An epic generational tale of loves lost, promises kept, dreams broken, and monarchies shattered, To Dance with Kings is a story of passion and privilege, humble beginnings and limitless ambition.On a May morning in 1664, in the small village of Versailles, as hundreds of young aristocrats are coming to pay court to King Louis XIV, a peasant fan-maker gives birth to her first and only child, … first and only child, Marguerite. Determined to give her daughter a better life than the one she herself has lived, the young mother vows to break the newborn’s bonds of poverty and ensure that she fulfills her destiny—to dance with kings. Purely by chance, a drunken nobleman witnesses the birth and makes a reckless promise to return for Marguerite in seventeen years. With those fateful words, events are set into motion that will span three monarchies, affecting the lives of four generations of women.
Marguerite becomes part of the royal court of the Sun King, but her fairy-tale existence is torn out from under her by a change of political winds. Jasmin, Marguerite’s daughter, is born to the life of privilege her grandmother dreamed of, but tempts fate by daring to catch the eye of the king. Violette, Marguerite’s granddaughter, is drawn to the nefarious side of life among the nobles at Versailles. And Rose, Violette’s daughter, becomes a lady-in-waiting and confidante to Marie Antoinette. Through Rose, a love lost generations before will come full circle, even as the ground beneath Versailles begins to rumble with the chaos of the coming revolution.
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Pleasantly surprised by this epic historical fiction piece that focuses on 5 generations of women during the reigns of Louis XIV to Louis XVI. Great story telling while leaving the monarchy as the background characters who push the plot along for these women. You’ll meet the matriach of this novel all the way down to her great grand daughter as …
I loved the historical background, as well as the story of the muiti-generations! Fabulous read! Couldn’t put it down!
I really liked it. It made history come alive for me.
Historical details
I enjoyed all I learned about the ins and outs, rituals, and intrigues of the court of the late-era French kings. But ultimately this book was repetitive, was too episodic, and featured characters who did not hold much interest for me. I admire the attention to detail and the research that obviously went into this, but I did not bother finishing …
One of my favorite books! Love the span of 3 generations.
It was entertaining but urealistic.
One of the best books I’ve read in awhile! I’m fascinated by Versailles. This book was wonderfully rich in details about Louis XV & XVI,and his court!
I read this book almost 30 years ago when it came out and decided to re-read it. The attention to detail is quite good and character development is believable. Given the current trend for historical drama, I can easily see this being made into a successful series. Great read if you are looking for an escape into a different time
Beautifully written period piece with strong female characters. Makes me want to go back and visit Versailles, as it truly captured life during that era.
I read this book over 25 years ago for the first time. This time I noticed the lies anf rable mob are the same as fake news and blm and antifa. I fear for America because France was toppled.
Historical novel rich in details regarding the period before and during the French Revolution.
interesting story but not especially well written.
One summer I read all of Mary Renault, and somehow felt that I had lived through a few hundred years of Greek and Roman history. Spending a Labor Day weekend with To Dance with Kings, I had the same strange sense of living through a hundred years of French History. And while I knew that I would relive the Terror in some form in this novel, it was …