The French Revolution has always fascinated me, so I have enjoyed finding books about fictional and real-life characters who lived through the tumultuous Reign of Terror that occurred during this period. I didn’t realize how many of these books are TBR’s (“to-be-read”), so I had better get cracking!
Marie-Therese, Child of Terror: The Fate of Marie Antoinette’s Daughter by Susan Nagel, Rosalyn Landor, et al.
I have always wondered what happened to the children of the man and woman who were so hated by their country for their extravagance that they were beheaded by their own subjects. Did they make it out alive? How? Were they forced to renounce their heritage like in The Scarlet Pimpernel? I’m glad to read an account like this where I have the chance to find out!
Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution by Michelle Moran
I finally found this book! I had been wanting to read more about some of the more obscure characters of the French Revolution and this novel details the life of the woman who was forced to make wax figures of the aristocrats who lost their heads to Madame La Guillotine.
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy
A beautiful actress seeks to thwart the plans of her former lover in his attempt to capture a mysterious hero known as The Scarlet Pimpernel, who frees countless victims of the guillotine right under the nose of the new Republic of France. This one I am proud to own because it is only the best piece of classic literature I have read. Between the characters, the setting, the hero, and the mystery, this is one novel that will remain timeless. I think this is the book that initially got me interested in this time-period when I was younger.
The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner
A young woman seeks to escape marriage to a ruthless count with the help of a young gypsy boy with supernatural powers amidst the backdrop of the French Revolution.
The Silver Blade by Sally Gardner
The sequel to The Red Necklace, this book continues the story of the star-crossed lovers who seek to thwart the ambitions of an evil count and help others escape the violent death of the French guillotine.
A Revolution of Hearts by Ronda Gibb Hinrichsen
This one I’m excited to read because it is a type of spin-off of The Scarlet Pimpernel where it is its own story but contains some of the characters from Orczy’s classic.
Hopefully I will be able to do some reviews for these soon once I’m done with a few of my Tudor-Era reads. If any of you have read any of these or recommend other French Revolutionary books, please let me know! Happy Reading!
Ashley Weaver 