
home as a young woman in search of a better life. After several years in Geneva and Paris she
returns to her home. As a baker's wife she becomes an important person in the village and
unwillingly a key figure in the village fire that destroys half the village in 1898 and
changes the lives of those involved forever. Against all odds she becomes a formative figure
in the village as tourism begins to flourish - Madame Gstaad.
