BROADCASTS.com

This May, the notorious fashionista Cruella de Vil is getting the origin story treatment with the live-action Cruella. But what happens before the movie?



Inspired by Cruella, Maureen Johnson’s Hello, Cruel Heart follows 16-year-old Estella — an ambitious, aspiring fashion designer who runs heists throughout 1967 London with her loyal accomplices. After a serendipitous run-in with posh socialites, she finds herself thrust into high society and living the fashionable life she’s always dreamed. But what will it cost to keep up with the rich and fabulous?



About HELLO, CRUEL HEART

Swinging London, Summer 1967. Sixteen-year-old Estella, gifted with talent, innovation, 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, however, she begins to wonder whether she might, indeed, 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?