Author: Alexandre Dumas
Publisher: Oxford World Classics
Publication Date: 2009 (1850)
Pages: 671
Format: Paperback
Genre: Classics
Source: Gift
Louise de la Vallière is the middle section of The Vicomte de Bragelonne, or, Ten Years After. Against a tender love story, Dumas continues the suspense which began with The Vicomte de Bragelonne and will end with The Man in the Iron Mask. Set during the reign of Louis XIV and filled with behind-the-scenes intrigue, the novel brings the aging Musketeers and d'Artagnan out of retirement to face an impending crisis within the royal court of France. This new edition of the classic English translation is richly annotated and places Dumas's invigorating tale in its historical and cultural context.
Louise de la Vallière was a fun tale. Perhaps it wasn't quite as action-packed as some of the other d'Artagnan novels, at least in the swashbuckling sense, but there was plenty of court intrigue and romance going on. In fact, having watched and enjoyed the TV series Versailles, I couldn't help but picture those actors whenever the historical figures they'd portrayed in that show appeared in this novel. I think you could read this book even without knowing any of the earlier stories, but having at least a sense of the four musketeer characters will help. This edition has plenty of explanatory notes at the back, including a detailed list of the historical figures which appear throughout the tale.
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