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Le vicomte de Bragelonne #2/3
Louise de La Vallière
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.
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.
733 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1849
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5580 people want to read
About the author
Alexandre Dumas
5,707 books12.6k followersThis note regards Alexandre Dumas, père, the father of Alexandre Dumas, fils (son). For the son, see Alexandre Dumas fils.
Alexandre Dumas père, born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was a towering figure of 19th-century French literature whose historical novels and adventure tales earned global renown. Best known for The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo, and other swashbuckling epics, Dumas crafted stories filled with daring heroes, dramatic twists, and vivid historical backdrops. His works, often serialized and immensely popular with the public, helped shape the modern adventure genre and remain enduring staples of world literature.
Dumas was the son of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, a celebrated general in Revolutionary France and the highest-ranking man of African descent in a European army at the time. His father’s early death left the family in poverty, but Dumas’s upbringing was nonetheless marked by strong personal ambition and a deep admiration for his father’s achievements. He moved to Paris as a young man and began his literary career writing for the theatre, quickly rising to prominence in the Romantic movement with successful plays like Henri III et sa cour and Antony.
In the 1840s, Dumas turned increasingly toward prose fiction, particularly serialized novels, which reached vast audiences through French newspapers. His collaboration with Auguste Maquet, a skilled plotter and historian, proved fruitful. While Maquet drafted outlines and conducted research, Dumas infused the narratives with flair, dialogue, and color. The result was a string of literary triumphs, including The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, both published in 1844. These novels exemplified Dumas’s flair for suspenseful pacing, memorable characters, and grand themes of justice, loyalty, and revenge.
The D’Artagnan Romances—The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, and The Vicomte of Bragelonne—cemented his fame. They follow the adventures of the titular Gascon hero and his comrades Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, blending historical fact and fiction into richly imagined narratives. The Count of Monte Cristo offered a darker, more introspective tale of betrayal and retribution, with intricate plotting and a deeply philosophical core.
Dumas was also active in journalism and theater. He founded the Théâtre Historique in Paris, which staged dramatizations of his own novels. A prolific and energetic writer, he is estimated to have written or co-written over 100,000 pages of fiction, plays, memoirs, travel books, and essays. He also had a strong interest in food and published a massive culinary encyclopedia, Le Grand Dictionnaire de cuisine, filled with recipes, anecdotes, and reflections on gastronomy.
Despite his enormous success, Dumas was frequently plagued by financial troubles. He led a lavish lifestyle, building the ornate Château de Monte-Cristo near Paris, employing large staffs, and supporting many friends and relatives. His generosity and appetite for life often outpaced his income, leading to mounting debts. Still, his creative drive rarely waned.
Dumas’s mixed-race background was a source of both pride and tension in his life. He was outspoken about his heritage and used his platform to address race and injustice. In his novel Georges, he explored issues of colonialism and identity through a Creole protagonist. Though he encountered racism, he refused to be silenced, famously replying to a racial insult by pointing to his ancestry and achievements with dignity and wit.
Later in life, Dumas continued writing and traveling, spending time in Belgium, Italy, and Russia. He supported nationalist causes, particularly Italian unification, and even founded a newspaper to advocate for Giuseppe Garibaldi. Though his popularity waned somewhat in his final years, his literary legacy grew steadily. He wrote in a style that was accessible, entertaining, and emotionally reso
Alexandre Dumas père, born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was a towering figure of 19th-century French literature whose historical novels and adventure tales earned global renown. Best known for The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo, and other swashbuckling epics, Dumas crafted stories filled with daring heroes, dramatic twists, and vivid historical backdrops. His works, often serialized and immensely popular with the public, helped shape the modern adventure genre and remain enduring staples of world literature.
Dumas was the son of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, a celebrated general in Revolutionary France and the highest-ranking man of African descent in a European army at the time. His father’s early death left the family in poverty, but Dumas’s upbringing was nonetheless marked by strong personal ambition and a deep admiration for his father’s achievements. He moved to Paris as a young man and began his literary career writing for the theatre, quickly rising to prominence in the Romantic movement with successful plays like Henri III et sa cour and Antony.
In the 1840s, Dumas turned increasingly toward prose fiction, particularly serialized novels, which reached vast audiences through French newspapers. His collaboration with Auguste Maquet, a skilled plotter and historian, proved fruitful. While Maquet drafted outlines and conducted research, Dumas infused the narratives with flair, dialogue, and color. The result was a string of literary triumphs, including The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, both published in 1844. These novels exemplified Dumas’s flair for suspenseful pacing, memorable characters, and grand themes of justice, loyalty, and revenge.
The D’Artagnan Romances—The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, and The Vicomte of Bragelonne—cemented his fame. They follow the adventures of the titular Gascon hero and his comrades Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, blending historical fact and fiction into richly imagined narratives. The Count of Monte Cristo offered a darker, more introspective tale of betrayal and retribution, with intricate plotting and a deeply philosophical core.
Dumas was also active in journalism and theater. He founded the Théâtre Historique in Paris, which staged dramatizations of his own novels. A prolific and energetic writer, he is estimated to have written or co-written over 100,000 pages of fiction, plays, memoirs, travel books, and essays. He also had a strong interest in food and published a massive culinary encyclopedia, Le Grand Dictionnaire de cuisine, filled with recipes, anecdotes, and reflections on gastronomy.
Despite his enormous success, Dumas was frequently plagued by financial troubles. He led a lavish lifestyle, building the ornate Château de Monte-Cristo near Paris, employing large staffs, and supporting many friends and relatives. His generosity and appetite for life often outpaced his income, leading to mounting debts. Still, his creative drive rarely waned.
Dumas’s mixed-race background was a source of both pride and tension in his life. He was outspoken about his heritage and used his platform to address race and injustice. In his novel Georges, he explored issues of colonialism and identity through a Creole protagonist. Though he encountered racism, he refused to be silenced, famously replying to a racial insult by pointing to his ancestry and achievements with dignity and wit.
Later in life, Dumas continued writing and traveling, spending time in Belgium, Italy, and Russia. He supported nationalist causes, particularly Italian unification, and even founded a newspaper to advocate for Giuseppe Garibaldi. Though his popularity waned somewhat in his final years, his literary legacy grew steadily. He wrote in a style that was accessible, entertaining, and emotionally reso
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 232 reviews
August 6, 2019
I sometimes feel sorry for the second book of a trilogy, for it is often treated more like a bridge, and less like a destination. The deuxième volume is neither the thatched cottage that begins the tale, nor the ancestral mansion that ends it. Instead, it is more like a road, and, however diverting the scenery and people of this road may be, it is—after all—more of a means than an end.
This is doubly true of Louise de la Valliere, the middle volume of the final D’Artagnan romance, sandwiched between The Vicomte de Bragelonne and The Man in the Iron Mask. It is not strictly the second volume of an authentic trilogy, but instead an arbirtary 700 page hunk of narrative prose, the smackdab middle of a 2,000 page serial novel, at least twice the length of Dickens’ Bleak House. If it possesses qualities which distinguish it from the reamaining two-thirds, they are to some degree accidental.
Roughly speaking, The Vicomte de Bragelonne is about the quest to re-establish an absolute monarchy abroad (Charles II of England) while strengthening one at home (Louis XIV), and The Man in the Iron Mask is about a conspiracy to subvert that same domestic monarchy. Louis de Valliere is the portion of the book which describes the social and amatory world of the Sun King near the zenith of its power, and shows how the absolute dominance of one man and his whims can circumscribe the quests for truth and adventure into a taste for gossip and a predilection for conspiracy. We observe the grand political impulse as it operates in the court of Versailles, how it is compelled to fix on the king’s personal dislikes and emphemeral loves, and we sense that what we see before us—though ostentatious, even magnificent in its pageantry—is a reduced and decadent world.
Nevertheless, we find people here to root for: the amiable upstart Malicorne, with a lover to impress and a fortune to earn; Louise de Valliere, the sweetest and most honorable of royal mistresses; Raoul Count de Bragelonne, the noble son of Athos, a young man who loves Louise hopelessly and sincerely; the veteran D’Artagnan, ever willing to serve his king (and enrich himself along the way, if he can); and the Sun King himself, an intelligent young man with generous impulses, who has the power to do anything—anything except to escape from the net of absolute monarchy itself.
Louise de la Valliere, although it seemed a long road at times, never led me to lose confidence in Dumas’ narrative art. It entertained me, and made me look forward to my destination : The Man in the Iron Mask.
August 24, 2018
This is easily the weakest book of the series, but it still gets four stars from me because this series stole my heart and will keep it eternally.
Unlike its predecessor, this book is aptly titled because the focus moves away from our beloved musketeers and onto court intrigues, particularly surrounding the titular Louise, who has been (un)lucky enough to capture the attention of King Louis XIV. This is the main aspect that makes this book drag so much, as we're inundated with lovers' quarrels and meetings and plots etc. There are still some fantastic characters, but the action is less and the politics more.
The story opens with Athos asking the King's approval for Raoul to marry Louise (on Raoul's behalf). Sadly, that's the last we hear of Athos for the rest of the book. Ah, how I missed him and his invaluable sense of honour! I can just imagine him hearing about all of the drama that follows and thinking, 'I am way too old for this sh*t'. We get a little of Raoul as a consolation prize, but even he's sent away for the latter half of the novel. Thank god for de Guiche, who compensates a little for the loss of these two illustrious figures, even if he loses his own head to love.
D'Artagnan appears to face down the smack-talking de Wardes, who is the son of the dude d'Artagnan pretended to be back in The Three Musketeers in order to bed Milady. It kinda makes sense that de Wardes is a little angry but he talks so much crap about everyone that it's nice to see him get served so elegantly by d'Artagnan. Also great that Raoul is surrounded by supportive friends in de Guiche and Buckingham, who back him up and threaten to rumble with de Wardes if he doesn't reign in his mouth. I loved the interactions between these young fellas. You can kind of see a shadow of our musketeers in their friendship.
Having made his peace with de Wardes, d'Artagnan then sadly disappears for the next 400-odd pages, leaving us to deal with all the drama at court. And man, is there drama.
There's the jealous Gaston d'Orleans, brother to the king, married to the sister of England's new king. The sister is Henrietta, who is loved by basically every male who meets her, causing all kinds of drama. Buckingham, de Guiche, and even the king, who is her brother-in-law. She, in turn, seems to love all of them until she decides she's over it, and basically rampages around stomping on people's hearts, or stamping her foot petulantly if they remove their heart from her range, first. She wasn't my favourite, but she sure makes things interesting!
Louis is quite a fascinating character, as he's trying to be responsible and run a country, but he's kind of being carried away by his heart. Everyone in this book seems to do stupid things in the name of love. Boys were so much more romantic back in the day. *sigh*
Louise herself is my least favourite character because I'm completely devastated by her disloyalty to Raoul. That boy loves her with his whole heart and Louise gets carried off by a fancy for the king? These hoes ain't loyal! It made me so mad that she barely stops to consider him. Raoul totally deserves better.
Aramis, the sly fox - or master spider, rather - is tangled up in his own little webs, manipulating everyone in favour of Focquet. He's always up to something, and appears the most of our favourite four musketeers, albeit still too infrequently for my liking. I have enough loyalty to love him no matter what, but I really question his actions. He's certainly nowhere near as noble as Athos and I cringe at some of the decisions he makes! I'm so glad that d'Artagnan is there to love and yet still suspect him on my behalf. It's such a twisted relationship, and they lie to each other constantly, but at their core they're still bffs so it's all good?
Then poor old Porthos is stuck in the middle, unaware! I have so much respect for our friendly giant. I mean, he's kind of savage, and I get a malicious glee when he destroys things accidentally because he's misjudged his size or strength, but he's so caring and loyal and naive and never suspects any of his friends of wrongdoing or deceit. I love when d'Artagnan wins him over to his own side, but in my mind I suppose Porthos will always be Aramis's right-hand man. His sword-arm, really.
There are some seriously interesting dynamics between that constantly evolving friendship of our four musketeers.
There are still some great moments in this book, and de Guiche had a few at the end that had me pretty anxious and biting my lip! Even all the plots are so twisted that they keep things interesting.
When I originally read The Man in the Iron Mask, I skipped this book in my impatience to get to it. Now that I have a better understanding of all this drama that's happened, I'm really looking forward to having a better understanding of what comes next. I don't think it's particularly necessary to read this one, but it certainly adds a lot more meat to the story, and gives some fascinating history, too.
Unlike its predecessor, this book is aptly titled because the focus moves away from our beloved musketeers and onto court intrigues, particularly surrounding the titular Louise, who has been (un)lucky enough to capture the attention of King Louis XIV. This is the main aspect that makes this book drag so much, as we're inundated with lovers' quarrels and meetings and plots etc. There are still some fantastic characters, but the action is less and the politics more.
The story opens with Athos asking the King's approval for Raoul to marry Louise (on Raoul's behalf). Sadly, that's the last we hear of Athos for the rest of the book. Ah, how I missed him and his invaluable sense of honour! I can just imagine him hearing about all of the drama that follows and thinking, 'I am way too old for this sh*t'. We get a little of Raoul as a consolation prize, but even he's sent away for the latter half of the novel. Thank god for de Guiche, who compensates a little for the loss of these two illustrious figures, even if he loses his own head to love.
D'Artagnan appears to face down the smack-talking de Wardes, who is the son of the dude d'Artagnan pretended to be back in The Three Musketeers in order to bed Milady. It kinda makes sense that de Wardes is a little angry but he talks so much crap about everyone that it's nice to see him get served so elegantly by d'Artagnan. Also great that Raoul is surrounded by supportive friends in de Guiche and Buckingham, who back him up and threaten to rumble with de Wardes if he doesn't reign in his mouth. I loved the interactions between these young fellas. You can kind of see a shadow of our musketeers in their friendship.
Having made his peace with de Wardes, d'Artagnan then sadly disappears for the next 400-odd pages, leaving us to deal with all the drama at court. And man, is there drama.
There's the jealous Gaston d'Orleans, brother to the king, married to the sister of England's new king. The sister is Henrietta, who is loved by basically every male who meets her, causing all kinds of drama. Buckingham, de Guiche, and even the king, who is her brother-in-law. She, in turn, seems to love all of them until she decides she's over it, and basically rampages around stomping on people's hearts, or stamping her foot petulantly if they remove their heart from her range, first. She wasn't my favourite, but she sure makes things interesting!
Louis is quite a fascinating character, as he's trying to be responsible and run a country, but he's kind of being carried away by his heart. Everyone in this book seems to do stupid things in the name of love. Boys were so much more romantic back in the day. *sigh*
Louise herself is my least favourite character because I'm completely devastated by her disloyalty to Raoul. That boy loves her with his whole heart and Louise gets carried off by a fancy for the king? These hoes ain't loyal! It made me so mad that she barely stops to consider him. Raoul totally deserves better.
Aramis, the sly fox - or master spider, rather - is tangled up in his own little webs, manipulating everyone in favour of Focquet. He's always up to something, and appears the most of our favourite four musketeers, albeit still too infrequently for my liking. I have enough loyalty to love him no matter what, but I really question his actions. He's certainly nowhere near as noble as Athos and I cringe at some of the decisions he makes! I'm so glad that d'Artagnan is there to love and yet still suspect him on my behalf. It's such a twisted relationship, and they lie to each other constantly, but at their core they're still bffs so it's all good?
Then poor old Porthos is stuck in the middle, unaware! I have so much respect for our friendly giant. I mean, he's kind of savage, and I get a malicious glee when he destroys things accidentally because he's misjudged his size or strength, but he's so caring and loyal and naive and never suspects any of his friends of wrongdoing or deceit. I love when d'Artagnan wins him over to his own side, but in my mind I suppose Porthos will always be Aramis's right-hand man. His sword-arm, really.
There are some seriously interesting dynamics between that constantly evolving friendship of our four musketeers.
There are still some great moments in this book, and de Guiche had a few at the end that had me pretty anxious and biting my lip! Even all the plots are so twisted that they keep things interesting.
When I originally read The Man in the Iron Mask, I skipped this book in my impatience to get to it. Now that I have a better understanding of all this drama that's happened, I'm really looking forward to having a better understanding of what comes next. I don't think it's particularly necessary to read this one, but it certainly adds a lot more meat to the story, and gives some fascinating history, too.
August 20, 2008
It's 1661 and Louis the XIV is taking over the reign of government from his ministers. D'Artagnan is captain of the Musketeers, Aramis is now a bishop, Porthos is as big, strong and hungry as ever and Raoul, the son of Athos, is still madly in love with Louise De La Valliere. What we do see of Aramis he is plotting and scheming and has a strong interest in a mysterious prisoner in the Bastille.
Louis' effeminate brother Philippe (Monsieur) has just married Henrietta (Madame) of England, but Henrietta only has eyes for Louis (well, maybe the Duke of Buckingham and the Comte de Guiche also), an attraction that Louis returns. In order to allay suspicion of Louis' jealous brother, Louis feigns an attraction to Louise (who is one of Madame's ladies in waiting), but finds himself trapped by his own schemes when he falls in love with her. LOL, some of the antics involved in trying to be alone with Louise that are constantly hampered by Madame's efforts to keep them apart.
This book is different from the preceding novels of the Musketeers -- there is little if any of the swashbuckling, sword fights and derring do that the other books contained. This book focuses on the love story of Louis and Louise, along with the pomp, intrigues and scandals of Louis XIV's court. Although some readers will be disappointed at the virtual absence of the Musketeers in this book, I was fascinated at the glimpses of French history and court life which was beautifully sprinkled with laugh out loud humor reading the antics of the French court, most especially the "revolving" confessions at the Royal Oak tree.
If you've come this far, you've already read The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte de Bragelonne The Vicomte De Bragelonne was originally published in French as one large novel, but is broken into three by English publishers, The Vicomte De Bragelonne, Louise De La Valliere and finally culminating in The Man in the Iron Mask (Oxford World's Classics). As other reviewers have noted, this book is more palace intrigue and less of the Musketeers and not everyone will enjoy it as thoroughly as I did, I loved the antics of the French court and had many a good laugh. Dumas is just brilliant (as always) and his dialogue (as always) is among the finest I've ever come across. Highly recommended.
Louis' effeminate brother Philippe (Monsieur) has just married Henrietta (Madame) of England, but Henrietta only has eyes for Louis (well, maybe the Duke of Buckingham and the Comte de Guiche also), an attraction that Louis returns. In order to allay suspicion of Louis' jealous brother, Louis feigns an attraction to Louise (who is one of Madame's ladies in waiting), but finds himself trapped by his own schemes when he falls in love with her. LOL, some of the antics involved in trying to be alone with Louise that are constantly hampered by Madame's efforts to keep them apart.
This book is different from the preceding novels of the Musketeers -- there is little if any of the swashbuckling, sword fights and derring do that the other books contained. This book focuses on the love story of Louis and Louise, along with the pomp, intrigues and scandals of Louis XIV's court. Although some readers will be disappointed at the virtual absence of the Musketeers in this book, I was fascinated at the glimpses of French history and court life which was beautifully sprinkled with laugh out loud humor reading the antics of the French court, most especially the "revolving" confessions at the Royal Oak tree.
If you've come this far, you've already read The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After and The Vicomte de Bragelonne The Vicomte De Bragelonne was originally published in French as one large novel, but is broken into three by English publishers, The Vicomte De Bragelonne, Louise De La Valliere and finally culminating in The Man in the Iron Mask (Oxford World's Classics). As other reviewers have noted, this book is more palace intrigue and less of the Musketeers and not everyone will enjoy it as thoroughly as I did, I loved the antics of the French court and had many a good laugh. Dumas is just brilliant (as always) and his dialogue (as always) is among the finest I've ever come across. Highly recommended.
December 1, 2011
Apart from a few chapters this book is excruciatingly dull. I'm a big fan of The Three Musketeers, and although the musketeers themselves are present here the author has shifted his focus from them to the nobility of 17th century France. Don't get me wrong, the affairs of the king and the queen were crucial to the plot of The Three Musketeers, but they were just the supporting cast. In Louise de la Valliere we have to endure chapter after chapter of "clever" conversation between varyingly boring characters instead of Dumas' typical story-line twists. If it wasn't just a part of a longer novel I would have given up a few chapters in, but unfortunately, it isn't all bad, so an ardent reader wishing to make sense of The Man in the Iron Mask probably should give it a go.
The only saving graces I can think of are Aramis' few chapters, which are important to the main plot of the later book, apart from being very mysterious and exciting, and a midnight duel which is probably the coolest I have ever seen, heard or read about. Great stuff, but it's far from managing to interest the casual reader.
The only saving graces I can think of are Aramis' few chapters, which are important to the main plot of the later book, apart from being very mysterious and exciting, and a midnight duel which is probably the coolest I have ever seen, heard or read about. Great stuff, but it's far from managing to interest the casual reader.
November 15, 2016
Woof! The tale of the Musketeers comes to a screeching halt with this installment. They should retitle this bad boy Louis XIV Steals A Dumb Little Girl.
The Musketeers take a back seat to the ol' Sun King as he steals Raul's girlfriend. That one sentence sums up a twenty hour read. There are other things that occur that lead to the much better and more depressing THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK but I believe that this installment can be skipped. That is how I originally read this series and do not feel that this book added anything.
Unfortunately, I am a Dumas fanatic and couldn't bear (bare?) to not eventually read this. Dumas writing is a pleasure to read as always but the plot was a snooze-fest.
Recommended for ride-or-die Dumas bitches only.
The Musketeers take a back seat to the ol' Sun King as he steals Raul's girlfriend. That one sentence sums up a twenty hour read. There are other things that occur that lead to the much better and more depressing THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK but I believe that this installment can be skipped. That is how I originally read this series and do not feel that this book added anything.
Unfortunately, I am a Dumas fanatic and couldn't bear (bare?) to not eventually read this. Dumas writing is a pleasure to read as always but the plot was a snooze-fest.
Recommended for ride-or-die Dumas bitches only.
November 24, 2009
An excess of melodrama. Sighing. Fainting. Raging. Perspiring (I know what you think I mean, but no. Only in vexation, anger or fear). Riding horses to death. Star-crossed lovers. Ill-fated lovers. Trap-doors. Witchy women. Brave men. Fair damsels. All in a PG format.
Didn't enjoy this one even 1/2 as much as the others. Probably because of the subject matter, which is that the King is in love with the Vicomte's affianced. Said King sends Vicomte to England to get him out of the way. Said King (who is married, by the by) does his very best and succeeds in seducing fair maiden. Leaving Vicomte, of course, in a sighing, near-fainting, raging, perspiring mess.
In the world of the 17th century it seemed that if one was of consequence enough to be made to marry for policy, one was then left to look for love everywhere else but home--and that was accepted, expected and, well, accepted. Nobody blinked an eye. But it was fun to talk about it. When one is heavily over-dressed and abysmally under-occupied gossiping takes on a whole new occupation.
Didn't enjoy this one even 1/2 as much as the others. Probably because of the subject matter, which is that the King is in love with the Vicomte's affianced. Said King sends Vicomte to England to get him out of the way. Said King (who is married, by the by) does his very best and succeeds in seducing fair maiden. Leaving Vicomte, of course, in a sighing, near-fainting, raging, perspiring mess.
In the world of the 17th century it seemed that if one was of consequence enough to be made to marry for policy, one was then left to look for love everywhere else but home--and that was accepted, expected and, well, accepted. Nobody blinked an eye. But it was fun to talk about it. When one is heavily over-dressed and abysmally under-occupied gossiping takes on a whole new occupation.
December 1, 2016
In the second volume of The Vicomte of Bragelonne, we are still in the reign of Louis XIV but now getting into intrigues around Fouquet and his fatal ego as well as the Man in the Iron Mask (sometimes used as the subtitle for this book). These will once again present a gordian knot for our heroes that will cause anguish and lead them into the final chapter of their adventures. A page turner that will keep you up late on many successive nights, guaranteed.
December 20, 2019
sir that is my emotional support musketeer
November 2, 2016
This was my least favorite of the novels in the D'Artagnan Romances so far. I browsed the introduction to the Oxford World's Classics edition, which advised that this was the least "swashbuckling" of the series. Apparently, Dumas thought that the prior entries lacked "romance". Well, he went overboard in this one. This novel consists of hundreds of pages of flirtations. It's like a junior high school novel. The King is like the popular kid -- maybe the captain of the football team. And the novel basically goes on and on about who 'likes' whom, and who is pretending to 'like' whom, blah, blah, blah. I was bored by much of this nonsense. Meanwhile, the Musketeers (D'Artagnan, Athos, Aramis, and Porthos) are less than supporting characters; they disappear for much of it. I'm not even sure where Athos went, and Porthos shows up hundreds of pages in.
"The Man in the Iron Mask" is one of the better known novels in the series, and I'm looking forward to moving on to it.
"The Man in the Iron Mask" is one of the better known novels in the series, and I'm looking forward to moving on to it.
December 31, 2017
This is the fifth delivery of the Three Musketeers saga. Masterly written. Much of the story has to do with the romance of Louise. Athos, Porthos, Aramis and of course the brave and bold D'Artagnan come and go throughout all the book. The end is a cliffhanger, so I'll just start The Man in the Iron Mask as soon as I can. Loved this book.
July 30, 2020
Louis XIV and the French Court
This volume focused mostly on the romantic intrigues at the French court blended with more humorous interludes with our famous heroes. I started to wonder if Dumas had divided up the work as the style between these varied quite a bit, but perhaps it is simply my imagination or the translation. In a sense I felt like I was taking part of a 17th century soap opera with at times brilliant (and almost poetic) descriptions blended with romantic cliffhangers following the norms and rituals of the court. I have to admit that I very much enjoyed being within the French court’s massive salons, hallways and gardens as well as partaking in Louis XIV’s luminous weeklong fête. Reading this work is definitely a worthwhile enterprise for any Dumas fan or if one is looking for an immersion into the aristocracy of the times. Strangely, time flowed quickly while reading these Dumas tombs (which is a good sign)! I planned to read the d'Artagnan romances this summer. I'm looking forward to the final volume of the saga: The Man in the Iron Mask
This volume focused mostly on the romantic intrigues at the French court blended with more humorous interludes with our famous heroes. I started to wonder if Dumas had divided up the work as the style between these varied quite a bit, but perhaps it is simply my imagination or the translation. In a sense I felt like I was taking part of a 17th century soap opera with at times brilliant (and almost poetic) descriptions blended with romantic cliffhangers following the norms and rituals of the court. I have to admit that I very much enjoyed being within the French court’s massive salons, hallways and gardens as well as partaking in Louis XIV’s luminous weeklong fête. Reading this work is definitely a worthwhile enterprise for any Dumas fan or if one is looking for an immersion into the aristocracy of the times. Strangely, time flowed quickly while reading these Dumas tombs (which is a good sign)! I planned to read the d'Artagnan romances this summer. I'm looking forward to the final volume of the saga: The Man in the Iron Mask
April 2, 2016
This was probably my least favorite in the series of the D'Artagnan Romances. I didn't like any of the main characters. They mostly got on my nerves with all their gossip and selfish lifestyles. The main musketeers are almost completely unmentioned. I've never liked Raoul that much so even his part in the novel didn't move me the way it was probably meant to. I think it is necessary to read this one to enjoy "The Man in the Iron Mask" fully, but I wish I could've skimmed this one. All that being said, it still sucked me in and was a pretty quick, enjoyable read on the whole.
July 30, 2011
Book Four (of five) in the Musketeers Saga and this really does have the feel of the middle section of a trilogy. The pace is lower than the other sections and there's less of an over-riding plot - this one deals with Louise XIV's seduction of the eponymous Louise de la Valliere (after getting rid of Raoul to England) and while the lack of the excitement of Vicomte de Bragalonne's reinstatement of Charles II or the last volume's Man in the Iron Mask makes it drag a little, the change of pace is probably a good thing. I would never recommend reading this novel on its own (in fact, reading The Man in the Iron Mask on its own - which people usually do, as VdB and LdlV are hard to get hold of - is a bit like reading The Return of the King and none of the rest of the Lord of the Rings) but in context with the rest it's a nice little set up for the finale. So ... all in all, the worst volume so far, but still a very good read.
July 7, 2013
Louise de la Valliere 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.
My thought
Raoul has persuaded his father, Athos, to ask King Louis XIV to grant permission for him to marry his childhood sweetheart, Louise de la Valliere. However, the King, perceiving Athos' reluctance at the match, does no forbid the marriage, but instead says it must be deferred. Meanwhile, also at the palace, D'Artagnan apologises to de Wardes for killing his father in front of witnesses, but also dresses de Wardes down for continually insulting others. Buckingham, who is about to leave for England, having been asked by Anne of Austria to depart, takes advantage of de Wardes humiliated anger to challenge him to a dual. They dual on the sands at Calais, and Buckingham is the victor, seriously wounding de Wardes, although he ensures de Wardes receives medical care before returning to England.
Aramis visits la Bastille to talk with the governor, Baisemeaux who is having financial difficulties due to his kind-hearted treatment of the prisoners. Aramis visits a mysterious prisoner whose name and origins are unknown. The man is in prison for his striking resemblance to the king.
Madame de Belliere finally acknowledges her love for Fouquet, who is also experiencing financial difficulties. Coulbert is plotting to overtake Fouquet as minister of finance by ruining him through large requests for money for the king. Madame de Belliere sells many of her jewellery and ornaments to raise money so that Fouquet is not humiliated by being unable to finance the kings planned festivities at Fontainebleu.
At court, Phillipe's new wife Henrietta is making him jealous again, this time due to her flirtations with de Guiche. Anne of Austria asks the king to intercede with Henrietta who she fears is a coquette. The king goes to Henrietta's apartments, planning to admonish her, but instead finds himself taken in by her charms, and falls in love with her himself, an affection which Henrietta returns. Fearing that Phillipe's jealousy will make problems for them, the two lovers decide that Louis should act as though he is in love with one of the maids of honour to put his brother off the scent. Henrietta selects Louise for this role.
A ballet is performed by the court, where Henrietta and Louis are the stars of the show. De Guiche is devestated that Henrietta has transferred her affections to the king. Montalais, Louise and Athenais have a conversation about love under a tree in the park. They believe they are alone. Montalais declares her love for Malicorne, Athenais her preference for Saint-Aignan, and Louise delcares innocently and vehemently that she has been in love with the king since she first set eyes on him. Unbeknownst to the three maids of honour, the king and Saint-Aignan are listening behind a bush.
When the girls find out that they were overheard Louise faints and is revived by the king, who is trying to act like he is interested in her. However, in the process of caring for her, he finds himself feeling more attached to her innocence than to Henrietta's coquettry. Henrietta becomes worried as she suspects that Louis may have fallen for Louise after hearing her declare her love. She humiliates the king and Saint-Aignan by telling them that the three maids of honour knew they were overheard and had made a joke of the two men by saying what they thought would please their vanity most. Louise is unhappy to lie, but is forced to do so by Henrietta. She requests an audience from the king to explain herself. Initially he does not believe she was sincere in her declaration of love for him, but her vehemence to the point of fainting with shame convinces him, and he tells her that he loves her too. At this point, Raoul has been sent away by the king to deliver a message in England.
Meanwhile, Aramis has been made the director general of the Jesuits, putting him in a position of extreme power and influence. He half-shares some of his plans with Fouquet which focus on the mysterious prisoner, and replacing Louis IX and Coulbert with a king who is more disposed to Fouquet, whose ideals of freedom and chivalry are more inline with Aramis' views.
This is more of a summary for myself than a review. I can now see why Dumas is known as writer of historical romance. This is pure romance. The musketeers rarely appear and the entire story is Louis XIV's very chaste courtship of Louise. She faints a lot, not a very interesting heroine. Raoul Vicomte de Bragelonne is in love with her so also story of unrequited love. The most feisty female characters are "Madame", Louis' sister-lin-law and Charles II's sister, they also share the same great/grandfather (I'm not sure) Henri IV of France and friend of Louise, Montalais. There are 2 characters called Manicamp and Malicorne, Madame is sometimes the Duchess of Orleans and I found the Le Fouqet bits quite confusing but Man in the Iron Mask follows straight on and its introduction explains it. This will feature Porthos a great deal. D'Artagnan and Aramis have bit parts in Louise. Lovely writing again, court intrique/love affairs just not enough musketeers.
My thought
Raoul has persuaded his father, Athos, to ask King Louis XIV to grant permission for him to marry his childhood sweetheart, Louise de la Valliere. However, the King, perceiving Athos' reluctance at the match, does no forbid the marriage, but instead says it must be deferred. Meanwhile, also at the palace, D'Artagnan apologises to de Wardes for killing his father in front of witnesses, but also dresses de Wardes down for continually insulting others. Buckingham, who is about to leave for England, having been asked by Anne of Austria to depart, takes advantage of de Wardes humiliated anger to challenge him to a dual. They dual on the sands at Calais, and Buckingham is the victor, seriously wounding de Wardes, although he ensures de Wardes receives medical care before returning to England.
Aramis visits la Bastille to talk with the governor, Baisemeaux who is having financial difficulties due to his kind-hearted treatment of the prisoners. Aramis visits a mysterious prisoner whose name and origins are unknown. The man is in prison for his striking resemblance to the king.
Madame de Belliere finally acknowledges her love for Fouquet, who is also experiencing financial difficulties. Coulbert is plotting to overtake Fouquet as minister of finance by ruining him through large requests for money for the king. Madame de Belliere sells many of her jewellery and ornaments to raise money so that Fouquet is not humiliated by being unable to finance the kings planned festivities at Fontainebleu.
At court, Phillipe's new wife Henrietta is making him jealous again, this time due to her flirtations with de Guiche. Anne of Austria asks the king to intercede with Henrietta who she fears is a coquette. The king goes to Henrietta's apartments, planning to admonish her, but instead finds himself taken in by her charms, and falls in love with her himself, an affection which Henrietta returns. Fearing that Phillipe's jealousy will make problems for them, the two lovers decide that Louis should act as though he is in love with one of the maids of honour to put his brother off the scent. Henrietta selects Louise for this role.
A ballet is performed by the court, where Henrietta and Louis are the stars of the show. De Guiche is devestated that Henrietta has transferred her affections to the king. Montalais, Louise and Athenais have a conversation about love under a tree in the park. They believe they are alone. Montalais declares her love for Malicorne, Athenais her preference for Saint-Aignan, and Louise delcares innocently and vehemently that she has been in love with the king since she first set eyes on him. Unbeknownst to the three maids of honour, the king and Saint-Aignan are listening behind a bush.
When the girls find out that they were overheard Louise faints and is revived by the king, who is trying to act like he is interested in her. However, in the process of caring for her, he finds himself feeling more attached to her innocence than to Henrietta's coquettry. Henrietta becomes worried as she suspects that Louis may have fallen for Louise after hearing her declare her love. She humiliates the king and Saint-Aignan by telling them that the three maids of honour knew they were overheard and had made a joke of the two men by saying what they thought would please their vanity most. Louise is unhappy to lie, but is forced to do so by Henrietta. She requests an audience from the king to explain herself. Initially he does not believe she was sincere in her declaration of love for him, but her vehemence to the point of fainting with shame convinces him, and he tells her that he loves her too. At this point, Raoul has been sent away by the king to deliver a message in England.
Meanwhile, Aramis has been made the director general of the Jesuits, putting him in a position of extreme power and influence. He half-shares some of his plans with Fouquet which focus on the mysterious prisoner, and replacing Louis IX and Coulbert with a king who is more disposed to Fouquet, whose ideals of freedom and chivalry are more inline with Aramis' views.
This is more of a summary for myself than a review. I can now see why Dumas is known as writer of historical romance. This is pure romance. The musketeers rarely appear and the entire story is Louis XIV's very chaste courtship of Louise. She faints a lot, not a very interesting heroine. Raoul Vicomte de Bragelonne is in love with her so also story of unrequited love. The most feisty female characters are "Madame", Louis' sister-lin-law and Charles II's sister, they also share the same great/grandfather (I'm not sure) Henri IV of France and friend of Louise, Montalais. There are 2 characters called Manicamp and Malicorne, Madame is sometimes the Duchess of Orleans and I found the Le Fouqet bits quite confusing but Man in the Iron Mask follows straight on and its introduction explains it. This will feature Porthos a great deal. D'Artagnan and Aramis have bit parts in Louise. Lovely writing again, court intrique/love affairs just not enough musketeers.
August 7, 2023
Louise de la Vallière by Alexandre Dumas, père
Now An Exclusive Freelance Production by Efi
A Romance In Way Too Many Acts
Act one. King's personal premises. Daytime.
ATHOS: Son, I must say I do not approve of your intentions regarding your marriage to mademoiselle de la Vallière. In fact, I object quite severely, I am afraid.
RAOUL: Excuse me?
LOUIS XIV: So do I.
RAOUL: WHAT THE FUCK YOUR MAJESTY
Act two. Deserted ballroom in Versailles. Daytime, probably.
D'ARTAGNAN: Heard you been talkin shit bout me, De Wardes.
DE WARDES: You have committed a most grisly misdeed against human nature and woman's honor. It is my duty to bring it to light for everyone to see.
D'ARTAGNAN: Well, in my defense—
DE WARDES: There are no words to vindicate the perpetrator of such a horrid crime!
D'ARTAGNAN: Can you skidaddle with that bad attitude, De Wardes? Just skifuckingdaddle.
DE WARDES (visibly annoyed): You—
D'ARTAGNAN: Bro CHILL that was a long time ago
ATHOS (out of nowhere): Besides, the lady in question was a vile creature.
D'ARTAGNAN: Total bitch too.
DE WARDES:
D'ARTAGNAN: I honestly can't be bothered to kill you. Does anyone here wish to do it instead?
BUCKINGHAM: Allow me to introduce myself.
Act three. Meanwhile in Fontainebleau gardens. Dusk.
HENRIETTA (drawing indecipherable shapes in dirt): And this is how we are going to conceal our forbidden love.
LOUIS XIV: I must say I do not quite follow your line of thought.
HENRIETTA: Dear me! But it is so very simple. We should only convince everyone that we are in love with someone else and not each other. Abide by this love triangle I drew!
LOUIS XIV: That looks like a rectangle to me.
HENRIETTA: The more innocent people we compromise, the better.
Sometime later, perhaps act seventy-five. Some godforsaken peninsula in the Atlantic. Sundown.
BUCKINGHAM: Before we start gouging each other's eyes out, I only wish to say you are a worthless piece of shit that deserves to die.
DE WARDES: What, you egg? (stabs him)
BUCKINGHAM: No u
(Both are miserably struggling in the water.)
Act [insert_number_here]. Some small cottage in Fontainebleau. Nighttime.
DE GUICHE (out of breath, with blood still gushing out of his wound): Wait, am I alive or dead?
MANICAMP (shooting bemused glances at DUMAS): He don't wanna make up his mind.
DE GUICHE (still half-delirious): ...BOI
Meanwhile at the royal palace. The exact hour is of no importance whatsoever.
LOUISE: It seems to me everyone is my enemy.
LOUIS XIV: Say it isn't so! I love you oh-so-dearly!
D'ARTAGNAN (at some point): BITCH you was in love with Marie Mancini at the beginning of the saga would you make up your FUCKIN mind
Act two hundred twenty-four. Saint-Mandé. God knows when.
ARAMIS: And so, our plan is set.
FOUQUET (sweating profusely): B-but, my dear d'Herblay, should anything at all intervene, if I am not mistaken, we are both to be sent to Bastille!
ARAMIS (gravely): Precisely. And my dear friend Baisemaux will be glad to lend you one of those fine prisoner suits, like the one you see I am wearing at the moment.
FOUQUET (hardly breathing): But by God—
ARAMIS: SIKE it's a cassock you were fooled ho ho
The final act. One of the towers in Bastille. Nighttime.
PRISONER NUMBER TWO: I just don't get it. You introduce me in one chapter and then never mention my name again!
DUMAS: Easy, now.
PRISONER NUMBER TWO: I'm stuck here behind these bars—
DUMAS: But you do eat well, don't you?
PRISONER NUMBER TWO: Well, I suppose I do...
DUMAS: Then hold your horses, for heaven's sake! You, my friend, are a much more significant character than anyone can say at the moment... Except for Aramis, of course. Wait and you shall see, for you are... (lowering his voice) The Man in the Iron Mask.
C U R T A I N
Now An Exclusive Freelance Production by Efi
A Romance In Way Too Many Acts
Act one. King's personal premises. Daytime.
ATHOS: Son, I must say I do not approve of your intentions regarding your marriage to mademoiselle de la Vallière. In fact, I object quite severely, I am afraid.
RAOUL: Excuse me?
LOUIS XIV: So do I.
RAOUL: WHAT THE FUCK YOUR MAJESTY
Act two. Deserted ballroom in Versailles. Daytime, probably.
D'ARTAGNAN: Heard you been talkin shit bout me, De Wardes.
DE WARDES: You have committed a most grisly misdeed against human nature and woman's honor. It is my duty to bring it to light for everyone to see.
D'ARTAGNAN: Well, in my defense—
DE WARDES: There are no words to vindicate the perpetrator of such a horrid crime!
D'ARTAGNAN: Can you skidaddle with that bad attitude, De Wardes? Just skifuckingdaddle.
DE WARDES (visibly annoyed): You—
D'ARTAGNAN: Bro CHILL that was a long time ago
ATHOS (out of nowhere): Besides, the lady in question was a vile creature.
D'ARTAGNAN: Total bitch too.
DE WARDES:
D'ARTAGNAN: I honestly can't be bothered to kill you. Does anyone here wish to do it instead?
BUCKINGHAM: Allow me to introduce myself.
Act three. Meanwhile in Fontainebleau gardens. Dusk.
HENRIETTA (drawing indecipherable shapes in dirt): And this is how we are going to conceal our forbidden love.
LOUIS XIV: I must say I do not quite follow your line of thought.
HENRIETTA: Dear me! But it is so very simple. We should only convince everyone that we are in love with someone else and not each other. Abide by this love triangle I drew!
LOUIS XIV: That looks like a rectangle to me.
HENRIETTA: The more innocent people we compromise, the better.
Sometime later, perhaps act seventy-five. Some godforsaken peninsula in the Atlantic. Sundown.
BUCKINGHAM: Before we start gouging each other's eyes out, I only wish to say you are a worthless piece of shit that deserves to die.
DE WARDES: What, you egg? (stabs him)
BUCKINGHAM: No u
(Both are miserably struggling in the water.)
Act [insert_number_here]. Some small cottage in Fontainebleau. Nighttime.
DE GUICHE (out of breath, with blood still gushing out of his wound): Wait, am I alive or dead?
MANICAMP (shooting bemused glances at DUMAS): He don't wanna make up his mind.
DE GUICHE (still half-delirious): ...BOI
Meanwhile at the royal palace. The exact hour is of no importance whatsoever.
LOUISE: It seems to me everyone is my enemy.
LOUIS XIV: Say it isn't so! I love you oh-so-dearly!
D'ARTAGNAN (at some point): BITCH you was in love with Marie Mancini at the beginning of the saga would you make up your FUCKIN mind
Act two hundred twenty-four. Saint-Mandé. God knows when.
ARAMIS: And so, our plan is set.
FOUQUET (sweating profusely): B-but, my dear d'Herblay, should anything at all intervene, if I am not mistaken, we are both to be sent to Bastille!
ARAMIS (gravely): Precisely. And my dear friend Baisemaux will be glad to lend you one of those fine prisoner suits, like the one you see I am wearing at the moment.
FOUQUET (hardly breathing): But by God—
ARAMIS: SIKE it's a cassock you were fooled ho ho
The final act. One of the towers in Bastille. Nighttime.
PRISONER NUMBER TWO: I just don't get it. You introduce me in one chapter and then never mention my name again!
DUMAS: Easy, now.
PRISONER NUMBER TWO: I'm stuck here behind these bars—
DUMAS: But you do eat well, don't you?
PRISONER NUMBER TWO: Well, I suppose I do...
DUMAS: Then hold your horses, for heaven's sake! You, my friend, are a much more significant character than anyone can say at the moment... Except for Aramis, of course. Wait and you shall see, for you are... (lowering his voice) The Man in the Iron Mask.
C U R T A I N
July 31, 2015
Simon Vance is excellent but this section of the d'Artagnan series is less interesting to me.
I got this audiobook via Hoopla and not being able to download it to my phone was a pain since it limited me to only being able to listen when at home, since I wasn't going to stream over my data plan.
I got this audiobook via Hoopla and not being able to download it to my phone was a pain since it limited me to only being able to listen when at home, since I wasn't going to stream over my data plan.
May 14, 2025
(~1849) Dumas forgets almost everything he knew in this middle section of The Vicomte de Bragelonne. Apparently he wanted to make up for a lack of romance in the previous installments. To me, however, it seemed he wanted to prove that he could entertain us even handicapped by the exact opposite kind of material that makes his series so beloved, without the prop of likable characters doing great deeds. Instead we get slimy nobles, annoying maids of honor, and petulant bisexuals agonizing over frivolities, gossip and drama that would demean a 12-year-old. Picture hundreds and hundreds of pages of “I know someone who likes you, sire.” The characters look all the more pathetic because we keep thinking back to the (actually) noble and honorable musketeers.
I was determined to be different and go against the naysayers here. I knew from the Carnival chapter in Count of Monte Cristo that Dumas can orchestrate protracted scenes of the fashionable world masterfully. So I’m not sure what happened in this one. Perhaps he relied too heavily on his research, since much of the hanky-panky, it seems, was inspired by fact. The historical basis doesn’t help. To see the horny court pass the livelong day in fetes and toilettes, promenades and banquets, rendezvous, balls, lotteries, and guitar-accompanied orgies, and to be asked to care about their infantile tiffs and flirtations, to catch every blush and devouring glance—by God it’s enough to make you miss Cardinal Mazarin. No wonder the villainous Italian felt the need to rule over the royal court with a stingy fist, if this is what he was holding back.
Some of it may be bad on purpose. The amount of eavesdropping, for example, is so over-the-top it borders on farce. And then there are times when the story self-consciously reaches fantastical, fairy-like levels, à la a Shakespeare comedy. It depends on the translation but at one point Dumas perhaps shows he knows the unflattering effect his characters are producing, when he describes one of the many entertainments thus:
“…when the simple, untutored pantomime of that period, made cruder still by the very indifferent acting of the august actors, had reached its culminating point of triumph, the room almost collapsed under the applause.”
Like Flaubert after him then, Dumas is aiming in this instance not for the romantic but the grotesque. But he goes on too long for that to be his only intent.
The shallowness of the setting at least throws into relief those one or two characters who have real problems, and does make the intrigues of the musketeers, when they reappear after 400-odd pages with plots to shake or preserve this dainty world, more delicious. I found I liked the mystery better knowing the story of the Man in the Iron Mask somewhat beforehand.
“How fresh the earth smells,” said De Wardes; “it is a piece of coquetry to draw us to her.”
I kept wondering why so many reviews made the same complaints but then gave 4 stars. It’s because the book starts to get good about two-thirds of the way in, and because of how uniquely good Dumas is when he’s good. In addition to the touches of intrigue mentioned above:
The nighttime duel in the glade is excellent. It’s vintage Dumas—darkly dramatic, cinematic, with the image of the empty field, as both men stand in the shadows at the edge, and the horse charging into it, and one pistol shot being used to light up the aim for the next. And the coda, in which the normally effeminate Manicamp says he’s going to blow De Wardes’ brains out, is very cool.
The unusual and cagey relations between the musketeers—who are again at cross-purposes yet love and respect (and fear) one another—are hilarious.
The part where the dying Jesuit interviews his successor is another one of Dumas’ comically absurd scenes where he drops both you and the characters into a strange situation and lets everyone try to figure it out.
I like when Dumas includes scenes that are simply cute, like the dinner with the king and Porthos, both admiring each other’s appetite.
Finally, after actively not caring about Louise and the king for almost the whole book, I even found myself getting swept up a little by the romance. When Louise feels that, if the king really loved her, he would use telepathy, basically, to understand her plight, or when she desperately hopes he will keep his recent vow about never going to bed angry with each other, it’s all very relatable. The obstacles thrown in their path also make you instinctively root for them.
Really, though, this huge detour in the musketeer saga should have been 100 pages.
_________________
Marginalia:
*D’Artagnan exhibits some classic detective work when piecing together the scene of the duel. I wonder if it was inspired by Poe’s Rue Morgue.
I was determined to be different and go against the naysayers here. I knew from the Carnival chapter in Count of Monte Cristo that Dumas can orchestrate protracted scenes of the fashionable world masterfully. So I’m not sure what happened in this one. Perhaps he relied too heavily on his research, since much of the hanky-panky, it seems, was inspired by fact. The historical basis doesn’t help. To see the horny court pass the livelong day in fetes and toilettes, promenades and banquets, rendezvous, balls, lotteries, and guitar-accompanied orgies, and to be asked to care about their infantile tiffs and flirtations, to catch every blush and devouring glance—by God it’s enough to make you miss Cardinal Mazarin. No wonder the villainous Italian felt the need to rule over the royal court with a stingy fist, if this is what he was holding back.
Some of it may be bad on purpose. The amount of eavesdropping, for example, is so over-the-top it borders on farce. And then there are times when the story self-consciously reaches fantastical, fairy-like levels, à la a Shakespeare comedy. It depends on the translation but at one point Dumas perhaps shows he knows the unflattering effect his characters are producing, when he describes one of the many entertainments thus:
“…when the simple, untutored pantomime of that period, made cruder still by the very indifferent acting of the august actors, had reached its culminating point of triumph, the room almost collapsed under the applause.”
Like Flaubert after him then, Dumas is aiming in this instance not for the romantic but the grotesque. But he goes on too long for that to be his only intent.
The shallowness of the setting at least throws into relief those one or two characters who have real problems, and does make the intrigues of the musketeers, when they reappear after 400-odd pages with plots to shake or preserve this dainty world, more delicious. I found I liked the mystery better knowing the story of the Man in the Iron Mask somewhat beforehand.
“How fresh the earth smells,” said De Wardes; “it is a piece of coquetry to draw us to her.”
I kept wondering why so many reviews made the same complaints but then gave 4 stars. It’s because the book starts to get good about two-thirds of the way in, and because of how uniquely good Dumas is when he’s good. In addition to the touches of intrigue mentioned above:
The nighttime duel in the glade is excellent. It’s vintage Dumas—darkly dramatic, cinematic, with the image of the empty field, as both men stand in the shadows at the edge, and the horse charging into it, and one pistol shot being used to light up the aim for the next. And the coda, in which the normally effeminate Manicamp says he’s going to blow De Wardes’ brains out, is very cool.
The unusual and cagey relations between the musketeers—who are again at cross-purposes yet love and respect (and fear) one another—are hilarious.
The part where the dying Jesuit interviews his successor is another one of Dumas’ comically absurd scenes where he drops both you and the characters into a strange situation and lets everyone try to figure it out.
I like when Dumas includes scenes that are simply cute, like the dinner with the king and Porthos, both admiring each other’s appetite.
Finally, after actively not caring about Louise and the king for almost the whole book, I even found myself getting swept up a little by the romance. When Louise feels that, if the king really loved her, he would use telepathy, basically, to understand her plight, or when she desperately hopes he will keep his recent vow about never going to bed angry with each other, it’s all very relatable. The obstacles thrown in their path also make you instinctively root for them.
Really, though, this huge detour in the musketeer saga should have been 100 pages.
_________________
Marginalia:
*D’Artagnan exhibits some classic detective work when piecing together the scene of the duel. I wonder if it was inspired by Poe’s Rue Morgue.
December 26, 2025
HONNETEMENT le pire des livres de la série et je pèse mes mots … vraiment désolée mais même les bêtises de d’artagnan et d’aramis ne réparent pas la MOITIÉ du livre passé sur les histoires de coeur de louis 14 et madame et louise de la vallière non serieux… de tous ces gens même de guiche me SOULE … a la limite j’aime bien monsieur prcq il en a rien à faire et il est juste genre coquette. d’artagnan est bad aigri, on se fait chier pendant tout le temps qu’ils sont à fontainebleau, pitié quand on était en angleterre je voulais qu’on y reste prcq a la LIMITE buckingam est ok…. mais non ça dure genre 10 pages, par contre baignade de madame à fontainebleau aller retour en carrosse ah la mettez moi SIX CHAPITRES et scène dramatique sous l’orage avec louise trop chiante…. on voit presque jamais athos, raoul fait juste trop de peine, je m’en fou complètement de montalais et fouquet et belle île et tous les mecs avec leurs noms goofy là…. au moins aramis est un peu mysterieux agent secret jésuite au bout de 600p et je suis un peu curieuse de cette histoire de prisonnier à la bastille eh non serieux faut s’accrocher pour l’amour de d’artagnan qui vient faire des apparitions randoms dans les dialogues du roi d’angleterre et pour porthos qui comprends rien à rien. MÊME mme de chevreuse est horrible la dedans non serieux
December 23, 2020
Okay. If you're reading/have read Louise de la Vallière, you are DEEP down the Musketeers rabbit hole. Nobody picks this one up at random and thinks, "hey, I'll choose this 700+ page book in the middle of a series for some light reading."
At this point, fellow Muskereader, you are committed.
I'd read a few spoiler-free reviews before this, and did some light investigating into the plot beforehand, so I knew that out of all five books, this is the one where our beloved Inseperables are seen the least. They show up here and there, making cameos that have you squealing in delight: "the fellow who just punched those bad guys and took his hat off is d'ARTAGNAN!" or "oh, the sneaky fellow who swept off his cape is ARAMIS!"
The rest of the focus is largely on King Louis XIV, France's legendary Sun King, and his court, at the height of his blazing youth, and at the precipice of his power. The royal romances and secrets become the main ingredients of this story, and the original Musketeers take a back seat to palace intrigues.
So, I was going in with the view that this one would have to be endured with gritted teeth and determination.
I had SO. MUCH. FUN.
Palace intrigues turn out to be far more interesting than palace politics, and I'll take passionate declarations and stormy jealousies over financial discussions any damn day of the week. A friend (hi, Papercuts1!) who is buddy-reading along with me likened the 200+ pages of trysts in the dark to "Shakespeare on weed" and I laughed out loud because it's so true.
The title character, Louise de la Valliere, is actually the least well-developed character. She's very much a girl from her time, and can't be blamed for powerlessness, but she consists mostly of moralistic, heavy-handed speeches to her friends, crying and wringing her hands, and fainting fits. I'm almost tempted to go back and count a) the times she fainted, and b) the times her only dialogue consisted of, "Oh, sire!"
However, she's the title character for a reason: she's the still point at the revolving centre of the court. King Louis falls in love with her, and that has far-reaching repercussions. Raoul (Athos' son) and his best buddy de Guiche (himself in love with Louis' sister-in-law) are the next generation, and unwittingly become drawn into the web of shifting alliances because of her actions. The Comte de Guiche is particularly Musketeerish; he's involved in a pistol duel that had me on the edge of my seat, and he provides the swashbuckling we so badly miss from the other books.
Elsewhere, Aramis, master of secrets and swirling cloaks, is slowly setting the stage to supplant the king with the Man in the Iron Mask, a mysterious prisoner of the Bastille. He's super sneaky, collecting power in all kinds of unsavoury ways, betraying quite a lot of people and lying smoothly through his teeth in order to serve his own needs.
Overall, this book sets the stage for the final chapter, and as much as I thought it would drag, I found life at court, with its rich atmosphere and intrigues, was fascinating. If you want romance, you'll certainly get it: King Louis is deeply in love and he makes you believe it with some fantastic, swoon-worthy dialogue. When the original Musketeers do show up, they provide the novel's most interesting moments: Aramis' scheming is scene-stealing and intense, and d'Artagnan is the hero that everyone is going to need by the time all this is over. Athos is missing for most of the book, but his bromantic moments with d'Art at the beginning are heartwarming as always, and Porthos, the lovable giant, injects some much-needed humour.
I actually think this one captures the Musketeer spirit more than the previous installment: forbidden duels, secrets aplenty, trap doors and moonlit intrigues, passionate declarations of all kinds and d'Artagnan heroically making his way through it all.
At this point, fellow Muskereader, you are committed.
I'd read a few spoiler-free reviews before this, and did some light investigating into the plot beforehand, so I knew that out of all five books, this is the one where our beloved Inseperables are seen the least. They show up here and there, making cameos that have you squealing in delight: "the fellow who just punched those bad guys and took his hat off is d'ARTAGNAN!" or "oh, the sneaky fellow who swept off his cape is ARAMIS!"
The rest of the focus is largely on King Louis XIV, France's legendary Sun King, and his court, at the height of his blazing youth, and at the precipice of his power. The royal romances and secrets become the main ingredients of this story, and the original Musketeers take a back seat to palace intrigues.
So, I was going in with the view that this one would have to be endured with gritted teeth and determination.
I had SO. MUCH. FUN.
Palace intrigues turn out to be far more interesting than palace politics, and I'll take passionate declarations and stormy jealousies over financial discussions any damn day of the week. A friend (hi, Papercuts1!) who is buddy-reading along with me likened the 200+ pages of trysts in the dark to "Shakespeare on weed" and I laughed out loud because it's so true.
The title character, Louise de la Valliere, is actually the least well-developed character. She's very much a girl from her time, and can't be blamed for powerlessness, but she consists mostly of moralistic, heavy-handed speeches to her friends, crying and wringing her hands, and fainting fits. I'm almost tempted to go back and count a) the times she fainted, and b) the times her only dialogue consisted of, "Oh, sire!"
However, she's the title character for a reason: she's the still point at the revolving centre of the court. King Louis falls in love with her, and that has far-reaching repercussions. Raoul (Athos' son) and his best buddy de Guiche (himself in love with Louis' sister-in-law) are the next generation, and unwittingly become drawn into the web of shifting alliances because of her actions. The Comte de Guiche is particularly Musketeerish; he's involved in a pistol duel that had me on the edge of my seat, and he provides the swashbuckling we so badly miss from the other books.
Elsewhere, Aramis, master of secrets and swirling cloaks, is slowly setting the stage to supplant the king with the Man in the Iron Mask, a mysterious prisoner of the Bastille. He's super sneaky, collecting power in all kinds of unsavoury ways, betraying quite a lot of people and lying smoothly through his teeth in order to serve his own needs.
Overall, this book sets the stage for the final chapter, and as much as I thought it would drag, I found life at court, with its rich atmosphere and intrigues, was fascinating. If you want romance, you'll certainly get it: King Louis is deeply in love and he makes you believe it with some fantastic, swoon-worthy dialogue. When the original Musketeers do show up, they provide the novel's most interesting moments: Aramis' scheming is scene-stealing and intense, and d'Artagnan is the hero that everyone is going to need by the time all this is over. Athos is missing for most of the book, but his bromantic moments with d'Art at the beginning are heartwarming as always, and Porthos, the lovable giant, injects some much-needed humour.
I actually think this one captures the Musketeer spirit more than the previous installment: forbidden duels, secrets aplenty, trap doors and moonlit intrigues, passionate declarations of all kinds and d'Artagnan heroically making his way through it all.
December 7, 2011
The Oxford World's Classics Edition, edited, introduced, annotated, etc., by David Coward. The fourth installment of the Three Musketeers saga does not really feature those heroes. Athos is all but unmentioned; Porthos and Aramis play important roles but briefly, and d'Artagnan is seen sporadically. The story, or stories intertwined, center mainly around the loves and intrigues of the court of Louis XIV. For 670 pages (!) Dumas subtly outlines the devious schemes and romances that occur in the Sun King's realm.
At first I was impatient with this (comparing it with the original's swashbuckling adventures), but then grew to admire the delicate skill of his plotting, the complicated way in which the psychologies of Madame, the king, and the courtiers are demonstrated and brought into play. There is less action here than in the others, although two duels are excitingly and dramatically described. There is also the humor and wit that marks the whole series. (There are, too, the odd lapses of Dumas', possibly stemming from the book's original serialization, the most grievous of which is the appearance of a character twice said to be dead.) Perhaps the highest praise I can give this excellent, entertaining and even noble epic is that I shall not miss its final part.
At first I was impatient with this (comparing it with the original's swashbuckling adventures), but then grew to admire the delicate skill of his plotting, the complicated way in which the psychologies of Madame, the king, and the courtiers are demonstrated and brought into play. There is less action here than in the others, although two duels are excitingly and dramatically described. There is also the humor and wit that marks the whole series. (There are, too, the odd lapses of Dumas', possibly stemming from the book's original serialization, the most grievous of which is the appearance of a character twice said to be dead.) Perhaps the highest praise I can give this excellent, entertaining and even noble epic is that I shall not miss its final part.
June 26, 2019
I’m reading the 4 part edition of this last book of the musketeers and it’s evident that this last book has “two” stories: The old generation political stuff and the new generation love affairs. Dumas focused a little bit more on the young characters on the 2nd and 3rd parts which I founded a little bit ... disconcerting at first because I was too attached with the magnificent four from the previous two books.
But after some chapters I couldn’t help to get into these huge love intrigues that started to tangled between the young guys, because Dumas has such a magnificent way to tell stories! The small subtle humor, the dramatic expressions so commonly found on classic books but somehow with a unique tone ...
I enjoyed the personalities of the “new” characters: Raoul (the best one ofc), Madame Henrietta, Louis XIV, DeGuiche, Buckingham (jr ;P) Saint Aignan, Manicamp, Malicorne, Montalais ... ofc not as much as our Musketeers cause I LOVE those, but yeah ...
idk I’m loving the book and can’t wait to know how everything ends
But after some chapters I couldn’t help to get into these huge love intrigues that started to tangled between the young guys, because Dumas has such a magnificent way to tell stories! The small subtle humor, the dramatic expressions so commonly found on classic books but somehow with a unique tone ...
I enjoyed the personalities of the “new” characters: Raoul (the best one ofc), Madame Henrietta, Louis XIV, DeGuiche, Buckingham (jr ;P) Saint Aignan, Manicamp, Malicorne, Montalais ... ofc not as much as our Musketeers cause I LOVE those, but yeah ...
idk I’m loving the book and can’t wait to know how everything ends
August 20, 2013
After finishing this book, I am struck by how much I miss Milady. There was by far too much fainting going on in Louise de la Valliere for me not to recall one of my favorite lines of Milady's: "I faint? I? Do you take me for some weak woman? When I am insulted I do not faint, I avenge myself!" Louise is a poor heroine who never seems to be able to make her mind about anything. Louis is not much better- I suppose for a king it is nothing to send away a woman's fiancé for the purpose of seducing her, but it seemed to me that all Louis's actions are rather reprehensible. It's hard to feel at all interested in a love story when even the love of the two parties condemns them. I confess, I only forced myself to finish Louise de la Valliere for the sake of the preceding books I had loved so well and the concluding part for which I still have high hopes. ...And also for the sake of Montelais and Malicorne; those two are awesome.
December 17, 2019
There's not much action here, unlike the other books in this series. And there isn't all that much of the Musketeers either. Instead it involves a rivalry between two finance ministers for Louis XIV. One arranges to bankrupt the other by forcing him to pay for Louis' amusements. In the meantime, Louis is smitten with Louise, who is a maid to Henrietta, the wife of Louis brother. She's jealous because she and Louis had had an affair, and she still craves his attention. So she does whatever she can to prevent Louis from seeing his life long love of the moment. Others work to enable Louis to see her.
Of course, Louise is engaged to Raoul, but Louis manages that easily enough by sending him off to England so he can have some nice cuddly times with Louise. Dumas does a fantastic job of portraying Louis as an entirely self-absorbed jerk. Other than that, this book simply sets things up for the finish.
Of course, Louise is engaged to Raoul, but Louis manages that easily enough by sending him off to England so he can have some nice cuddly times with Louise. Dumas does a fantastic job of portraying Louis as an entirely self-absorbed jerk. Other than that, this book simply sets things up for the finish.
July 9, 2022
A few years back, I took a trip to Alexandre Dumas' house at La Port-Marly in France. It was a beautiful house, and it inspired me to read his books. Louise de La Vallière was on my list to read ever since. This is a book where the reader can sit back and enjoy the beautiful language the author (or translator) uses to describe this story. It reads like a room with well-appointed furniture. Louis XIV's love is a such great importance that the entire court is involved, in addition to Charles II's court.
D'Artagnon (the fourth Musketeer) comes alive in this second of Dumas' trio of books about the Three Musketeers. And his charm and grace can best be appreciated by those who still yearn for politeness and ceremony.
De Guiche uses his wit and flattery and stands on ceremony with all the royals. He is a charmer too.
D'Artagnon (the fourth Musketeer) comes alive in this second of Dumas' trio of books about the Three Musketeers. And his charm and grace can best be appreciated by those who still yearn for politeness and ceremony.
De Guiche uses his wit and flattery and stands on ceremony with all the royals. He is a charmer too.
June 29, 2016
Wow, this was bad. The theme of the work shifted from the selfish and reasonably petty ambitions of soldiers and courtiers to the awful and soul-destroyingly petty concerns of emotional adolescents trapped in the world of sub-medieval romance. The neverending protestations of eternal love between people whose affairs would end within a few years...so glad it's over and I'm on to Man in the Iron Mask.
January 31, 2023
A good read and nice to see a mention of Jean de La Fontaine who was part of my French childhood. So looking forward to the final book I’ve seen the movie so should be interesting to compare and hope it ends the series on a 5 star
January 31, 2019
Tucked away in the least read, assuredly most obscure corner of the series is some of the most charming and wondrous romance you could ever find. It is no wonder Robert Louis Stevenson read this like ten times. Fun, engaging, enjoyable stuff! 10/10 will amuse and delight.
December 22, 2019
Very good. But still the slow middle bit between The Three Musketeers and the Man in the Iron Mask.
April 4, 2026
This one is probably a 2.5. There were parts that I liked but overall I did not like it, so it evens out to a 2/2.5.
I liked the parts with D'Artagnon. He is an interesting character and fun to follow. Something is always Happening or About to Happen with him.
Unfortunately, he doesn't show up very much in this book. Aramis shows up a bit, but he is kind of dodgey. I never know what to make of him: he professes to be D'Artagnon's friend but they are always so mistrustful of each other, so cagey. Porthos is Porthos, he just tags along without much thought. Athos is basically disappeared the whole book, just hanging out at home to be presumed.
The characters who DO show up largely are extremely annoying for the most part. All of the petty drama of who is in love with whom. If people actually loved their spouses then this book would be probably 1/10 it's length, at least. The title character is especially annoying with her constant swooning. Everything makes this girl faint away dramatically. I want to slap her. Raoul deserves so much better than her.
But there really aren't better characters in all of the court of France apparently. They are all jealous, vain, and frivolous. Empty-headed and careless. Ugh.
So this was a hard slog. The narrator, Simon Vance, does a fantastic job with all the voices. My only complaint is that the Comte de Guiche sounds like an old man but he is supposed to be young. With SO MANY characters it would be hard to have individual voices for them all, and this is a small complaint. He really is a great narrator.
I'm not very excited for the last one but it's the last one! I can do it.
I liked the parts with D'Artagnon. He is an interesting character and fun to follow. Something is always Happening or About to Happen with him.
Unfortunately, he doesn't show up very much in this book. Aramis shows up a bit, but he is kind of dodgey. I never know what to make of him: he professes to be D'Artagnon's friend but they are always so mistrustful of each other, so cagey. Porthos is Porthos, he just tags along without much thought. Athos is basically disappeared the whole book, just hanging out at home to be presumed.
The characters who DO show up largely are extremely annoying for the most part. All of the petty drama of who is in love with whom. If people actually loved their spouses then this book would be probably 1/10 it's length, at least. The title character is especially annoying with her constant swooning. Everything makes this girl faint away dramatically. I want to slap her. Raoul deserves so much better than her.
But there really aren't better characters in all of the court of France apparently. They are all jealous, vain, and frivolous. Empty-headed and careless. Ugh.
So this was a hard slog. The narrator, Simon Vance, does a fantastic job with all the voices. My only complaint is that the Comte de Guiche sounds like an old man but he is supposed to be young. With SO MANY characters it would be hard to have individual voices for them all, and this is a small complaint. He really is a great narrator.
I'm not very excited for the last one but it's the last one! I can do it.
May 25, 2024
Action and derring do are left far behind by this volume which is almost a Carry On, Louis, but the plotting is tighter than in Ten Years Later and there are threads for each of the Four Musketeers even if Porthos' is to comically eat and drink too much in various farcical situations. The betrayal of Athos' son Raoul by fiancee Louise in favour of Louis XIV has an air of sweet tragedy, and Aramis' attempts to inveigle his way into the Bastille set up The Man in the Iron Mask nicely. There is maybe a slight suggestion that chapters are going to keep coming as long as Dumas is paid by the episode, mind...
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