
EL VERDUGO
By Honore De Balzac
EL VERDUGO
A moonlit night drapes the Spanish town of Menda in silver, its quiet streets illuminated by the soft glow of a distant festival. From a terrace overlooking the sea, a young French officer, torn between duty and the charm of his host’s grand estate, watches the revelry below while wrestling with suspicions of rebellion and foreign intrigue. The elegant ballroom at the chateau pulses with music, yet his thoughts linger on the enigmatic daughter of the local marquis, whose lingering glances hint at a deeper, perhaps forbidden, connection.
As the clock strikes midnight, an unexpected flash of light on the horizon catches his eye, and a hushed voice calls his name, pulling him toward the darkness beyond the walls. The officer’s curiosity and sense of prudence clash, setting the stage for a tense encounter that will test his loyalties and the fragile peace between occupying forces and the proud Spanish nobility. The atmosphere crackles with anticipation, promising a tale of love, suspicion, and the thin line between honor and danger.
Language
en
Duration
~23 minutes (22K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by John Bickers, and Dagny, and David Widger
Release date
2005-11-02
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1799–1850
A giant of French fiction, this restless, ambitious storyteller built a whole literary world in La Comédie humaine, capturing the dreams, vanities, and struggles of 19th-century society. His novels still feel lively because they care so much about money, power, love, and the ways people reinvent themselves.
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by Honoré de Balzac

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