Casanova and the Faceless Woman
Only the devil himself is quicker. When Louis XV’s Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths is called upon to examine the corpse of a cruelly defaced young woman, he does not expect to encounter the most famous seducer of the age at the scene of the crime. But meeting Casanova is only one surprise of many this strange case holds in store for Chevalier Volnay, who soon understands that this seemingly simple murder is tied up in a highly complex intrigue involving the royal court, competing secret societies, members of the rogue clergy, and the more or less respectable representatives of scientific and medical progress. However, since 1759 Paris is ruled not only by the King, but also by his mistress, Volnay must contend with Madame Pompadour, whose smart and charming envoy, Chiara, so bewitches him and Casanova that the men are pitted against one another in a passionate rivalry, possibly to the death.
Published in France in 2012, Casanova and the Faceless Woman won the Prix Sang d’Encre and has been followed by six more installments featuring the volatile and enigmatic Inspector of Strange and Unexplained Deaths. As of this year, the capable translation by Louise Rogers Lalaurie will finally enable English readers to make the acquaintance of the equally fascinating and exasperating Volnay and to enjoy Barde-Cabucon’s richly wrought, historical mystery, which conjures up pre-revolutionary Paris in all its glory and depravity. Traveling the heights and depths of a vastly stratified society, paying attention to the strides made by Enlightenment science and philosophy, Casanova and the Faceless Woman stands in the august tradition of French historical fiction from Dumas to Yourcenar. A historical romp worthy of your time.
