The Lady of Monsoreau - Book 1: A New Translation (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798261811251)

France, 1578. A kingdom divided. A king besieged. A love that will ignite a war.

In the shadow of the French Wars of Religion, the gallant swordsman Bussy d'Amboise survives a deadly ambush orchestrated by King Henri III's jealous favorites. Wounded and desperate, he finds refuge with a mysterious beauty-Diane de Méridor, the Lady of Monsoreau. Their instant attraction kindles a passion that will defy courts and crowns.

But Diane harbors a terrible secret: she has been forced into marriage with the sinister Count of Monsoreau, the king's Grand Huntsman, whose consuming jealousy knows no bounds. As Bussy fights to free his beloved, he becomes entangled in the murderous intrigues surrounding Henri III's court, where the king's effete favorites clash with his brother's warriors, and the Catholic League plots to seize the throne.

From glittering royal balls to moonlit duels, from the halls of the Louvre to hidden château chambers, Alexandre Dumas weaves a tale of star-crossed love and political betrayal. With the incomparable Chicot the Jester navigating the treacherous currents of power, "The Lady of Monsoreau" delivers the master storyteller at his finest-where honor, passion, and the blade meet in one unforgettable epic.

The second novel in Dumas's legendary Valois Trilogy, following "Queen Margot" and preceding "The Forty-Five."