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The Arm and the Darkness: A Novel
“A lively cloak and sword tale” set in the France of Louis XIII and Cardinal Richelieu—from the #1 New York Times–bestselling author of A Pillar of Iron (Kirkus Reviews).
In seventeenth-century France, Catholics and Huguenots are locked in a battle for the soul of the nation. Against this tumultuous backdrop, bestselling author Taylor Caldwell spins a stirring tale of romance, suspense, and adventure in the grand tradition of Alexandre Dumas.
At the heart of the novel are the two de Richepin brothers: Arsène, a swashbuckling nobleman who must abandon his devil-may-care attitude when he falls in love with a Catholic peasant girl, and Louis, a priest whose devotion to the word of God puts him at odds with the needs of man. As Arsène and Louis are drawn into a world of double-crosses and palace intrigues, they encounter a remarkable cast of real-life historical figures, including the sly Cardinal Richelieu and the suspected traitor Queen Anne.
Full of secret plots, passionate embraces, and angry mobs, The Arm and the Darkness is an “admirable and convincing” portrait of one of the most fascinating epochs in the history of Europe (The New York Times).
In seventeenth-century France, Catholics and Huguenots are locked in a battle for the soul of the nation. Against this tumultuous backdrop, bestselling author Taylor Caldwell spins a stirring tale of romance, suspense, and adventure in the grand tradition of Alexandre Dumas.
At the heart of the novel are the two de Richepin brothers: Arsène, a swashbuckling nobleman who must abandon his devil-may-care attitude when he falls in love with a Catholic peasant girl, and Louis, a priest whose devotion to the word of God puts him at odds with the needs of man. As Arsène and Louis are drawn into a world of double-crosses and palace intrigues, they encounter a remarkable cast of real-life historical figures, including the sly Cardinal Richelieu and the suspected traitor Queen Anne.
Full of secret plots, passionate embraces, and angry mobs, The Arm and the Darkness is an “admirable and convincing” portrait of one of the most fascinating epochs in the history of Europe (The New York Times).
813 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1943
105 people are currently reading
215 people want to read
About the author
Taylor Caldwell
152 books557 followers Also known by the pen names Marcus Holland and Max Reiner.
Taylor Caldwell was born in Manchester, England. In 1907 she emigrated to the United States with her parents and younger brother. Her father died shortly after the move, and the family struggled. At the age of eight she started to write stories, and in fact wrote her first novel, The Romance of Atlantis, at the age of twelve (although it remained unpublished until 1975). Her father did not approve such activity for women, and sent her to work in a bindery. She continued to write prolifically, however, despite ill health. (In 1947, according to TIME magazine, she discarded and burned the manuscripts of 140 unpublished novels.)
In 1918-1919, she served in the United States Navy Reserve. In 1919 she married William F. Combs. In 1920, they had a daughter, Mary (known as "Peggy"). From 1923 to 1924 she was a court reporter in New York State Department of Labor in Buffalo, New York. In 1924, she went to work for the United States Department of Justice, as a member of the Board of Special Inquiry (an immigration tribunal) in Buffalo. In 1931 she graduated from SUNY Buffalo, and also was divorced from William Combs.
Caldwell then married her second husband, Marcus Reback, a fellow Justice employee. She had a second child with Reback, a daughter Judith, in 1932. They were married for 40 years, until his death in 1971.
In 1934, she began to work on the novel Dynasty of Death, which she and Reback completed in collaboration. It was published in 1938 and became a best-seller. "Taylor Caldwell" was presumed to be a man, and there was some public stir when the author was revealed to be a woman. Over the next 43 years, she published 42 more novels, many of them best-sellers. For instance, This Side of Innocence was the biggest fiction seller of 1946. Her works sold an estimated 30 million copies. She became wealthy, traveling to Europe and elsewhere, though she still lived near Buffalo.
Her books were big sellers right up to the end of her career. During her career as a writer, she received several awards.
She was an outspoken conservative and for a time wrote for the John Birch Society's monthly journal American Opinion and even associated with the anti-Semitic Liberty Lobby. Her memoir, On Growing Up Tough, appeared in 1971, consisting of many edited-down articles from American Opinion.
Around 1970, she became interested in reincarnation. She had become friends with well-known occultist author Jess Stearn, who suggested that the vivid detail in her many historical novels was actually subconscious recollection of previous lives. Supposedly, she agreed to be hypnotized and undergo "past-life regression" to disprove reincarnation. According to Stearn's book, The Search of a Soul - Taylor Caldwell's Psychic Lives, Caldwell instead began to recall her own past lives - eleven in all, including one on the "lost continent" of Lemuria.
In 1972, she married William Everett Stancell, a retired real estate developer, but divorced him in 1973. In 1978, she married William Robert Prestie, an eccentric Canadian 17 years her junior. This led to difficulties with her children. She had a long dispute with her daughter Judith over the estate of Judith's father Marcus; in 1979 Judith committed suicide.
Also in 1979, Caldwell suffered a stroke, which left her unable to speak, though she could still write. (She had been deaf since about 1965.) Her daughter Peggy accused Prestie of abusing and exploiting Caldwell, and there was a legal battle over her substantial assets.
She died of heart failure in Greenwich, Conn
Taylor Caldwell was born in Manchester, England. In 1907 she emigrated to the United States with her parents and younger brother. Her father died shortly after the move, and the family struggled. At the age of eight she started to write stories, and in fact wrote her first novel, The Romance of Atlantis, at the age of twelve (although it remained unpublished until 1975). Her father did not approve such activity for women, and sent her to work in a bindery. She continued to write prolifically, however, despite ill health. (In 1947, according to TIME magazine, she discarded and burned the manuscripts of 140 unpublished novels.)
In 1918-1919, she served in the United States Navy Reserve. In 1919 she married William F. Combs. In 1920, they had a daughter, Mary (known as "Peggy"). From 1923 to 1924 she was a court reporter in New York State Department of Labor in Buffalo, New York. In 1924, she went to work for the United States Department of Justice, as a member of the Board of Special Inquiry (an immigration tribunal) in Buffalo. In 1931 she graduated from SUNY Buffalo, and also was divorced from William Combs.
Caldwell then married her second husband, Marcus Reback, a fellow Justice employee. She had a second child with Reback, a daughter Judith, in 1932. They were married for 40 years, until his death in 1971.
In 1934, she began to work on the novel Dynasty of Death, which she and Reback completed in collaboration. It was published in 1938 and became a best-seller. "Taylor Caldwell" was presumed to be a man, and there was some public stir when the author was revealed to be a woman. Over the next 43 years, she published 42 more novels, many of them best-sellers. For instance, This Side of Innocence was the biggest fiction seller of 1946. Her works sold an estimated 30 million copies. She became wealthy, traveling to Europe and elsewhere, though she still lived near Buffalo.
Her books were big sellers right up to the end of her career. During her career as a writer, she received several awards.
She was an outspoken conservative and for a time wrote for the John Birch Society's monthly journal American Opinion and even associated with the anti-Semitic Liberty Lobby. Her memoir, On Growing Up Tough, appeared in 1971, consisting of many edited-down articles from American Opinion.
Around 1970, she became interested in reincarnation. She had become friends with well-known occultist author Jess Stearn, who suggested that the vivid detail in her many historical novels was actually subconscious recollection of previous lives. Supposedly, she agreed to be hypnotized and undergo "past-life regression" to disprove reincarnation. According to Stearn's book, The Search of a Soul - Taylor Caldwell's Psychic Lives, Caldwell instead began to recall her own past lives - eleven in all, including one on the "lost continent" of Lemuria.
In 1972, she married William Everett Stancell, a retired real estate developer, but divorced him in 1973. In 1978, she married William Robert Prestie, an eccentric Canadian 17 years her junior. This led to difficulties with her children. She had a long dispute with her daughter Judith over the estate of Judith's father Marcus; in 1979 Judith committed suicide.
Also in 1979, Caldwell suffered a stroke, which left her unable to speak, though she could still write. (She had been deaf since about 1965.) Her daughter Peggy accused Prestie of abusing and exploiting Caldwell, and there was a legal battle over her substantial assets.
She died of heart failure in Greenwich, Conn
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
September 6, 2009
I really wanted to like this book but its florid style overwhelms its passable plot.
July 4, 2011
Mi libro favorito
April 22, 2010
"Now all at once the invisible but crushing wings of Louis' old agony lifted, fled away into soundless space. A wild and unfathomable fulfillment flooded his soul, and with it came a feeling of power and ecstasy, and great release. It shook the bastions of his grim gray hatred. He was transported to some realm of flame, unbearably bright, and his spirit seemed to become incandescent. He shivered. His heard rolled and tugged. Nameless cries rang through his ears his loneliness was consumed like a straw in a leaping fire. He thought: I am not alone. And as if the words were a spell, the pillar of salt that was his mind was shattered and destroyed and poured out."
May 25, 2010
An old epic historical novel that was 1st printed in 1943.
October 22, 2024
La autora, a su muy peculiar estilo, nos proporciona una novela llena de detalles y descripciones, no exenta de frases y discursos únicos, que lo unico que queda por decir es que si se desea disfrutar de una lectura comí esta es necesario que se tenga paciencia y tiempo suficiente para no interrumpirlo y llegar al final de la aventura. Un final esperanzador en mi opinión, con un deseo implícito de que la humanidad se reconcilie consigo misma.
October 1, 2020
This book is not for those who are looking for light reading. Introduction of a new character may take many pages of descriptive prose in a style that is not seen often nowadays. One sentence on the first page of chapter XXXIX is ten lines long.
I'm glad that I have read it but I don't believe I would read it again.
I'm glad that I have read it but I don't believe I would read it again.
June 1, 2019
Good read
It was a good experience. But the ending I did not like. Though no one can dispute about the French immigration to America, but the great shipment of French men and women to New France occurred 40 years later during the reign of Louis XIV.
It was a good experience. But the ending I did not like. Though no one can dispute about the French immigration to America, but the great shipment of French men and women to New France occurred 40 years later during the reign of Louis XIV.
October 13, 2019
Difficult but rewarding
This was a slow and difficult read. It was almost too descriptive and the message a bit repetitive. However, I did enjoy the story and I am glad I finished it. It is not among my favorites of Taylor Caldwell's books.
This was a slow and difficult read. It was almost too descriptive and the message a bit repetitive. However, I did enjoy the story and I am glad I finished it. It is not among my favorites of Taylor Caldwell's books.
December 4, 2023
É bem óbvio pelo título que se trata de uma ficção histórica situada na Idade Média.
A história é mais uma exposição filosófica do que um romance, expondo vários detalhes da época na prosa floreada característica da autora.
A história é mais uma exposição filosófica do que um romance, expondo vários detalhes da época na prosa floreada característica da autora.
March 6, 2020
great book about a period in history I have always been curious about
August 21, 2020
Philosophic and sad
November 9, 2020
I am struggling through this book because I find the style too wordy. The descriptions of character traits as gender-bound are also very irritating. I suppose the style has dated.
Read
January 23, 2023Unfinished
January 18, 2025
I had such high hopes for this book, but the plot never really gathered momentum. I have read Dynasty of Death by the same author which is far far better
April 18, 2009
As hostilities flare between Catholic and Huguenot, Cardinal Richelieu relentlessly pursues the favors of Queen Anne. The story tells the saga of two brothers, Arsene de Richepin and Monsieur de Rechepin, personal secretary of Cardinal Richelieu. They represent two opposite worlds which never will meet each other. The author has a similar style as Dumas in telling some historical facts, the pre-revolutionary ideas of Paul de Vitry and the high price he payed for this, the dramatic siege of La Rochelle by the french and english people.
Want to read
June 27, 2010Can't seem to get enough of Taylor Caldwell.
6/26: Evidently I could . . . stalled-out on this one after 66 pages. While Caldwell wrote extremely well about the 19th and early 20th centuries, and also wrote successful novels with biblical settings, she seemed out of her depth in the 17th-century Paris of Cardinal Richelieu. To me it had the feel and ambiance of one of those technicolor costume dramas made at 20th Century-Fox in the 1940s and 1950s.
6/26: Evidently I could . . . stalled-out on this one after 66 pages. While Caldwell wrote extremely well about the 19th and early 20th centuries, and also wrote successful novels with biblical settings, she seemed out of her depth in the 17th-century Paris of Cardinal Richelieu. To me it had the feel and ambiance of one of those technicolor costume dramas made at 20th Century-Fox in the 1940s and 1950s.
August 31, 2025
I've read practically all of Caldwell's books and this is my favorite. Have read it several times. Set in one of the most interestingt and turbulent historical periods, the soul-searching of the main characters is sad and uplifting, at the same time. I find Louis de Richepin one of the most tragic, compelling and moving figures.
November 4, 2013
poor book, terrible reader (audio book for the Blind)
October 12, 2016
Un libro increíble! Taylor Caldwell es una excelente narradora una maestra de la novela histórica.!
September 22, 2012
I have liked her other novels but this one left me flat and uninspired to even finish it.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews