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Start giftingThe Shadow Queen
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Learn more1660, Paris.Claudette’s life is like an ever-revolving stage set. From an impoverished childhood wandering the French countryside with her family’s acting troupe, Claudette finally witnesses her mother’s astonishing rise to stardom in Parisian theaters. Working with playwrights Corneille, Molière and Racine, Claudette’s life is culturally rich, but like all in the theatrical world at the time, she is socially scorned.
A series of chance encounters gradually pull Claudette into the alluring orbit of Athénaïs de Montespan, mistress to Louis XIV and reigning “Shadow Queen.” Needing someone to safeguard her secrets, Athénaïs offers to hire Claudette as her personal attendant.
Enticed by the promise of riches and respectability, Claudette leaves the world of the theater only to find that court is very much like a stage, with outward shows of loyalty masking more devious intentions. This parallel is not lost on Athénaïs, who fears political enemies are plotting her ruin as young courtesans angle to take the coveted spot in the king’s bed.
Indeed, Claudette’s “reputable” new position is marked by spying, illicit trysts, and titanic power struggles. As Athénaïs becomes ever more desperate to hold onto the King’s favor, innocent love charms move into the realm of deadly black magic, and Claudette is forced to consider a move that will put her own life—and the family she loves so dearly—at risk. Set against the gilded opulence of a newly constructed Versailles and the War of Theaters, The Shadow Queen is a seductive, gripping novel about the lure of wealth, the illusion of power, and the increasingly uneasy relationship between two strong-willed women whose actions could shape the future of France.
Sandra Gulland is the author of the Josephine B. trilogy, which has sold over a million copies worldwide and is being developed into a television miniseries. Prior to writing full time she was a book editor in Toronto.
Meredith Mitchell is an actress who has performed in such films as Mona Lisa Smile and The Reunion, on stage with Shakespeare & Company and the New Repertory Theatre, and on television on Good Morning America. She received her BA in psychology from Emory University and her MFA in acting from Brandeis University.
Reviews
“A must-read for anyone passionate about the theater and hungry for more of Sandra Gulland’s masterful depictions of life at the court of the Sun King.”
“The Shadow Queen is an epic feast for the senses with a cast of characters that includes Moliere, Racine, and the Sun King himself.”
“A captivating glimpse into the theater, court life, and black arts of seventeenth-century Paris.”
“Gulland uses her meticulous research with consummate skill, rendering vivid the luxury and squalor of Louis XIV’s France and breathing life into fully formed characters.”
“This book is lyrical, fascinating, and seeped in history, drama, and emotion.”
“Has all the ingredients readers love, blending passion, adventure, pageantry, and danger into a heady brew as intoxicating as it is unforgettable.”
“A quick-paced, captivating tale of seventeenth-century France—from the dramas and destitutions of life in the theater, to the intrigues and ruthlessness of the royal court—and of the wrenching conflict between familial bonds and the sacrifices a young woman must make to survive and thrive.”
“The characters are magnetic and the pace will dazzle you.”
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