Product Description

Rousing, big, spirited, its action sweeping across oceans and continents, the last novel of Alexandre Dumas-lost for 125 years in the archives of the National Library in Paris-completes the oeuvre that Dumas imagined at the outset of his literary -career. Now, dynamically, in a tale of family honor and undying vengeance, of high adventure and heroic derring-do, The Last Cavalier fills that gap.

The last cavalier is also Count Hector de Sainte-Hermine, who for three years has been languishing in prison when, in 1804, on the eve of Napoleon's coronation as emperor of France, he learns what's to be his due. Stripped of his title and denied the hand of the woman he loves, he is freed by Napoleon on the condition that he serve as a common foot soldier in the imperial army. So it is in profound despair that Hector embarks on a succession of daring escapades. Again and again he wins glory-against brigands, bandits, the British; boa constrictors, sharks, croco-diles. And at the battle of Trafalgar it's his marksman's bullet that fells the famed English admiral Lord Nelson.

Yet however far his adventures may take him-from Burma's jungles to the wilds of Ireland-his destiny lies always in Paris, with his father's enemy, Napoleon.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #543770 in Books
• Published on: 2007-08-01
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .3 pounds
• Binding: Hardcover
• 752 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. This first English translation of the last, previously unknown novel by Dumas (1802–1870) offers a stunning completion to his fictional mapping of French history. The plot centers on Compte Hector de Sainte Hermine, a royalist captured and imprisoned by Bonaparte. Part one finds him caught in the political intrigue of 1801–1804, as Napoleon moves from first consul to emperor. In part two, Hector, now known as René, is released from jail; he signs onto a French corsair as a common seaman, but his noble birth, superb education and martial abilities soon elevate him in rank. The next 300 pages slosh with swashbuckling sea adventure, casting heroic romance against the background of Napoleon's ultimate fall. It's Dumas at his best, but alloyed: asides; minibiographies; commentaries on fashion, manners, geography and history; and flashbacks pile up unendingly, leavened with farcical humor and witty punditry. Although it lacks the polish of The Three Musketeers and the concision of The Count of Monte Cristo, this capacious, rambling, unfinished account of the Napoleonic era represents vintage Dumas and an intensely personal vision of the time. (Nov.)
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About the Author
One of the most famous French writers of the nineteenth century, Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870) first achieved success in the literary world a playwright, before turning his hand to writing novels. In two years from 1844 to 1855, he published two enormous books, The Count of Monte-Cristo and The Three Muskateers. Both novels have sold millions of copies worldwide.