I almost exclusively read historical
fiction novels set in a variety of countries and time periods, however I have
never read a story based on the life of Napoleon or his first wife Josephine,
until this novel. Honestly, I didn’t know a lot about Josephine before this
novel, and I have to say that I honestly wasn’t too interested in reading about
Napoleon . . . but this novel has changed my mind completely. I have yet again
fallen in love with another character of Erickson’s. I love her portrayal of
Josephine as a saucy, promiscuous, pain in the butt character that I couldn’t sympathize
with but still, I found myself intrigued with her.
The story begins with 15-year old
Josephine (who was then known as Rose or Yeyette) on the island of Martinique
where she falls in love for the first time with the handsome naval officer
Scipion de Roure and soon after we are introduced to a stranger who captivates
Josephine’s heart. Yeyette is then forced to leave her beloved Martinique and
go to France where she would be married to her cousin Alexandre Beauharnais,
with whom she would have two children, Eugene and Hortense. Unhappy in their
union, Alexandre and Yeyette separate and eventually divorce. The French revolution
is in full swing and both Alexandre and Yeyette are taken prisoners and wait to
be executed. While in prison Yeyette spends her days with many men in hopes of becoming
pregnant to avoid being executed, including her ex-husband. Alexandre is
eventually be headed by Madame la Guillotine while Yeyette escapes with her
life. After her time in prison, Yeyette continues her promiscuous lifestyle,
excited to still be alive and living her life the way she wants. During this
time she meets a young general, general Bonaparte who falls hopelessly in love
with her. Even though her heart belongs to another man, the stranger from
Martinique, she reluctantly agrees to marry him, which leads to her being
crowned Empress of France. Their marriage is an unhappy one, neither party
remain faithful and eventually ends in divorce.
☆☆☆☆
There are a lot of embellishments in
this story with a lot of emphasis on the “fiction” in historical fiction;
however it had all of the standard elements of a suspenseful, passionate and exciting
novel. Arranged marriages, mistresses and lovers, politics, intrigue, war ...
all elements of a great historical novel. There were some issues with Josephine
however; at times I found her to be extremely annoying and whiny, especially
after she found out that Napoleon had taken a mistress when she had had a lover
for years. I also don’t understand why she would care so much considering that
she never really loved him. I also found her encounter with the “stranger” on Martinique
very hard to believe. There were definitely some parts of the novel that I
questioned why they were included and what their point really was. I have to
say that the historical aspects were very well researched and very well written.
I found this book in the bargain bin at
my local bookstore for 2$. I contemplated it for a while and finally decided
that it might be an interesting read and for 2$ I really couldn’t go wrong. I
am so happy that it turned out to be a worthwhile read that has opened me up to
a new time period and a new set of characters.
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