La Rue de Jérusalem - Les Habits Noirs - Tome III

Les Habits Noir/Black Coats #1

by Paul Féval père

1834. Using a Pretender to the Throne of France, the powerful crime cartel known as the Black Coats plan to steal one of the largest fortunes of Europe. But from Jerusalem Street in Paris, the headquarters of the S

264 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1868

About the author

For works by this author's son, please see: Paul Féval fils.

Paul Henri Corentin Féval, père, (1816-1887) was the author of popular swashbucklers, such as Le Loup Blanc (1843) and the perennial best seller Le Bossu (1857). He also penned the seminal Knightshade, The Vampire Countess and Vampire City. His greatest claim to fame was as one of the fathers of the modern crime thriller. Because of its themes and characters, his novel Jean Diable (1862) can claim to be the world's first modern detective novel. His masterpiece was Les Habits Noirs (1863-75), a criminal saga written over a twelve year period comprised of seven novels. After losing his fortune in a financial scandal, Féval became a born again Christian, stopped writing crime thrillers, and began to write religious novels, sadly leaving the tale of the Black Coats uncompleted.

Reviews

[Mihaela Abrudan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mult mai bun acest volum decât primele două. Pare o încercare de roman politist având până și un inspector sub acoperire. Totuși de remarcat situațiile ciudate în care apar unele personaje, parcă autorul uită ce s-a întâmplat cu ele câteva rânduri mai sus.

[Dfordoom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paul Féval (1816-1887) was a popular and prolific French novelist who dabbbled in a variety of genres from swashbuckling adventure to gothic horror to crime. His masterwork was the Habits Noirs or Blackcoats cycle, a series of novel dealing with an immense and sinister secret criminal brotherhood. La Rue de Jérusalem (translated by Brian Stableford under the title 'Salem Street) marked the official beginning of this cycle although Féval linked several earlier novels into the series.

Like most of Féval’s works the novel was originally published in serial form, in 1868. As you’d expect from a serial novel it’s a somewhat ramshackle construction with numerous sub-plots and endless complications. Like most authors of these romans-feuilletins Féval wrote quickly, had no interest in revising, and often dictated his books. As a result there are inconsistencies and continuity errors, but they’re part of the charm of this sort of fiction.

To attempt anything approaching a plot synopsis would be a daunting task. There are kidnappings, murders, fortune-hunters, a pretender to the French throne, cases of mistaken identity, old sins that return to haunt both victim and perpetrator, police spies, duels, brawls, betrayals and unrequited romance.

It’s all breathless and melodramatic but with sudden disconcerting switches to broad comedy. In fact the entire book has a certain tongue-in-cheek quality to it. The criminal organisation of the Habits Noirs is a fascinating creation and can be seen as the forerunner of most conspiracy theory fiction.

Féval was pre-eminently a writer of popular entertainment with few pretensions to literary distinction although from time to time he did succumb to the temptation to make a bid for literary respectability, without success. His success as a popular novelist was however undeniable. The Habits Noirs cycle was never completed. After losing his entire considerable fortune in a financial scandal Féval found God and turned to the writing of religious novels.

'Salem Street is a bit rough round the edges but it’s fun. Translator Brian Stableford provides an informative introduction to the Black Coat Press edition of this important pioneering work of crime fiction.