The Maquisarde [Hardcover]

Louise Marley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 3, 2002

In the final few years of the 21st century, life in Paris is quiet for Ebriel Serique and her family. They live protected by the glass walls of their skyscraper apartment, safe from the poverty-stricken countries just over the Line of Partition. Until one day, her husband and daughter go sailing, and are murdered by terrorists who claim their yacht had crossed the Line.

Driven by grief and justice, Ebriel ventures beyond the confines of her charmed life to confront the truth about the way the world is run. And while she never would have suspected it, Ebriel discovers that she has the courage for anything-even violence.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The author of The Glass Harmonica offers a literate, musically informed story of personal courage and fortitude in the face of evil that will appeal to all who root for the underdog. In the late 21st century, the world of Parisian flutist Ebriel Serique turns upside-down when terrorists kill her husband and daughter after their yacht supposedly crosses the Line of Partition, which separates the industrialized haves from the third-world have-nots. Convinced that her loved ones would never have strayed across the Line, Ebriel stages a dramatic protest when she's unable to gain satisfaction from the despotic government. The ruler, George Glass, has Ebriel restrained in a mental institution, where she's rescued by members of the Chain, a rebel group that saw her protest. Although the Chain wants her to teach music to the third world children they save, Ebriel can't bring herself to do it-the music inside her died when her family did. Instead, the Chain teaches Ebriel to fight as a maquisarde, and Ebriel swears revenge against Glass. Ebriel slowly finds herself, and her music, as she learns more about her own nature and the realities behind Glass's propaganda. Point-of-view shifts between Ebriel and two other characters diffuse the novel's dramatic impact, and the plot wanders, but Marley's writing is lyrical and persuasive.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

When Parisian flautist Ebriel Serique loses her husband and daughter in a terrorist attack, she seeks justice from InCo, the global agency that rules the civilized world, only to find her protest rewarded by imprisonment in a mental institution as part of a government cover-up. After a group of resistance fighters rescues Ebriel and introduces her to a movement known as the Chain, she discovers her true goal in life-the liberation of her world from a tyranny of politics and technology. The author of The Glass Harmonica weaves a complex tale of one woman's struggle against a corrupt regime. Set in the near future, this fast-paced, thought-provoking novel belongs in most libraries.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Ace Hardcover; First Edition edition (December 3, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 044100976X
• ISBN-13: 978-0441009763
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,053,393 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm a former concert and opera singer, now indulging my taste for the dramatic by writing fantasy, science fiction, and historical fiction with a dash of the fantastic. Under my own name and my pseudonym, Toby Bishop, I've written fifteen books and compiled a short story collection, ABSALOM'S MOTHER AND OTHER STORIES. My newest novel, THE BRAHMS DECEPTION, a story of time travel, has just been published by Kensington, and is the culmination of my years of fascination with Brahms and the beautiful, enigmatic pianist Clara Schumann. I love combining music, history, and fiction!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Description doesn't do it justice, January 2, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Maquisarde (Hardcover)

When I first read the publisher's description of this novel, I was afraid it would be depressing, but it's not. It's a great story about an unforgettable set of characters whose voices kept returning to me after I finished it. And the future world seems so possible . . . as if it's just a heartbeat away. A great read, and a fast one. Highly recomended!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars colder and nastier future than Dickens worse nightmare, December 15, 2002

By 

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

This review is from: The Maquisarde (Hardcover)

When the fossil fuels were used up, the world fell apart. Some countries used nuclear weapons on their neighbors while other places used biological weapons. The stock markets crashed and international trade was severely crippled worse than what happened during the Great Depression of 1929. The American and European polities along with Todakai (Japan and the Koreas) joined together in the International Cooperative Alliance, an isolationist organization that has quarantined all nations that don't belong to their organization.

Commander General George Glass of Security Corps rules the alliance with an iron fist and he is the person that Ebriel Serique blames for the death of her husband and child. She is determined to kill him and joins the international resistance movement to achieve that goal. When the time comes to kill her enemy, she finds she cannot do it but she is determined, with the help of some powerful and invisible allies, to see that his regime is toppled from power.

This is the story of a woman who undergoes a metamorphous from an elitist into a revolutionary, a person who comes to symbolize to the world that there is a change needed in the world order. Louise Marley has an uncanny ability to make the reader feel that the events in THE MAQUISARDE are really unfolding sort of like turning the pages of the Neverending Story. The heroine makes mistakes, learns from them, and gets a second chance at happiness. Readers will admire her grit, determination, and courage, but mostly appreciate Ms. Marley's ability to paint a picture of a world turned much colder and nastier than Dickens worse nightmare.

Harriet Klausner

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timely Nudge, January 1, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Maquisarde (Hardcover)

Once again Louise Marley presents us with a timely subject and nudges us to consider the possible outcome of fanaticism. The Maquisarde begins with an act of terror which is so easy to identify with after 9/11! Ebriel Serique is a fully-realized character who leads us through an emotional journey of loss, grief, rage, and finally a search for justice. Underlying all of Ms. Marley's stories, as in this one, is the reminder of how precious a resource are our children. A good, thought-provoking read!