de Maupassant, Guy. ALIEN HEARTS. (1890, as “Notre Coeur;” this ed. 2009). ****. de Maupassant (1850-1893) was a power in French literature and moved quickly to the upper eschelons through the sponsorship of Flaubert. During his brief life – dying at age 43 of terminal syphilis – he wrote over three hundred short stories and six novels. In this novel, his last, he explores the nature of the lover and the loved. Andre Mariolle is a rich, gifted young man who can’t seem to decide what to do with his life. Through friends, he is invited to the salon of Madame de Burne, a wealthy, worldly-wise widow. She is like no one whom Andre has ever come across before. At first, he keeps his distance, but soon hits on the solution to all his problems: He will devote himself to being in love with Madame de Burne. Soon, his love is returned, but not in the same way. The two become equally lost within a hall of mirrors of their own devising. Recommended.