La Vendée

I bought this book many years ago, started it and enjoyed it, then, yes, put it down until last year. And I'm glad I started at the beginning because there was no way I could have remembered the intricacies of the action and characters!

Written by a contemporary of Charles Dickens, this book

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encompasses the time period a few years after the French Revolution and events that transpired in the "Vendee" region of Poitou and Brittany. They were monarchists who rallied against the Republicans and won several battles for their King. While they ultimately did not succeed in their aims to restore the Monarchy, this region retains a streak of independence.

And unlike his contemporary, Trollope chooses many different types of women characters, with different stories and mannerisms. They are not shrinking or teary-eyed or weeping over their menfolk. Rather, they are mothers and fierce lovers and independently choosing who will be their suitor. And the men characters are also other than "tropes" who fit neatly into a simplified storyline. The story is the richer for it.

A note to readers of this edition: don't get too bogged down in the Introduction of this edition. While it is helpful, and you can reference it later, it's far too flowery of language and accented with commas and references to Trollope's life and works to be at all helpful to a casual reader.

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