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The Natural History of Love
For fans of Elizabeth Gilbert's The Signature of All Things, The Natural History of Love is based upon the true story of 19th-century French explorer, naturalist and diplomat the Count de Castelnau and his lover Madame Fonçeca; a sweeping historical narrative set in the wilds of Brazil, salons of Paris and the early days of Melbourne's settlement.
When Melbourne lawyer Nathan Smithson takes on the case of mad, wealthy Edward Fonçeca's inheritance trial against his ruthless brother in 1902, he must unearth long-buried family secrets to have any chance of winning.
Brazil, 1852: François, the Count de Castelnau and French Consul to Bahia falls dangerously ill on a naturalist expedition and is delivered by a Tupi Indian to the Fonçeca household.
Carolina Fonçeca is 16 years old and longing to leave the confines of her family's remote Brazilian sugar plantation. With a head full of Balzac and dreams of Parisian life, she is instantly beguiled by the middle-aged Frenchman. What Carolina doesn't know is that François has a wife and son back in France. Desperate for a new life, she makes a decision that will haunt her forever.
When Melbourne lawyer Nathan Smithson takes on the case of mad, wealthy Edward Fonçeca's inheritance trial against his ruthless brother in 1902, he must unearth long-buried family secrets to have any chance of winning.
Brazil, 1852: François, the Count de Castelnau and French Consul to Bahia falls dangerously ill on a naturalist expedition and is delivered by a Tupi Indian to the Fonçeca household.
Carolina Fonçeca is 16 years old and longing to leave the confines of her family's remote Brazilian sugar plantation. With a head full of Balzac and dreams of Parisian life, she is instantly beguiled by the middle-aged Frenchman. What Carolina doesn't know is that François has a wife and son back in France. Desperate for a new life, she makes a decision that will haunt her forever.
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First published April 26, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
March 29, 2022
This is a bit of an unusual book, and I am not sure that everyone will enjoy it., but my take is..
The story is fictional, but based on real people and real facts. Carolina is a teenager living on a rural sugar farm in Brazil ( circa 1852) while her brother Luis, plots to marry her off and rid himself of responsibility for her. While her brother is away on a business trip, an Indian delivers a deliriously unwell French naturalist and explorer to them. The Frenchman is François, the Count de Castelnau, and he becomes the object of Carolina's fantasies to escape Brazil and see the world. After they are caught in a compromising position, François, who is at least 20 years older than Carolina promises to marry her, and takes her to Bahia where he is the French consul. He then confesses he is already married and will seek to have his marriage annulled.
The story continues from there, with François and Carolina moving to France and later to Melbourne where François takes up the position of French consul, and engages further in his naturalist exploration of the local flora and fauna.
The story is told by Nathan, a lawyer engaged by the estate of Carolina and François in the early 1900's to protect their youngest son Edward, who is considered 'insane' from his malicious older brother Charles who has been disinherited by his mother, Carolina. Nathan has the diaries of Carolina and François translated and this forms a lot of the content.
The story can be a little difficult to follow in places, but overall I found it quite intriguing. It contains a lot of historical fiction and details the impact of the release of Darwin's book, The Origin of Species on people such as François, who considered himself a forward thinking and open minded scientist.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4, thank you Affirm Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC.
The story is fictional, but based on real people and real facts. Carolina is a teenager living on a rural sugar farm in Brazil ( circa 1852) while her brother Luis, plots to marry her off and rid himself of responsibility for her. While her brother is away on a business trip, an Indian delivers a deliriously unwell French naturalist and explorer to them. The Frenchman is François, the Count de Castelnau, and he becomes the object of Carolina's fantasies to escape Brazil and see the world. After they are caught in a compromising position, François, who is at least 20 years older than Carolina promises to marry her, and takes her to Bahia where he is the French consul. He then confesses he is already married and will seek to have his marriage annulled.
The story continues from there, with François and Carolina moving to France and later to Melbourne where François takes up the position of French consul, and engages further in his naturalist exploration of the local flora and fauna.
The story is told by Nathan, a lawyer engaged by the estate of Carolina and François in the early 1900's to protect their youngest son Edward, who is considered 'insane' from his malicious older brother Charles who has been disinherited by his mother, Carolina. Nathan has the diaries of Carolina and François translated and this forms a lot of the content.
The story can be a little difficult to follow in places, but overall I found it quite intriguing. It contains a lot of historical fiction and details the impact of the release of Darwin's book, The Origin of Species on people such as François, who considered himself a forward thinking and open minded scientist.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4, thank you Affirm Press and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC.
May 15, 2022
Edward Fonçeca’s inheritance case against his cad of a brother Charles is being heard in Melbourne in 1902. The key to the case might be found in the diaries of Madame Carolina Fonçeca and François, Count de Castelnau, sources dissected by lawyer Nathan Smithson, like a naturalist would a peculiar creature to better their understanding.
50 years earlier, teenaged Carolina’s adored father is dead and her cruel brother has taken over responsibility for their Brazilian sugar plantation in the backwaters of Bahia. She relishes the works of Balzac and yearns to escape to a more exciting Parisian life. During her brother’s short absence a native delivers a delirious white man to the plantation and Carolina embraces the role of carer, aided by her slave’s black magic concoctions. During his recuperation, he discusses the natural world with Carolina – she is challenged, opened to new ideas, wanting to evolve as a person. Her feelings for the man 2 decades her senior, explorer and French consul François, grow and they are caught in flagrante, forced into a trollop’s wedding although he admits only to her that he is already married.
She continues their shared interest in flora and fauna when they move back to his post at Bahia, but without preventative arcane potions soon becomes pregnant. After an unsuccessful attempt to annul his marriage François cautiously declares his name must not appear on the birth certificate insisting he will always be called ‘Uncle’. Recalled to France, they leave the steamy Brazilian jungle and Carolina is plunged into the viper pit of Parisian society. New theories have recently been expounded by Charles Darwin, and they stump François’ attempts to write of his findings in the Americas. When the chance to escape his vindictive, well-connected wife and his scholarly slump to become consul in fledgling Melbourne François, pregnant Carolina and son Charles continue their social farce. The birth of Edward, so very different to his brother, invites the question of inherited traits. Will natural selection have any bearing on the inheritance trial?
Based on actual people and true events, the sweeping love story of ‘The Natural History of Love’ is an evolutionary leap in the right direction from the dusty, dull legal files relied on by the author.
50 years earlier, teenaged Carolina’s adored father is dead and her cruel brother has taken over responsibility for their Brazilian sugar plantation in the backwaters of Bahia. She relishes the works of Balzac and yearns to escape to a more exciting Parisian life. During her brother’s short absence a native delivers a delirious white man to the plantation and Carolina embraces the role of carer, aided by her slave’s black magic concoctions. During his recuperation, he discusses the natural world with Carolina – she is challenged, opened to new ideas, wanting to evolve as a person. Her feelings for the man 2 decades her senior, explorer and French consul François, grow and they are caught in flagrante, forced into a trollop’s wedding although he admits only to her that he is already married.
She continues their shared interest in flora and fauna when they move back to his post at Bahia, but without preventative arcane potions soon becomes pregnant. After an unsuccessful attempt to annul his marriage François cautiously declares his name must not appear on the birth certificate insisting he will always be called ‘Uncle’. Recalled to France, they leave the steamy Brazilian jungle and Carolina is plunged into the viper pit of Parisian society. New theories have recently been expounded by Charles Darwin, and they stump François’ attempts to write of his findings in the Americas. When the chance to escape his vindictive, well-connected wife and his scholarly slump to become consul in fledgling Melbourne François, pregnant Carolina and son Charles continue their social farce. The birth of Edward, so very different to his brother, invites the question of inherited traits. Will natural selection have any bearing on the inheritance trial?
Based on actual people and true events, the sweeping love story of ‘The Natural History of Love’ is an evolutionary leap in the right direction from the dusty, dull legal files relied on by the author.
July 19, 2022
This was definitely a history that needed to be told. You just can’t make up stories like this. I wish I had learned more about the history itself, actually, because the fictional story didn’t appeal to me that much. I didn’t care for any of the characters (and when I read history I don’t have to like the characters but I do want to when I’m reading fiction). But the way history and geography and context are given for the 3 different geographies is really fascinating. And the glimpse into how natural history functioned in the 19th century was interesting. I think the legal part of the story could have been more wrongly drawn for the “so what” to matter more. Just super hard to see one person as so evil as the older brother is drawn…
May 23, 2022
It says this book is for fans of The Signature of Things and The Lost Dictionary so I snapped it up - those are two of my favourite books - a lot to live up to - so not surprising that the book ended up slightly disappointing. It was not as colourful in the nature writing as I’d hoped and the characters not as convincing - the evil Charles seemed a bit extreme - nothing really seemed to happen - they moved from Brazil to Paris to Melbourne but there was not a strong sense of these places.
December 31, 2022
Struggled to finish it. It's so well written and I have no doubt it would appeal to many. I hate giving it three stars because the author is a wonderful writer, and has a vivid imagination, but I went from loving it, to being bored.
October 23, 2023
I am drawn to historical fiction that features themes of natural history, so this one was a rather highly anticipated read for me. Unfortunately, it let me down in more ways than one.
Less concerned with natural history and more focused on the domestic life of Francois and Carolina, the story is told for the most part in diary entries, alternating between Francois and Carolina. This type of storytelling can be informative, inserted here and there throughout a narrative, but an entire novel like this? It rapidly became tedious. Carolina’s entries leaned towards melodramatic while Francois just came off as a pompous, middle-aged man of his era and generation. His entries veered between complaining about how others were seen as more successful than him and detailing his sexual encounters with Carolina.
I listened to the audio book version of this, and the narration of the diaries didn’t help. Francois sounded robotic, with his aging French accent, and while I had no issues with the way Carolina sounded, each time something about one of the children came up, the narrator would use the most ridiculous and exaggerated childlike voice, it was very off-putting. I found myself cringing often.
I find stories that are told through diary entries a little incredulous. That entire conversations, verbatim, are recorded with such detail, seems unlikely. The author addressed her reasons for writing the story this way within her author notes, and while I acknowledge her reasoning, I just don’t feel as though it worked well. I was far more interested in the sections that featured Nathan Smithson, the lawyer, than anything else.
For a story that was ultimately about a contested inheritance case between two brothers, there wasn’t anywhere near enough of the story focusing on them. Too much time was spent on the early years of Francois and Carolina, far too much time spent on the shenanigans between Carolina and Francois’ wife in Paris, who, once they moved away from France, we didn’t hear from again. From what I did hear of Charles, the ‘evil’ brother, he kind of had grounds to be bitter with the way Francois treated him in comparison to Edward. It’s here, in the story of the brothers, that the mode of storytelling let itself down, in my opinion. I wanted to know more about the two of them, but not from their parent’s perspectives.
Comparisions to The Signature of All Things are misleading. This story is nothing like that, not even close. I am certain if I had been reading this rather than listening, I would have abandoned it.
Less concerned with natural history and more focused on the domestic life of Francois and Carolina, the story is told for the most part in diary entries, alternating between Francois and Carolina. This type of storytelling can be informative, inserted here and there throughout a narrative, but an entire novel like this? It rapidly became tedious. Carolina’s entries leaned towards melodramatic while Francois just came off as a pompous, middle-aged man of his era and generation. His entries veered between complaining about how others were seen as more successful than him and detailing his sexual encounters with Carolina.
I listened to the audio book version of this, and the narration of the diaries didn’t help. Francois sounded robotic, with his aging French accent, and while I had no issues with the way Carolina sounded, each time something about one of the children came up, the narrator would use the most ridiculous and exaggerated childlike voice, it was very off-putting. I found myself cringing often.
I find stories that are told through diary entries a little incredulous. That entire conversations, verbatim, are recorded with such detail, seems unlikely. The author addressed her reasons for writing the story this way within her author notes, and while I acknowledge her reasoning, I just don’t feel as though it worked well. I was far more interested in the sections that featured Nathan Smithson, the lawyer, than anything else.
For a story that was ultimately about a contested inheritance case between two brothers, there wasn’t anywhere near enough of the story focusing on them. Too much time was spent on the early years of Francois and Carolina, far too much time spent on the shenanigans between Carolina and Francois’ wife in Paris, who, once they moved away from France, we didn’t hear from again. From what I did hear of Charles, the ‘evil’ brother, he kind of had grounds to be bitter with the way Francois treated him in comparison to Edward. It’s here, in the story of the brothers, that the mode of storytelling let itself down, in my opinion. I wanted to know more about the two of them, but not from their parent’s perspectives.
Comparisions to The Signature of All Things are misleading. This story is nothing like that, not even close. I am certain if I had been reading this rather than listening, I would have abandoned it.
May 22, 2024
Very average
October 24, 2022
Solid historical fiction, based on real people and facts, nicely padded out by a creative imagination. Not up to Maggie O'Farrell or Pip Williams but an entertaining read.
May 11, 2022
(3.5)
The lives of Carolina (later Madame Fonseca), Francois (the Count de Castelnau, (naturalist and explorer) and their families took the reader from 1852-1903, from Brazil to France to early Melbourne. The geographical and cultural landscapes drawn by Petit were meticulous and engaging. Yet, she had imaginatively presented them as characters in a soap opera, which I found, at times, tedious. Meeting in Brazil, falling in love but unable to marry, the two travelled through the rest of their lives hiding a secret that threatened to bring disgrace to them and to their sons. Despite the difference in their ages and backgrounds, they shared a dynamic love. Particularly, Carolina took an earnest interest in the examination and discovery of the scientific/naturalist specimens that featured in Francois’s intellectual pursuits. Most interesting to me were the discussions of Darwin’s theories, which occupied Francois’s interest immediately. Despite their devotion to each other, however, they experienced traumatic times that impacted their stability.
I appreciated Petit’s clarifications in her Author’s Note that the main characters and the major events of their lives were depicted accurately. I also understood that her choice to structure the narrative as the imaginative diary entries of both Carolina and Francois would give voice to their inner thoughts and individual perspectives, particularly significant to portraying a woman whose background would have provided no opportunity for her to express them openly. The author seamlessly created several characters “to hold strings of the story together”. One was the narrator (Nathan Smithson), a young Melbourne lawyer who had gathered research on this couple and often interjected foreign terminology or information as footnotes to their diary entries; another was the friend and lawyer (Will Scobie) who had represented the interests of Carolina and Francois in a later court case. Petit’s characterisation was the strongest feature of the novel.
I became interested in Petit’s historical novel because it had been likened to “The Signature of All Things” and “The Dictionary of Lost Words”, a clever pre-publication strategy. However, ultimately, this recommendation was overstated.
The lives of Carolina (later Madame Fonseca), Francois (the Count de Castelnau, (naturalist and explorer) and their families took the reader from 1852-1903, from Brazil to France to early Melbourne. The geographical and cultural landscapes drawn by Petit were meticulous and engaging. Yet, she had imaginatively presented them as characters in a soap opera, which I found, at times, tedious. Meeting in Brazil, falling in love but unable to marry, the two travelled through the rest of their lives hiding a secret that threatened to bring disgrace to them and to their sons. Despite the difference in their ages and backgrounds, they shared a dynamic love. Particularly, Carolina took an earnest interest in the examination and discovery of the scientific/naturalist specimens that featured in Francois’s intellectual pursuits. Most interesting to me were the discussions of Darwin’s theories, which occupied Francois’s interest immediately. Despite their devotion to each other, however, they experienced traumatic times that impacted their stability.
I appreciated Petit’s clarifications in her Author’s Note that the main characters and the major events of their lives were depicted accurately. I also understood that her choice to structure the narrative as the imaginative diary entries of both Carolina and Francois would give voice to their inner thoughts and individual perspectives, particularly significant to portraying a woman whose background would have provided no opportunity for her to express them openly. The author seamlessly created several characters “to hold strings of the story together”. One was the narrator (Nathan Smithson), a young Melbourne lawyer who had gathered research on this couple and often interjected foreign terminology or information as footnotes to their diary entries; another was the friend and lawyer (Will Scobie) who had represented the interests of Carolina and Francois in a later court case. Petit’s characterisation was the strongest feature of the novel.
I became interested in Petit’s historical novel because it had been likened to “The Signature of All Things” and “The Dictionary of Lost Words”, a clever pre-publication strategy. However, ultimately, this recommendation was overstated.
January 3, 2024
‘I never had a madman for a client until I met Mr Edward Fonçeca at his country property.’
Very rarely, I buy a book based solely on its cover. I usually read the blurb (at least) before purchase, but sometimes spontaneity is rewarded.
This novel opens with an inheritance case in 1901. Charles Fonçeca is contesting his mother’s will, which left everything to his younger brother Edward. Nathan Smithson, the narrator of the story, is the lawyer looking after Edward’s interests. To represent Edward’s interests, Mr Smithson delves into the family history, including diaries kept by both Madame Carolina Fonçeca and her partner, François, Count de Castelnau.
Mr Smithson’s investigations and the diaries take us back to Brazil where, in 1852, teenaged Carolina lives on a sugar plantation in Bahia. Her beloved father is dead, and her brother Luis is now responsible for the plantation. Luis intends to marry Carolina off, while she longs to escape to Paris. Fate intervenes when, during Luis’s short absence from the plantation, a delirious white man is brought to the plantation. Carolina, aided by her slave, becomes the man’s carer. The man is François, Count de Castelnau, a naturalist and French Consul. Despite a significant age difference, Carolina is attracted to François. They share interests in the natural world. Their mutual attraction grows, becomes physical and (inevitably) they are caught. Even though he is already married, Carolina and François ‘marry’ and move back to François’s consular post at Bahia.
Carolina becomes pregnant. François’s attempts to have his existing marriage annulled fail. A son, Charles, is born but François does not allow his name to be added to the child’s birth certificate. Instead, he will be known as ‘Uncle’.
François is recalled to France. Carolina and Edward accompany him. But Paris is not kind either to François the naturalist, or Carolina. François’s wife, Anne-Beatrice is determined to make their lives as difficult as possible. Consequently, François is delighted to accept a posting to Melbourne in 1861. Carolina and Charles accompany him:
‘Carolina is known simply as my very good friend from Paris whom I am assisting because of my friendship with her late husband (!).’
Soon after Edward is born, and their lives become more complicated. The story unfolds, shifting between diary entries by both Carolina and François and notes by Nathan Smithson.
‘Many things are possible in this half-finished world where many men lie about their origins.’
This novel is based on the true story of nineteenth century French explorer, naturalist and diplomat the Count de Castelnau and his lover, Madame Fonçeca. Ms Petit has turned history into a fascinating novel.
Recommended.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Very rarely, I buy a book based solely on its cover. I usually read the blurb (at least) before purchase, but sometimes spontaneity is rewarded.
This novel opens with an inheritance case in 1901. Charles Fonçeca is contesting his mother’s will, which left everything to his younger brother Edward. Nathan Smithson, the narrator of the story, is the lawyer looking after Edward’s interests. To represent Edward’s interests, Mr Smithson delves into the family history, including diaries kept by both Madame Carolina Fonçeca and her partner, François, Count de Castelnau.
Mr Smithson’s investigations and the diaries take us back to Brazil where, in 1852, teenaged Carolina lives on a sugar plantation in Bahia. Her beloved father is dead, and her brother Luis is now responsible for the plantation. Luis intends to marry Carolina off, while she longs to escape to Paris. Fate intervenes when, during Luis’s short absence from the plantation, a delirious white man is brought to the plantation. Carolina, aided by her slave, becomes the man’s carer. The man is François, Count de Castelnau, a naturalist and French Consul. Despite a significant age difference, Carolina is attracted to François. They share interests in the natural world. Their mutual attraction grows, becomes physical and (inevitably) they are caught. Even though he is already married, Carolina and François ‘marry’ and move back to François’s consular post at Bahia.
Carolina becomes pregnant. François’s attempts to have his existing marriage annulled fail. A son, Charles, is born but François does not allow his name to be added to the child’s birth certificate. Instead, he will be known as ‘Uncle’.
François is recalled to France. Carolina and Edward accompany him. But Paris is not kind either to François the naturalist, or Carolina. François’s wife, Anne-Beatrice is determined to make their lives as difficult as possible. Consequently, François is delighted to accept a posting to Melbourne in 1861. Carolina and Charles accompany him:
‘Carolina is known simply as my very good friend from Paris whom I am assisting because of my friendship with her late husband (!).’
Soon after Edward is born, and their lives become more complicated. The story unfolds, shifting between diary entries by both Carolina and François and notes by Nathan Smithson.
‘Many things are possible in this half-finished world where many men lie about their origins.’
This novel is based on the true story of nineteenth century French explorer, naturalist and diplomat the Count de Castelnau and his lover, Madame Fonçeca. Ms Petit has turned history into a fascinating novel.
Recommended.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
July 18, 2024
this was a completely random book that i found last year and decided to pick up, but i honestly really did enjoy reading it so much! all i knew going into it was that it was a historical fiction (one of my favourite genres), had some elements of romance somehow, and was set in australia. i was definitely not expecting such a huge age gap between our main characters though!
i found the journey of this book really fun, travelling through the 1800s across brazil, france, and australia. i couldn’t put the book down, i was just so interested in the political and cultural beliefs of each country that the main characters battled with. i truly loved the unique style of this book - it was so different to any other i’ve read and made up of journal entries, letters, newspaper articles, interviews, and even included footnotes from the narrator.
there were times though where the storyline seemed to really slow down and i found myself wanting more details occasionally, but this reflected the journal entry format and the fact that the character knew all of their own secrets, so felt no need to share the information with themselves. i also couldn’t help but wonder what would have happened if the characters had made different decisions for themselves and their life.
overall, i really enjoyed this read and i definitely recommend having a look at it if you’re into historical fiction!
i found the journey of this book really fun, travelling through the 1800s across brazil, france, and australia. i couldn’t put the book down, i was just so interested in the political and cultural beliefs of each country that the main characters battled with. i truly loved the unique style of this book - it was so different to any other i’ve read and made up of journal entries, letters, newspaper articles, interviews, and even included footnotes from the narrator.
there were times though where the storyline seemed to really slow down and i found myself wanting more details occasionally, but this reflected the journal entry format and the fact that the character knew all of their own secrets, so felt no need to share the information with themselves. i also couldn’t help but wonder what would have happened if the characters had made different decisions for themselves and their life.
overall, i really enjoyed this read and i definitely recommend having a look at it if you’re into historical fiction!
May 5, 2022
The Natural History of Love – Caroline Petit
Lawyer Nathan Smithson takes on a disputed inheritance case between brothers Charles and Edward, in 1901 Melbourne. To make his determination, he sets out to learn about the family and reads the translated diaries of Carolina Fonçeca and François, Count de Castelnau. Carolina, a 16-year-old living on her family’s sugar plantation in Brazil, meets François, a naturalist, explorer and French consul. Carolina is determined to expand her mind and is quick to take an interest in the natural world explained by the much older François. The story is based on real people from Melbourne’s past and this is the imagined story of their lives. Diary entries, interspersed with newspaper articles, bring to life this tempestuous love affair, the families and their secrets, slavery, society of the time and the natural world they are exploring. The translated diaries have footnotes inserted by the translator, explaining many of the cultural aspects of the society, although at times these footnotes detract from the story’s flow. The story is set in Carolina’s home in Brazil, then in the salons of France and the Melbourne society of the early 1900’s. An interesting imagining of the lives of the central characters and their world.
Lawyer Nathan Smithson takes on a disputed inheritance case between brothers Charles and Edward, in 1901 Melbourne. To make his determination, he sets out to learn about the family and reads the translated diaries of Carolina Fonçeca and François, Count de Castelnau. Carolina, a 16-year-old living on her family’s sugar plantation in Brazil, meets François, a naturalist, explorer and French consul. Carolina is determined to expand her mind and is quick to take an interest in the natural world explained by the much older François. The story is based on real people from Melbourne’s past and this is the imagined story of their lives. Diary entries, interspersed with newspaper articles, bring to life this tempestuous love affair, the families and their secrets, slavery, society of the time and the natural world they are exploring. The translated diaries have footnotes inserted by the translator, explaining many of the cultural aspects of the society, although at times these footnotes detract from the story’s flow. The story is set in Carolina’s home in Brazil, then in the salons of France and the Melbourne society of the early 1900’s. An interesting imagining of the lives of the central characters and their world.
July 12, 2022
The Natural History of Love is based on the extraordinary true story about the great love affair between French explorer, naturalist and diplomate the Count de Castelnau and the daughter of a Brazilian plantation owner, Carolina Fonçeca. She is sixteen when they first meet and will spend the rest of her life as the mistress of the already married Count.
The story starts in 1852, and traverses the world literally but also takes place against the backdrop of the unfolding scientific discoveries and debates around Darwin’s revolutionary publication, On The Origin of the Species.
Amazingly, from the salons of Paris, the couple and their children end up in Melbourne. Petit discovered their story when the house they once owned was about to be demolished to make way for a concrete plant. Why was the house known as the home of the ‘mad’ Count Edward Fonçeca? An what was the story behind the embittered legal battle between Edward and his older brother?
I love discovering brooks that shine a light on forgotten history. Petit does a stellar job on bringing to life the woman at the centre of this story, Carolina Fonçeca — her sacrifices and her passions, not to mention her fine mind and how she was very much a part of her lover’s career as a naturalist. It’s a great read.
The story starts in 1852, and traverses the world literally but also takes place against the backdrop of the unfolding scientific discoveries and debates around Darwin’s revolutionary publication, On The Origin of the Species.
Amazingly, from the salons of Paris, the couple and their children end up in Melbourne. Petit discovered their story when the house they once owned was about to be demolished to make way for a concrete plant. Why was the house known as the home of the ‘mad’ Count Edward Fonçeca? An what was the story behind the embittered legal battle between Edward and his older brother?
I love discovering brooks that shine a light on forgotten history. Petit does a stellar job on bringing to life the woman at the centre of this story, Carolina Fonçeca — her sacrifices and her passions, not to mention her fine mind and how she was very much a part of her lover’s career as a naturalist. It’s a great read.
May 11, 2022
Based upon the true story of 19th century French explorer, naturalist, and diplomat the Count de Castelnau and his lover Madame Fonçeca THE NATURAL HISTORY OF LOVE spans decades and geography as we follow young Melbourne based Lawyer, Nathan Smithson takes on the case of mad, wealthy Edward Fonçeca’s inheritance trial against his ruthless brother in 1902, he must unearth long-buried family secrets to have any chance of winning.
While definitely interesting, educational, and unique, THE NATURAL HISTORY OF LOVE won’t be for everyone, the layout is an unusual mix of interview notes, diary entries, newspaper articles and observational fiction – all while being based on real people and events.
There are footnotes included in some of the extracts and I did find these helpful, but I also found they distracted from the flow of the story.
But, there was something about this story that I found really compelling and that these were real people, real places and real events – with a wonderful link to Melbourne – made it easy to keep coming back to.
A unique look behind the curtain of Paris, Brazil, and Melbourne of the past.
While definitely interesting, educational, and unique, THE NATURAL HISTORY OF LOVE won’t be for everyone, the layout is an unusual mix of interview notes, diary entries, newspaper articles and observational fiction – all while being based on real people and events.
There are footnotes included in some of the extracts and I did find these helpful, but I also found they distracted from the flow of the story.
But, there was something about this story that I found really compelling and that these were real people, real places and real events – with a wonderful link to Melbourne – made it easy to keep coming back to.
A unique look behind the curtain of Paris, Brazil, and Melbourne of the past.
May 14, 2022
The Natural History of Love by Caroline Petit takes the reader on a sweeping journey of love through Brazil, Paris and Melbourne.
Initially, we are introduced to the character of Nathan Smithson, a lawyer whose client is Edward Fonceca; the son of the novels main characters, Carolina D’Araujo Fonceca and Francois de Caumont La Port. It is the description of history in this beginning that forms the novel into a series of diary entries from these two lovers. I found that it is a beautiful way in reading the feelings and thoughts of Carolina and Francois, how they fell in love and how they made their love everlasting in the eye of expectations from society during the years of 1852 to 1901.
I believe The Natural History of Love is written brilliantly and the research behind the characters is well thought through. It was great to imagine and read about explorers, naturalists and their passions. A highly recommendable book if you adore the study of the natural world and the strength of love.
Initially, we are introduced to the character of Nathan Smithson, a lawyer whose client is Edward Fonceca; the son of the novels main characters, Carolina D’Araujo Fonceca and Francois de Caumont La Port. It is the description of history in this beginning that forms the novel into a series of diary entries from these two lovers. I found that it is a beautiful way in reading the feelings and thoughts of Carolina and Francois, how they fell in love and how they made their love everlasting in the eye of expectations from society during the years of 1852 to 1901.
I believe The Natural History of Love is written brilliantly and the research behind the characters is well thought through. It was great to imagine and read about explorers, naturalists and their passions. A highly recommendable book if you adore the study of the natural world and the strength of love.
May 17, 2022
Based on a true and fascinating story about Caroline de Fonceca who was a 16 year old in Brazil from an upper echelon family who met and fell in love with the French consul and naturalist Francois, Count de Castelnau, who had become ill on his explorations. It follows the two through periods in Brazil and Paris and Melbourne, including the birth of two children, encounters with high society of the various countries, and a framing story told by a lawyer trying to unravel a challenge to Caroline's will be her elder son Edward. There is a lot of well-researched detail, including the fascination of the time with new plant life and with Charles Darwin. There are also some footnotes explaining terms and customs, which I think the book would have been better without, as it breaks up the experience of reading it. However the overall story is very enjoyable, combining the romance of a family saga followed over a lifetime with a mystery that is gradually unravelled.
August 3, 2022
Thoroughly enjoyable. I read this almost in one sitting despite its length because it drew me in immediately. An impressive amount of research has gone into spanning the times and events covered. Because it is a fictional account of the lives of real people it fits the category of creative non-fiction and it is done with exquisite attention to both aspects. I was hugely aware of the writing itself, the crafting skill, taking the story of real people and real times and events to a place where both melded smoothly, nothing forced to fit for the sake of entertainment, though entertain it does. This especially showed in how the scientific information, important in the context of the lives lived, weaves lightly through the narrative adding credibility without tedium despite the aridity of its language.
May 2, 2023
3.8* : An enjoyable and easy read, based around the lives of a real family at the end of the 19th century. The story recounts the relationship between a French count, a naturalist and explorer, and a young Brazilian woman, who unable to marry, live out their lives together, bearing two children. A disputed inheritance following their deaths sets the scene, and using diaries to give the main characters a voice, we learn of their lives together as they move from Brazil to Paris and finally Australia. The strong attachment between the two, their love of nature and learning, their individual characters, come across clearly through their diaries. However, a more detailed background of 19th century Paris and Australia would, in my opinion, have have made the story more interesting and lent more credibility.
July 5, 2022
Well, this is definitely a romance novel with some legal drama and historical scientific exploration slotted in to give it different angle.
It was a very easy and mostly enjoyable read and I am sure plenty of reader's will enjoy it for what it is, a love story.
What I would have enjoyed even more is if the romance was just to set the scene and the majority of the story was an exploration of Edward's madness and the legal proceedings surrounding the inheritance dispute.
I did quite enjoy the snippets of colonial Melbourne and easily recognised parts of my city that exist today.
But we all have different tastes. I certainly can't criticise the way this book was written and I cannot call it boring. But for me I would have preferred the tale from a different angle.
It was a very easy and mostly enjoyable read and I am sure plenty of reader's will enjoy it for what it is, a love story.
What I would have enjoyed even more is if the romance was just to set the scene and the majority of the story was an exploration of Edward's madness and the legal proceedings surrounding the inheritance dispute.
I did quite enjoy the snippets of colonial Melbourne and easily recognised parts of my city that exist today.
But we all have different tastes. I certainly can't criticise the way this book was written and I cannot call it boring. But for me I would have preferred the tale from a different angle.
November 6, 2022
A story that ranges from Brazil to France to Australia, following the fortunes of Francois and Carolina. Francois is a student of natural history and is rescued from the jungles of Brazil by Carolina. They fall in love but are unable to marry as Francois is already married and unable to divorce as it is not allowed at that time. The story is presented to us in the form of Carolina’s and Francois’ diaries, as their solicitor tries to untangle the will and who will become guardian of their second son. I started off enjoying their story, but became increasingly disenchanted as they became parents and Francois seemed unable to take responsibility for his sons and he became preoccupied with his place in the history of natural history.
January 15, 2023
I would give this 3.5 but rounding up because it was a captivating audiobook with three quite good actors for the different speakers. eye opening stuff about the Brazilian colonial project and I thought overall a vivid insight into society across Brazil, France and Australia. the plentiful sex scenes and the Parisian section both lost me a bit. I also think it suffers from a slightly cliched title. however I appreciated the Afterword from the author regarding how she stumbled upon these real people and began her infatuation with their love story. it clearly took a lot of care and made the novel all the more interesting. quite incredible that the real Mayfield estate in Mordialloc was simply bulldozed.....
December 30, 2022
Not usually my type of novel, but I really enjoyed it.
Based upon a true story of a nineteenth-century French Explorer, naturalist, and diplomat.
The meeting and love between Caroline and François is a once in a lifetime love. To overcome together the challenges of laws in 1852, they stayed bonded by their love, intelligence, and family even though they were not able to get married in the eyes of the law.
Melbourne lawyer Nathan Smithson takes you through their translated diaries to follow what happened in history to find a solution to why the older brother Charles could not win the court case to look after his brother Edward.
Very interesting and informative novel.
Based upon a true story of a nineteenth-century French Explorer, naturalist, and diplomat.
The meeting and love between Caroline and François is a once in a lifetime love. To overcome together the challenges of laws in 1852, they stayed bonded by their love, intelligence, and family even though they were not able to get married in the eyes of the law.
Melbourne lawyer Nathan Smithson takes you through their translated diaries to follow what happened in history to find a solution to why the older brother Charles could not win the court case to look after his brother Edward.
Very interesting and informative novel.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 22, 2022
I really enjoyed the way this book was written with a central narrator and then through the imagined diary entries of two of the central characters. Based on the story of real people but fictionalised I enjoyed the pace of the story and style of writing. I was fortunate to secure a preview copy which said it would appeal to fans of The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams. The telling of the story through imagined diary entries was also similar to A Room Made of Leaves by Kate Grenville. This was probably a 4 and a half star rounded up to 5.
May 25, 2022
In Melbourne in the early 1900's, a lawyer takes on an unusual inheritance dispute case. In order to defend his client, he must follow the translated diaries of the two main characters as they make their way from a chance meeting in Brazil, to Paris and finally to Australia.
While based on actual people and events, this book is a work of fiction. The narative is at times difficult to follow, however the more I read, the more comfortable I became. Tracing a fascinating time in history, this love story was ultimately an enjoyable read.
While based on actual people and events, this book is a work of fiction. The narative is at times difficult to follow, however the more I read, the more comfortable I became. Tracing a fascinating time in history, this love story was ultimately an enjoyable read.
January 9, 2025
A great historical narrative set in Brazil (remote), Paris and early Melbourne days and tells of the love story between Carolina Fonceca, daughter of a sugar plantation owner in remote Brazil and Count de Castelnau, the French Consul to Bahia. A great love story, with two boys born, one a ruthless man and the other with a mental disability. The story finishes in Melbourne when the Count passes away and a court case between the older brother and the younger brother ensues - the older one challenging his younger brother who was left the estate. A great read and hard to put down.
August 28, 2023
I loved the cover of this book. I also enjoyed the story, based on real people. The first two sections were really interesting, the last not so nice as we discover things about Charles. The portrayal of women and of the societies that this couple lived in, with their unrecognised marriage, were fascinating. The background of the natural world and scholarship, at the time of Darwin, was also a good thread to follow. A refreshingly different book.
July 21, 2022
I am drawn to novels that are based on true stories, and especially if they have connections with Australia. That this was, in the main, a romance, would normally rule it out for me, but the historical side made up for that.
I enjoyed immensely the way this story was told. I listened to, rather than read, this book, and I think I enjoyed it more than I would have in print.
I admit to feeling torn about the characters. Carolina was clearly a precocious (read obnoxious) child, who became a manipulative and controlling, over-indulged and demanding woman. Francois was a kind man, who nevertheless fooled himself into believing he was honourable, despite conducting a relationship with the teenage Carolina. That being said, their enduring love and commitment to one another, in a time when such a relationship was frowned upon, was testament to their determination to be together.
I found it both interesting and tiresome, however, the ending was a joy.
I enjoyed immensely the way this story was told. I listened to, rather than read, this book, and I think I enjoyed it more than I would have in print.
I admit to feeling torn about the characters. Carolina was clearly a precocious (read obnoxious) child, who became a manipulative and controlling, over-indulged and demanding woman. Francois was a kind man, who nevertheless fooled himself into believing he was honourable, despite conducting a relationship with the teenage Carolina. That being said, their enduring love and commitment to one another, in a time when such a relationship was frowned upon, was testament to their determination to be together.
I found it both interesting and tiresome, however, the ending was a joy.
June 27, 2022
An interesting way to structure such a story - but quite effective. At the start I couldn't quite figure out where the author was going with the story but the gentle unveiling of the past helped explain the 'present'.
May 1, 2023
Exotic and intricate imaginings about fascinating real people, that starts in Brazil in 1850’s, then glides through Paris to Melbourne. Through well researched historical fiction, women’s experiences can emerge.
June 19, 2023
Divided into three sections, Brazil, 1852-57, Paris 1857-61, Melbourne 1861-80. The book is closely based on real people living through those times. Main figures are Francois and Carolina, with the narrative held together by legal investigator Nathan Smithson, and presented in form of documents he uncovers, mainly diaries. I found the first two sections really interesting, the final one was a bit torturous. Well written, great use of resources and imagination to tell a story of new developments in the field of scientific exploration. Women’s roles and social standards were another focus.
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