Louise de La Vallière

By: Alexandre Dumas

Narrated by: Simon Vance

As part of the d'Artagnan Romances following The Three Musketeers and Twenty Years After, and devoted in large part to romantic events at the court of France's King Louis XIV, Louise de La Valliere is the second part of Alexandre Dumas's 268 chapter novel The Vicomte de Bragelonne: Ten Years Later, which first appeared in serial form between 1847 and 1850. Filled with behind-the-scenes intrigue, the novel brings the aging Musketeers and d'Artagnan out of retirement to face an impending crisis within the royal court of France.Public Domain (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"One of the very best of the series, mixing amorous and political intrigue with an élan peculiar to Dumas...this quasi-historical series remains remarkably readable" ( The Irish Times, Dublin)

better love triangles than Shakespeare

guess its not surprising that a worldly black Frenchman could write better love triangles than Shakespeare

absolutely loved it

This book is a very good continuation of the story. There is little of the musketeers but it sets up the finale very well.

Amazing that it’s still so interesting.

I’m still so surprised by these books. Written in the19th century. Telling a story of the 17th century it’s still more exciting than a lot of new fiction.

Subpar for Dumas, redeemed by Simon Vance.

As others have said, the velvet and lace romantic intrigues are subpar for Dumas, but the novel as a whole is redeemed by its enlargement and shading of the series' characters, insightful flourishes, and above all by the sublime performance of Simon Vance, who intones new meaning into otherwise hackneyed soap opera.

Sets the background for The Man in the Iron Mask

Where does Louise de La Vallière rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This book was a necessary read for me to have a stronger background of The Man in the Iron Mask. Though I love Dumas' works and I enjoy the character of Raoul, Athos' son, this is my least favorite of the D'artagnan series, and I believe my past read of the actual book is what helped me comprehend the complex (and somewhat dry) story line and odd story twists. If you are a fan of the Musketeers and Dumas, you must "read" this book to stay knowledgeable of the more obscure background details of each Musketeer and Raoul and his friends.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Louise de La Vallière?

My favorite scene is when D'artagnan defends Raoul to Raoul's friends who have been teasing Raoul about not knowing who his mother is and thus implying he is a "castaway" child of lower birth rank. D'artagnan defends his best friend's son (Athos' son) as if Raoul was his own. I get chills when see how devoted all these men are to each other.

Have you listened to any of Simon Vance’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes. Simon Vance is an amazing reader. He pays attention to details in the dialogue and puts the story first - not his voice acting skills.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The scene previously mentioned of D'atagnan defending Raoul was my extreme reaction because this book has a lot - and I mean a lot of - background details and story twists (location changes, Musketeer-switch-ups, and loyalty changes) - that it reads sometimes more like a documentary of each Musketeers' plan of action kept secret from the other, while throwing in Raoul's friendships, Guard service, and love triangle in gaps of the big story that make for a dizzying read.

Any additional comments?

You have to read it if you are a true Musketeer fan. I liked it strongly, though I didn't love it as I do the other 4 books.