Angelique In Revolt

This book is by far the "darkest" one in the series, but that is not to say that it is less fascinating. After her incredible escape from the slavery and the Sultan's harem, she returns to her homeland, only to find out that to be pardoned by Luis the XIV, she would have to give up all that she still held dear, including her integrity. In turning her back to Luis, and the Court she gave up what most would not; wealth and power. Having had left the king and the court, she is again thrown into a maze of suffering, violence and poverty. Her life is almost unbearable, but not over. Here again, like a spell, the Golons have weaved an incredibly deep and touching story, full of passion, and misery, and hope. Vive la Angelique!

To say this book is all about rape, pillage murder and derring-do would be putting it down unmercifully. The fact that there is such a mixture of these components makes it a fascinating if disturbing read. As with the rest of the series, I am re-reading this book with as much anticipation as the first time round - I expect it's my age - but I was convinced I knew the books inside out and on re-reading find that I have forgotten many of the subleties the authors weave so skillfully. As usual this chapter of the series has left me spent emotionally - the book spans between 3-4 years, and even reading it as fast as I did I could feel that time-span. No, not because time was dragging but because if all those events had taken place in the week it took me to read the book, then firstly the reader would sneer and say it's not physically possible and secondly it would not have made the dramatic impact intended. Another facet of the authors magic is the moving around of the central character in as many diverse situations as is possible, raising to unimaginable heights and frightening lows with the knowledge that she is as sure-footed as the cat which proverbially lands on its feet. The first book of the series spanned Angeliques formative yesrs, in Road to Versailles there was a much shorted time-span of 1-2 years, in King the action lasts for several years, in Sultan barely a year and in this book we are looking at 3-4 years. Funny, each book is about the same length in pages! This book also shows an entirely different facet to Angeliques character - her utter and absolute vulnerability. Up to yet, she has been invincible, despite everything or perhaps in spite of everything that she had previously undergone. Here she experiences the worst degradation a woman can undergo and loses her greatest remaining treasure, her son and heir to the Plessis estate, in the worst possible circumstances. In his place she is delivered of a bastard daughter who reminds her of everything that is worst in life - does she reject her? Yes, of course she does, it's a gut reaction - it's human nature, but less than a week later, our heroine rescues this child and despite all the contradictions going on around her and all the reasons for not wanting to bond with this reminder of her shame, Angelique takes to her child with abandon and allows her to become a part of herself in a way she had never been able to achieve with her sons. From Poitou rebel to Puritan servant Agelique dons the mask of anonimity until a series of chance mishaps bring her face to face with Desgrez - the man from the past. I do admire how the authors manage to bring back previous characters as if they had just left the room to run an errand. At the start of this book we are re-acquainted for a short while with a playmate of Angeliques - Valentine, now a miller, at the end we come across not only Desgrez but also the mystery pirate - Rescator. And so to the

This is only one of the "Angelique" books in the series consisting or 9 or 10 books. It is an excellent series for women or teenage girls who like a good book without all of the trashy "quick reading" books and series out there, as well as we are now discovering, many men enjoy the series as well. Just a good old fashioned read. I have a couple of copies of each of the books, the last one I have is "Angelique and the Ghosts", there may have been one or more written after that title. I have the original paperbacks I bought in 1973, as a teenager myself, and find myself re-reading this series once every other year or so.

This is really more of a review of all 9 books in the series. I have full possession of all 9 of the books written by the husband/wife team of Serge and Anne Golan. I re-read all 9 of the books every summer. Even though they are out of print, they are still classics, especially to those of us who grew up in the 60's and 70's and loved romance and history. We thought we were reading really "nasty" books back then but these have gone the way of "Lady Chatterley's Lover". What was suggested back then is spelled out in living color on the Internet now. Oh well, that's what happened to romance. If you can find these books, they are a treasure.Phyllis in Louisiana [email protected]

Following her escape from captivity in Sultan Mulai Ismael's harem (see "Angelique in Barbary," also known as "Angelique and the Sultan"), Angelique returns to France. Once again faced with becoming the mistress of King Louis XIV, Angelique leads a doomed rebellion against the royal forces occupying her home province. Forced to flee with a price on her, she goes into hiding with the Heugenots in La Rochelle. Eventually located and hunted by the police she decides that her only recourse is to flee France. This decision brings her once again face-to-face with a ghost from her past, the pirate Rescator. Again I hesitate to add detail to this review, because the fun for the reader is in the reading of this fine story. This book has been out of print for decades and would be an outstanding addition to anyone's collection.