Tanzanite's Shelf and Stuff

For this week's mosaic, I decided to do one of the cover of the book I finished reading a few days ago - Mistress of the Revolution by Catherine Delors. A review of the book follows. If you click on the mosaic image it will bring up a larger image and you can see the detail of the mosaic. The cover of Mistress of the Revolution plays prominently in the lettering for the title.







Set in the years leading up to the French Revolution and its aftermath, Mistress of the Revolution tells the story of one young French noblewoman and her struggle to survive in a world that is about to change forever. Gabrielle de Montserrat is the youngest child of a noble, but somewhat impoverished (at least by aristocratic standards) family. Her mother is an unfeeling shrew and her brother a lecherous pig. But one day on a riverbank, she meets a young man who promises to take her away from it all. However, since Pierre-Andre is a “commoner” (albeit a doctor), her family refuses to allow them to marry and instead marry young Gabrielle to a brutal, older man.

His death a few years later leaves Gabrielle and her daughter penniless and with few options. A family friend manages to get a place for her with an elderly duchess in Paris and so Gabrielle enters the glittering and perilous court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette where things – and people- are not always what they seem. Being young and beautiful, Gabrielle quickly attracts the attention of some of the courts leading men and due to her financial situation, is ultimately forced to agree to become the mistress of Count de Villers. He seems to love Gabrielle and her future appears secure. But as the wave of revolution sweeps over France, Gabrielle finds herself caught in the middle and a chance meeting with her first love – Pierre-Andre- provides her with an escape from the fate that befell so many of the aristocracy.

Mistress of the Revolution is not about the French Royal family, although the King and Queen make a few “cameo” appearances. The majority of the story is about Gabrielle and her life which likely was the life of any French noblewoman in her position. It is full of period details that make the story come alive and I found it difficult to put down. Until the actual revolution. Something happened to the momentum of the story at that point as the focus shifted to the political goings on and then it began to read more like a history book and Gabrielle’s story (and her reunion with Pierre-Andre) gets somewhat lost in the shuffle. I know virtually nothing about the French Revolution or the reasons behind it and I don’t feel that I have a better sense or understanding of it after reading this book.

Gabrielle tells her story as a memoir and as I have often said, I think the later part of the story suffers as a result of the first person narrative. In order to convey the events of the revolution, Gabrielle is inserted into different situations in order to give her first hand account. At other times, she and either de Villers or Pierre-Andre have a conversation which regurgitates the events that took place. Perhaps this is why I found the last quarter of the book not as enjoyable as the rest.

I really liked Gabrielle’s character – smart and spunky but also practical enough to realize the limited choices often open to her. The choices are not always easy ones and the results not the most desirable, but Gabrielle realizes they are what they are and she makes the best of the situations for herself and her daughter.

Words to live by: "It is said that courage is not the absence of fear, but the ability not to show it." Gabrielle in the early days of the revolution.

"There is no such thing as love, there are only proofs of love." Gabrielle as she considers her renewed relationship with Pierre-Andre.

Rating: Very Good