Monsoreaun kreivitär I: Historiallinen romaani

A grand celebration unfolds in the summer of 1578, when Francois d’Epinay de Saint‑Luc weds Jeanne de Cossé‑Brissac inside the newly completed Montmorencyn palace. The banquet, hosted in the opulent Louvre, is shadowed by King Henry III’s cold stare, his disdain for the union palpable in every stiff movement of his black court dress. Guests sense an undercurrent of unease, as whispered rumors of hidden dangers drift through the gilded halls like a silent tide.

Against this backdrop, Saint‑Luc daringly asks the king to attend a night‑time dance he plans to stage in the same palace, hoping to honor his new wife and perhaps smooth the royal mood. The king’s grudging assent and the conspicuous absence of the Duke of Anjou set the stage for a web of intrigue, secret alliances, and looming conflict. Listeners are drawn into a world of lavish courtly splendor, where every glance may conceal ambition and every melody could foreshadow the next turn of events.