I'm one of those people that enjoys reading books that were 'controversial' in their own time, and I've been meaning to read this one for a while. The film Cruel Intentions is based on it, and Marie Antoinette is rumored to have had a secret bound copy.
Synopsis: Two members of the French aristocracy, the Vicomte de Valmont and the Marquis de Meurtil engage in a number of plots, among them the seduction/corruption of an innocent teenage girl in love and ruining the career of an aristocrat. Told through letters written between the various characters.
Score: 3.5 out of 5.
This book took me a long time to read - it was one to savour slowly rather than rush through. The letters were often long and full of flowery language (declarations of love etc), but this was part a satire of the French aristocracy before the revolution and part of the appeal of the book.
For me the best part of the book was the characterisation. It's quite a challenge to write letters from at least six different characters, each of whom has different relationships with everyone else, whilst at the same time making them all seem real and well developed. This was done very effectively by the author; all of the characters had a distinct 'voice'. The contrast between the letters written by the Marquis de Meurtil was particularly good: in one letter she could be polite and considerate, in another, scheming and manipulative, all whilst retaining the sense that it was definitely her writing the letters.
The book also felt surprisingly modern in it's take on emotions and relationships, which is perhaps why it was so controversial when it was published. Today, it's hard to imagine anyone taking offense to it. It's greatest crime at the time was being too honest about not everyone being a nice person, and worse, that women could be just as manipulative and 'evil' as men.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, although it occasionally felt like an effort. Definitely something more easy going coming up next.
I read this book on a plane ride and thought it was hilarious. Good review.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ManOfLaBook.com
This is such a brilliant book - one of my all-time favorites. I'm glad you liked it.
ReplyDelete@Man of la Books
ReplyDeleteThank you! I was surprised at how modern and funny the book was, you don't usually find that in classics.
@Jessica
ReplyDeleteI think it may be one of those books that improves every time you read it. At the moment it's not one of my all time favourites, but I imagine I will read it again in the future and probably get more out of it the second time.
Since I have visited your blog and think it is lovely, really informed and interesting, so I have nominated you for the One Lovely Blog Award.
ReplyDeletePlease visit www.josbookjourney.wordpress.com to find out all about it.
If you have recently received this award, please still feel free to comment on my blog.
@josbookjourney
ReplyDeleteWow, thank you Jo :)
That's amazing! I'm going to get around to doing my post about this soon.
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ReplyDeletehave you watched the film adaptations Valmont or Dangerous Liaisons? I enjoyed both-- now I want to read the book because as we all know the book is always better. But the films were gorgeous...
ReplyDeleteGreat review!
Sorry I keep deleting comments-- clumsy fingers from lack of sleep and I can't bear typos-- but I'm not OCD really!
@Cozy Book Nook (Lesa)
ReplyDeleteI have seen Cruel Intentions (the teen version with Sarah Michelle Gellar), which really enjoyable. You should definitely read the book!