Loss of Innocence: A Novel of the French Revolution [Hardcover]

Anne Newton Walther (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 7, 2007

In spite of her noble heritage, French countess Eugenie Devereau avidly embraces the stirrings of social change and revolution in France. Life at her tranquil cateau will never be the same. Fast-paced events, the monarchy under seige, and her on-going romance with American shipper Bridger Goodrich shatter the peace of her Bordeaux countryside. She must take action. Persuaded that the royal family is in imminent danger, Eugenie joins a historically documented coalition of Americansand Frenchmen bent on saving Marie Antoinette and the French monarchy. Will she carry out the plan in time? In her exciting new novel, Walther explores a little-known even of history, while she tells a vivid story of courage, danger, and love.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Anne Newton Walther has a background in history and psychology. She is the author of 'Divorce Hangover', 'Not Damaged Goods' and 'A Time for Treason'. She has appeared on many national and local radio and television talk shows, including Oprah Winfrey, Sonya Live, and The Jenny Jones Show. She and her husband have raised five children and live in San Francisco.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 363 pages
• Publisher: Tapestries (June 7, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0967670349
• ISBN-13: 978-0967670348
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #780,253 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reviewed by Amy Lignor, July 18, 2007

By 

Front Street Reviews www.frontstreetreviews.com - See all my reviews

This review is from: Loss of Innocence: A Novel of the French Revolution (Hardcover)

In spite of her noble heritage, French countess Eugènie Devereux embraces the social changes and revolution in France. She maintains a network of agents to keep her informed of the happenings in Paris and Versailles. When she receives a cryptic invitation from Marie Antoinette, Eugènie suspects that the royal family is in danger. Anarchy is the order of the day as Eugènie risks her life to take on a secret mission for the royal family. Joining to help her is Bridger Goodrich - an American shipper who won her heart during the American Revolution.

Yes, there have been many books and movies regarding the French Revolution and Marie Antoinette - I grant you that. However, I have never before seen a wonderful plotline such as this one. Imbedded and interwoven in the historical facts, is a romance that is tender and loving; a dangerous suspenseful plan that makes the reader turn the page to see how the story will end; and a courageous heroine that captures the heart as she puts her reputation on the line to aide in a conspiracy theory of monumental proportions. The author's first book was about the American Revolution where she first introduced these characters. I am definitely going to go pick that one up because this one was truly enjoyable. Not to mention, I want to learn more about this wonderful, Bridger, character.

The writing is quick and sharp, the suspense builds with each page, and the historical elements are true and vividly colorful. After all, this was a time of absurdly wealthy people who spent money like it was going out of style. Unfortunately for them, it was. Marie Antoinette remains a character that people have very definitive views about. They either love her, and think of her as a young girl put into a horrible position or they despise her, believing her to be a selfish, arrogant woman who single-handedly destroyed France. As we Americans know, nothing topples - country, dynasty...buildings - single-handedly; when something fails miserably it is because there are "too many cooks in the kitchen" who were ultimately responsible for burning the stew. There is a line in this book regarding the fact that intent and outcome are two very different things in the political world. Certainly a truer statement has never been spoken.

I love Eugènie Devereux. She is engaging and insightful. Although she has her own opinions of the struggle that the French people are going through - there is a loyalty about her that I truly admire. She has the adventurous spirit and eternal flame inside her soul that mimics that of her beloved wild horses. Her network of informants is also a treat for the brain. Jeremy, the boy she took from the Island of Bermuda and secured his freedom in the first book, is a wonderful character who loves his mistress, but also has strong opinions that he will voice without worry of being hung in the town square.

The romance, as well, was written to perfection. Eugènie and the American shipper, Mr. Goodrich had married other people, trying to hide their passion for one another. The dialogue between these two is beyond romantic and will remind the reader of Mr. Darcy when he said that he loved Elizabeth, "most ardently." For any woman who has read THAT great book, you will know exactly what I mean. Read this. It's incredible.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enthusiastically recommended for historical fiction aficionados., August 6, 2007

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Loss of Innocence: A Novel of the French Revolution (Hardcover)

Lecturer, consultant, and passionate student of history Anne Newton Walther presents Loss of Innocence: A Novel of the French Revolution, the de facto sequel to her debut novel "A Time of Treason". The heroine of "A Time of Treason", Eugenie Devereaux, returns in Loss of Innocence, which offers a vigorously involved view of the French Revolution colored by an unusually sympathetic portrayal of Marie Antoinette. Based upon an obscure historical event - the ambitious yet ultimately thwarted plan to rescue Marie Antoinette from her prison in France and deliver her across the Atlantic to the relative safe haven of a Pennsylvania town called "Azilum" - Loss of Innocence a moving, immersively detailed saga from cover to cover. Enthusiastically recommended for historical fiction aficionados.

4.0 out of 5 stars This Loss of Innocence...is your gain, October 9, 2007

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Loss of Innocence: A Novel of the French Revolution (Hardcover)

In this historical fiction, Anne Newton Walther's Loss of Innocence represents a new adaptation of her well-received book, A Time of Treason. However, instead of being set in Revolutionary America, we're transported to Revolutionary France and the chatelaine Eugènie Devereaux's extensive land holdings in Bordeaux, the wine country of France, specifically the Château de Beamount. Besides Devereaux and her lover Captain Bridger Goodrich, several major characters are carried forward from the first book to this one and expanded on, including a feisty horse, The Roan.

Devereaux walks the fine line of supporting France and the citizens she loves and her desire to help Marie Antoinette avoid becoming a victim of the revolutionary tide. Even if you know nothing of the French Revolution, you know what happens to Antoinette in the end. This book brings to light lesser-known tidbits of history in an imaginative blend of fact and vivid fictional characters. In addition Walther adds French phrases throughout the book to remind us constantly that we are in France and this adds a piquant quality to her writing.

Azilum is a non-fictional place that a group of Americans, hand-in-hand with some French nobility, created to rescue Antoinette from being imprisoned in France and bring her to the town expressly built for her and her family on the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania. Plans were already started to build Azilum, and several attempts were made to get Antoinette to escape to America, but she refused to leave either her husband or children each time she was rescued. This book gives us some fascinating things to think about:

* The tension between Devereaux's love of France, its people and saving Marie Antoinette.

* Numerous highlights of the political reality of good intentions that result in disaster.

* What love means between two people: a married sea-faring captain and Devereaux.

This book is a fantastic addition to the existing French Revolutionary literature.

Armchair Interviews says: Imagery, adventure, death, excitement and passion all wrapped up in one book.