The Courtier's Secret [Paperback]

Donna Russo Morin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2009

France, 1680. Louis XIV, the Sun King, is at the height of his power. The court at Versailles is a paradise for privileged young women. Jeanne Yvette Mas Du Bois is unlike most other courtiers. Her thirst for knowledge often incurs her father's brutal wrath. But her uncle encourages Jeanne's independence, secretly teaching her fencing in the palace's labyrinthine basement. . .

When two of the king's Musketeers are beset by criminals who are mere feet from Jeanne's fencing lesson, she intervenes, saving one of the Musketeers' lives. Hidden behind her mask, Jeanne is mistaken for a man. As "Jean Luc," Jeanne is admitted to an inner circle where she learns of an assassination plot against the Queen. As Jean Luc, she is permitted to bring her intelligence and swordsmanship to bear. And as Jean Luc, she is free to love the man of her choosing. . .even if she can never have him. Now, with the Queen in jeopardy, and her own double life making her privy to the tangled intrigues at court, Jeanne is in a powerful yet increasingly perilous position.

Brimming with lush period detail and vivid, unforgettable characters, The Courtier's Secret takes readers into a fascinating, intriguing world of pageantry, adventure, betrayals, and secrets.

Reading Group Guide Inside

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Kicked out of the convent at seventeen, Jeanne Du Bois, the heroine of Morin's uneven historical, returns to Louis XIV's court only to rebel against her father's plans to marry her off to a fop. With training and a false moustache provided by a sympathetic uncle, Jeanne disguises herself as Jean-Luc, a gifted swordsman who fights alongside musketeers Henri and Antoine. She leads a tricky double life, particularly when, dressed as Jeanne, she wins Henri's heart and helps him uncover a threat to the queen. Morin fills her tale with maidens, mistresses and musketeers mired in intrigue, but her attempts to heighten dramatic intensity prove artificial: Jeanne's father is not only tyrannical, he's abusive; royal mistresses are not only conniving, they're murderous; and Jeanne's visit to a courtesan for advice seems particularly contrived. The novice novelist makes up for such simplistic technique by supplying lots of action, as Jeanne goes through quick costume changes, one minute a voluptuous virgin about to be raped, another a daring do-gooder, rapier in hand. (Feb.)
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Review

"Compelling. . .brings vividly to life the constrained life of the noble Frenchwoman." ----Allie Bates, author of Earthchild

"Exquisitely done. . .fabulous. . .unforgettable characters." ----Marilyn Rondeau

Product Details

• Paperback: 369 pages
• Publisher: Kensington Publishing Corporation; Original edition (February 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758226918
• ISBN-13: 978-0758226914
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #488,252 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Donna Russo Morin is the award winning author of historical fiction. Donna has dabbled as a model and actor, working on Showtime's Brotherhood and Martin Scorsese's The Departed. A graduate of the University of Rhode Island, Donna lives on the south shore of Rhode Island with her two sons, Devon and Dylan, her greatest works in progress.

Visit her website at www.donnarussomorin.com, Friend her at http://www.facebook.com/Donna.Russo.Morin, and follow her at @DonnaRussoMorin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars engaging seventeenth century Musketeer romance, January 30, 2009

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Courtier's Secret (Paperback)

When Jeanne Du Bois turned seventeen, the convent where she lived for a decade kicked her out due to a lack of payments by her odious dad. She goes to the court of the Louis XIV in Versailles, where her family is in attendance as part of the Sun King's retinue. Her abusive father Gaston decides to marry her off to some pathetic noble over the objection of his wife Adelaide whom he considers a womb-loser; however her Uncle Jules encourages her to be all that she can be. He gives her fencing lessons, male garb and a mustache. Ergo Jean-Luc is born.

Jean Luc joins the musketeers as a loyal comrade to Henri and Antoine. Meanwhile Jeanne falls in love with her brother in arms Henri; he reciprocates though remains ignorant that Jeanne is Jean. As Jean-Luc turned to Uncle Jules, Jeanne turns to courtesan Madam de L'Enclos for advice with men. However, as she struggles with both identities, she learns of a plot to assassinate Queen Marie-Therese. The three musketeers vow to save their queen even at risk to their lives.

The spins to this engaging seventeenth century Musketeer romance are the gender bending Jeanne and the fact most of the support cast including the heroine's father are nasty hedonistic sociopaths although there are those who are kind to Jeanne like her uncle and courtesan. The story line is fast-paced from the moment Uncle Jules trains his niece and never slows down as Jeanne falls in love when she was a young man.

Harriet Klausner

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A breath of fresh air, October 19, 2010

By 

L. Stephenson (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Courtier's Secret (Paperback)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book when I read it just after it was released. At that point it seemed every other author was writing something on the Tudors and beating the subject to death. I found this book on the "new fiction" table and the synopsis on the back convinced me to buy it. Finally I found something that not only deviated from the Tudors era, but it also left England and went to France. I enjoyed being able to get a point of view of the French from French characters and the characters themselves were very enjoyable. I thought this book was a good solid debut.

3.0 out of 5 stars Very entertaining, November 7, 2011

By 

Sarah N. Obrien "Lost in Codex" (Anchorage, AK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Courtier's Secret (Paperback)

Jeanne Mas du Bois is a young courtier in the court of King Louis XIV of France. Her entire family lives in the castle at Versailles along with thousands of other courtiers vying for the eye of the king. Jeanne, however, is very different from any ordinary courtier. Her brightest wish is to be a musketeer and join Louis' forces. Her most acute disinterest is climbing the social courtier ladder. Not that Jeanne isn't a lady, she just doesn't find satisfaction in napkin-folding and watching the king's gluttony at dinner. Her uncle secretly teaches her the sport of fencing down in the labyrinthine bowels of the castle. It's during one of these lessons that Jeanne and her uncle advantageously save a pack of musketeers from some ruffians bent on queen-murdering mischief. Because Jeanne is wearing a helmet covering her face, she is mistaken for a man and invited by the musketeers to one of their exclusive dinner parties. Not wishing to pass up on the extraordinary, albeit ludicrously insane, opportunity, she convinces her uncle to help her find man clothes and some hair for a mustache. Enter Jean-Luc. To put a cog in her cross-dressing wheel, Jeanne falls in love with one of the musketeers that "Jean-Luc" has befriended. Jeanne is able to meet this musketeer, Henri, as herself and he instantly falls in love with her. Unfortunately, Jeanne's abusive father has promised her to a pallid cold-fish of a man named Polignac. As Jean-Luc, she helps the musketeers save the queen from murder. As Jeanne, she fights for her personal freedom from her father and court life and to marry the man she loves.

The Courtier's Secret has a great amount of historical facts thrown about throughout the narrative which gives the story more detail and credibility. The reader can tell when a bit of true history is being related. The random French words peppered in the dialogue gets old and is somewhat distracting. It's as though the author learned a few basic French words and threw them in at each chance she could instead of tastefully accenting the character's conversations. Also, the reader beware of a plethora of long French names.

Overall, The Courtier's Secret is an entertaining story and not to be overlooked as another generic, non-action love story. Be en garde for the ending as it will certainly take you by surprise with the demise of one very influential character.