Synopses & Reviews
In MARIE ANTOINETTE, Evelyn Lever draws on a variety of resources, including diaries, letters, and firsthand accounts, to write this sumptuous, addictive delight. From family life in Vienna to the choke of the guillotine, this gripping work combines a fast-paced historical narrative with all the elements of scandalous fiction: Marie's wedding at Versailles to Louis XVI, the French court, boredom, hypocrisy, loneliness, allies, enemies, scandal, intrigue, sex, peasant riots, the fall of the Bastille, mob rule in Paris, imprisonment, and, finally, execution.
From primary source documents Lever fashions an insightful glimpse into the French court at Versailles. The characters of court are expertly drawn. There is the dashing Axel Fersen, Marie's great love; Maria Theresa, the scheming mother trying to place her daughter on the Hapsburg throne; the legendary Madame du Barry, lover to Louis XV; and, of course, Marie herself.
Luxuriously evocative of the Versailles court, historically sharp and witty, and detailing the compelling story of Marie Antoinette's life, Evelyn Lever's biography entrances readers.
Synopsis
A riveting new biography of the legendary French queen
family life in vienna, the wedding at versailles to louis xvi, the french court, boredom, hypocrisy, loneliness, allies, enemies, extravagant entertainment, scandal, intrigue, sex, birth and bereavement, lovers, peasant riots, the fall of the bastille, the attack on versailles, confinement in the tuileries, escape and capture, mob rule in paris, imprisonment, the guillotine. marie antoinette is a biographer's dream, and evelyne lever's account of the life of the inimitable (and last) french queen is a sumptuous, addictive delight. from marie antoinette's birth in vienna in 1755--the fifteenth child of austrian archduchess maria theresa and holy roman emperor francis i--through her turbulent and unhappy marriage to louis xvi, the turmoil of the french revolution, her trial for high treason (during which she was accused of incest), and her final beheading, lever draws on a variety of resources, including diaries, letters, and firsthand accounts, to weave a gripping, fast-paced historical narrative that reads like expertly crafted fiction.
Synopsis
A riveting new biography of the legendary French queen
family life in vienna, the wedding at versailles to louis xvi, the french court, boredom, hypocrisy, loneliness, allies, enemies, extravagant entertainment, scandal, intrigue, sex, birth and bereavement, lovers, peasant riots, the fall of the bastille, the attack on versailles, confinement in the tuileries, escape and capture, mob rule in paris, imprisonment, the guillotine. marie antoinette is a biographer's dream, and evelyne lever's account of the life of the inimitable (and last) french queen is a sumptuous, addictive delight. from marie antoinette's birth in vienna in 1755--the fifteenth child of austrian archduchess maria theresa and holy roman emperor francis i--through her turbulent and unhappy marriage to louis xvi, the turmoil of the french revolution, her trial for high treason (during which she was accused of incest), and her final beheading, lever draws on a variety of resources, including diaries, letters, and firsthand accounts, to weave a gripping, fast-paced historical narrative that reads like expertly crafted fiction.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [331]-344) and index.
About the Author
Evelyne Lever is a leading French historian.
Marie Antoinette is her first book to be published in the United States. She lives in Paris with her husband, Maurice Lever, the author of
Sade.