Showing results by author "ciesse" in All Categories

This is the first volume of Dumas' Marie Antoinette Romances (also called "The Memoirs of a Physician"). This historical fiction chronicles the strange events surrounding the fall of the French monarchy (starting ~1770) and rise of revolutionaries so terrifying that the period is still called "The Reign of Terrors" (1793-1794). In this volume, a renowned magician, Count Alessandro di Cagliostro (Balsamo), employs various occult tactics, like hypnotism and necromancy, to gain state secrets. Balsamo claims to be plotting against the Bourbons, but one must wonder whether this 3000 year old ...

Pitou lost his mother when he was small. He was raised by a stern aunt who did not really love him. He starts knowing the world by going to service. How can this man, Pitou the Peasant (as the subtitle of the novel suggests) go on to influence the whole state? How can he go on and take a part in the French revolution? Can his motivation, coming from what he did not have, be enough? - Summary by Stav Nisser

El joven marino Edmundo Dantés, es encarcelado injustamente a raíz de unas malsanas envidias y condenado sin remedio a prisión perpetua. Gracias a un peculiar compañero de presidio, a cabo de varios años consigue escapar y encontrar un inmenso tesoro que utilizará para ejecutar una minuciosa e implacable venganza contra aquellos que le traicionaron.Una de las novelas de aventuras más famosas de todos los tiempos, posiblemente el mejor trabajo de Alejandro Dumas, plagiada ciento de veces y un verdadero deleite de lectura. (Introducción por Epachuko)

Amidst the political winds from Napoleon’s downfall, this tale turns our attention to the flight of a former French marshal and King of Naples, Joachim Murat. Murat, unhappy with the deal he made to obtain pardon from the Austrian Emperor, takes a life-ending resolution to retake his crown rather than live in peaceful obscurity. - Summary by jvanstan

After The Three Muskateers and Twenty Years After the adventurous story of Athos, Porthos, Aramis and D'Artagnan continues!The Vicomte of Bragelonne: Ten Years Later (French: Le Vicomte de Bragelonne ou Dix ans plus tard) is the last of the Musketeer novels. It is usually divided into four volumes and this third volume contains chapters 141-208. (Summary by Diana Majlinger)

Le Comte de Monte-Cristo is an adventure novel and one of the author's most popular works. He completed the work in 1844. The story takes place in France, Italy, islands in the Mediterranean and in the Levant during the historical events of 1815-1838 (from just before the Hundred Days to the reign of Louis-Philippe of France). It deals with themes of hope, justice, vengeance, mercy and forgiveness. The book is considered a literary classic today. (Summary by David Clarke, ref. Wikipedia)

Un soir de 24 décembre, Marie et Fritz découvrent, au pied de l'arbre de Noël, un charmant petit bonhomme difforme casseur de noisette.Forcé par de jeunes auditeurs à raconter un conte, Monsieur Dumas nous rapporte ici l'histoire de ce héros improbable, empruntée à Hoffmann.On December's Eve, Marie and Fritz find a charming, though deformed, nut-cracker by the Christmas tree. Forced by a young audience to share a tale, Alexandre Dumas tells the one of this unlikely hero, taking his inspiration from Hoffman. Summary by Ezwa

El joven marino Edmundo Dantés, es encarcelado injustamente a raíz de unas malsanas envidias y condenado sin remedio a prisión perpetua. Gracias a un peculiar compañero de presidio, a cabo de varios años consigue escapar y encontrar un inmenso tesoro que utilizará para ejecutar una minuciosa e implacable venganza contra aquellos que le traicionaron.Una de las novelas de aventuras más famosas de todos los tiempos, posiblemente el mejor trabajo de Alejandro Dumas, plagiada ciento de veces y un verdadero deleite de lectura.Summary by Epachuko

In the late 1600s a man was doubly-imprisoned: his body in an iron cell and his face in an iron mask. Who the “man in the iron mask” was, why he was imprisoned, and how he was treated during imprisonment, remains a mystery that has captivated historians for centuries. Before Dumas penned the final volume of his D’Artagnan Romances, “The Man in the Iron Mask,” he wrote that “everything connected with the masked prisoner arouses the most vivid curiosity.” This essay is a comprehensive summary of theories regarding the masked prisoner’s identity and history from the 1770s to Dumas...

Dumas, with the assistance of several friends, compiled Celebrated Crimes, an eight-volume collection of essays on famous criminals and crimes from European history. Includes The Man in the Iron Mask and Martin Guerre. - Summary by Michele Eaton

This year is the 10th anniversary of our beloved LibriVox and to celebrate, readers have found and recorded 100 items with a connection to the number ten... ... dix... zehn... diez...dez... десять... There are short stories, poems, excerpts from books, bible readings and non-fiction articles.The items are mostly in English, but this year we have eighteen contributions in other languages: French, German, Russian, Spanish and Yiddish.

Dumas, with the assistance of several friends, compiled Celebrated Crimes, an eight-volume collection of essays on famous criminals and crimes from European history. Includes Vaninka and The Marquise De Ganges. - Summary by Michele Eaton

The story of Vaninka, generally regarded as the most fictionalized of Dumas’ Celebrated Crimes series, occurs during the short and eccentric rule of Emperor Paul I of Russia. Vaninka is a general’s daughter whose love for one of her father’s officers leads to tragic death, savage crimes and perversions of justice. - Summary by jvanstan

This story details the crimes and trial surrounding the unexpected pregnancy and subsequent childbirth of the Countess de Saint-Geran in 1640s France. Familial jealousies harbored by her sister-in-law, the Marchioness de Bouille, intertwine with the greedy schemes of a fugitive relative, the Marquis de Saint-Maixent, to produce a scandalous series of events. - Summary by jvanstan

The crimes of the Marquise of Brinvilliers, a French aristocrat during the reign of Louis XIV, included some of the most famous murders, scandals (Affair of the Poisons) and mysteries (the Man in the Iron Mask) in French history. This story recounts her major crimes, torture, conviction and execution. - Summary by jvanstan

"The refined and fashionable audiences who... used to applaud the play of Mademoiselle de Belle Isle… would, in all probability, have objected to an English version of Dumas' clever play, upon the score of its immorality. It is not for me to determine whether the aristocratic audiences at the St James Theater did not understand what they heard, or whether the French language has a special charm for rendering inoffensive what plain English fails to recommend." - Summary by The TranslatorCast list:The Duke de Richelieu: Tomas PeterThe Duke D'Aumont: Craig FranklinThe Chevalier D'Auvray: ...

The sequel to "Chicot the Jester" and final book of the "Valois Romances." This story begins six years after the famed "Duel of the Mignons" between the favorites of the courts of King Henry III and Henry the Duke of Guise (somewhat allied with the King's brother, Francis, Duke of Anjou and Alencon). Dumas concludes his historical fiction on the War of the Three Henries while (1) detailing the formation of the Forty-Five Guardsmen (who were to become the Musketeers), (2) following Chicot the Jester as he stays loyal to the failing regency of King Henry III, and (3) continuing the story of ...

This sequel to Dumas' “Marguerite de Valois” begins four years after the sudden death of King Charles IX and succession of his brother Henry III. The reign of King Henry III was plagued with rebellion and political intrigue due to the War of the Three Henries, where his regency was challenged by King Henry of Navarre (leader of the Huguenots) and Henry I, Duke of Guise (leader of the Catholic League). Dumas weaves two main storylines through this turbulent backdrop: one of the love ignited between le Comte de Bussy and la Dame de Monsoreau, and another of the friendship between King Henry ...

The celebrated crimes committed during the life of Joan (Joanna I) of Naples span from personal misdeeds (adulteries and mariticide) to regional warfare (like the 1345 War in the Piedmont), and ultimately unraveled her father’s legacy (King Robert the Wise). Dumas projects her story through a deathly lens: beginning with the passing of King Robert the Wise, winding through the untimely demise of nobles, soldiers, and children, then ending at Joan’s own assassination. - Summary by jvanstan

Cette compilation comprend une série de poèmes lus, en langue française, pour LibriVox. - Summary by Ezwa