Queen Margot

By: Alexandre Dumas

Narrated by: Robert Whitfield

The last years of King Charles IX's reign in France were dominated by religious wars between Catholics and Protestants. Queen Margot begins in 1572 with the marriage of Marguerite de Valois to Henri de Navarre. Marguerite is King Charles' sister and the daughter of Henri II and Catherine de Medici, all firm Catholics. Henri de Navarre is a Protestant who later will become the beloved King Henri IV.
Several important political events have led up to this marriage including the mysterious murder of Henri de Navarre's mother, cleverly plotted by Catherine de Medici. The wedding brings noblemen from all over the world to Paris resulting in the notorious Saint Bartholomew Massacre, where thousands of Protestants are killed.
In this inventive and compelling novel, Dumas brings an extraordinary period of history vividly to life with much excitement and romance. The lively prose and wonderfully constructed plot tell of court intrigues and forbidden love, of beautiful queens, duchesses, and noblemen, suspense, conspiracies, betrayals, assassinations, superstitions, poisonings, and sumptuous feasts.
With well-known historical figures as main characters in a dangerous and breathtaking game for power, Queen Margot tells of conspiracies, clandestine trysts, and daring escapes. There is the infamous Catherine de Medici, deliciously evil, constantly plotting and poisoning; Le Mole, a dashing and irresistable young Protestant who becomes Marguerite's lover; the noble Coconnos who provides a great source of comic relief; and at the center of all this intrigue are the good-hearted Marguerite and Henri who are perfect political allies with complicated and fascinating love lives.(P)1998 by Blackstone Audiobooks

White noise, otherwise good

The recording is low quality, but both the story and the narrator were wonderful. I recommend it.

Not Dumas best

Dumas is one of my favorites. This book is not his best. The story is convoluted.

Don't bother.

This was very disappointing. Frivilous plot, feeble characters, unsatisfying and vague ending. Seems like Dumas, whose work I love, was so bored with it himself he decided to just abruptly end it and move on.

Not Dumas' best

but still a compelling romance full of political intrigue.

An engrossing read...

I selected this book because it was "on sale," thinking it would be low risk if I didn't like it. I loved it! The story is engrossing, the narrator excellent. My only gripe is with the sound quality -- there seems to be a lot of background noise/feedback.