This is an historical novel and some of the characters were real: Napoleon, of course, and his police chief Fouche; Talleyrand makes a brief appearance. When Balzac sprinkles his text with these, he writes as if the primary story was also real.
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Honoré de Balzac - An Historical Mystery (The Gondreville Mystery)
An Historical Mystery (The Gondreville Mystery)
Honoré de Balzac
Description
This is an historical novel and some of the characters were real: Napoleon, of course, and his police chief Fouche; Talleyrand makes a brief appearance. When Balzac sprinkles his text with these, he writes as if the primary story was also real.