Public-domain ebook
by Dumas, Alexandre; Maquet, Auguste
Language: en7,058 downloads on Project Gutenberg
Subjects
In: Historical Novels·Novels·French Literature
Public-domain ebook sourced from Project Gutenberg #27385.
The work is a sprawling historical adventure set against the intrigue of early‑ eighteenth‑century France, weaving together the political machinations of the Regency, the Cellamare conspiracy, and the personal ambitions of figures such as the Chevalier Raoul d’Harmental. The opening places a young, aristocratic rider on the Pont Neuf in March 1718, where he encounters a grizzled, half‑military gentleman who instantly becomes his partner in a secret meeting. Their dialogue, full of period‑specific references to the regent, to duels and to the bustling streets of Paris, launches a chain of encounters that will draw the reader into a network of conspirators, duels, and clandestine rendezvous.
The prose bears the hallmarks of Dumas’s collaborative storytelling with Auguste Maquet: brisk, dialogue‑driven scenes punctuated by vivid descriptions of Parisian locales, flamboyant characters, and swift, sword‑clashing action. The language reflects the early‑19th‑century French romance tradition, with occasional archaic turns and a theatrical flair that mirrors the era’s penchant for melodrama. Readers who relish richly plotted historical sagas, enjoy intricate political plots, and appreciate the swash‑buckling energy of Dumas’s early novels will find this volume a compelling entry into the world of conspiracies and duels.
The opening · free to read
Produced by Steven desJardins and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
[Transcriber's Note: This text is taken from a nine-volume edition of the works of Alexandre Dumas, published in 1893 by Peter Fenelon Collier. The Conspirators was published in volume 6, along with The Forty-Five Guardsmen and The Regent's Daughter, both of which are also available from Project Gutenberg. The translator of these texts is unknown.
The use of accents in the original text was erratic, and some names appear with more than one spelling. Except where one version was clearly predominant, all spellings are left as they appear in the original text.]
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