The true love of songs and storybooks is something most never find. For Gabrielle de Montserrat it came like a welcome breeze in her fifteenth year. Her love for Pierre-Andre Coffinhal was true as was his love for her. His status as a commoner kept them apart and sent her away to be married to a man twice her age, the Baron de Peyre. After the death of the Baron Gabrielle is forced to make her way to Paris to raise her young daughter and keep them both alive on the eve of the French Revolution.

After Gabrielle is wrenched away from Pierre-Andre and sold to the Baron she has little left to give her hope. Her brother's insistent meddling in her life seems to be for her own good but there is always something darker lurking behind his intentions. The Baron's death leaves Gabrielle almost penniless and adrift in Paris where she is befriended by an ancient Duchess. As is true of many women at the time Gabrielle is forced to become "kept" by a wealthy man, the Count de Villers, to survive but as the Revolution draws tight around Paris Gabrielle sees her chances begin to narrow. As the People rise up in retribution against the Monarchy, Gabrielle hears that Pierre-Andre Coffinhal has made his name as a member of the tribunal that could be her undoing. In the end, with little left but her daughter Gabrielle will be forced to prostrate herself before her only love and the man she was forced to leave behind, in order to save herself.

For a debut novel and for someone who isn't a native English speaker Delors has done a lovely job. The history and imagery are well-written and flow beautifully with only a few awkward spots where she has attempted to insinuate historical figures. This can happen with any historical novel though. The other issue I had was with the love story itself. I'm sorry to say that I saw it coming from the start. I was hoping that I would be pleasantly surprised and there would be a twist but it was too obvious from the way the story was written. It is a good story; it just isn't terribly original. Kudos for beautiful writing; minus points for little creativity.
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Hardcover: 464 pages
Publisher: Dutton Adult (March 13, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0525950540
ISBN-13: 978-0525950547