Historical Fantasy - The Prisoner of the Castle of Enlightenment

[Therese]

Fans of fairy tale and folklore retellings, like Katherine Arden's The Bear and the Nightingale or Naomi Novik's Spinning Silver, this one's for you! My novel The Prisoner of the Castle of Enlightenment is coming out from a small press, D.X. Varos, in February 2020. If you'd like a review copy, please drop a message in my inbox, or e-mail me at theresedoucet.author@gmail.com, and let me know your preferred format (epub, mobi, PDF, or paperback) and how to get it to you (e-mail or mailing address).



A lover in and of the darkness …

Violaine, a devotee of books and learning, is sold by her father to a mysterious nobleman to become his companion. Fearing herself at the mercy of a monster, she instead succumbs to the seductive spell of her magical new home, and the love of a man she has never seen, who comes to her only in the darkness of night.

The Château de Boisaulne is a place of many mysteries, but also a refuge for children of the Enlightenment in a time when Europe still languishes under the repressive chains of monarchy and superstition. But modern thought meets ancient lore, as the castle borders the forest lair of the roi des aulnes, an ogre said to be the ancestor of Violaine’s unseen lover … Or are they one and the same?

Praise

"The Prisoner of the Castle of Enlightenment took me on a journey, to France, to centuries ago, to the exotic and erotic castle where ideas and philosophy are debated and fought over, and the desire to learn more, to be more, to love more deepens, especially as night descends. Unforgettable. A fabulist, fabulous tale from a new novelist to watch."
- Caroline Bock, author of Before My Eyes, Carry Her Home: Stories, and Lie

“Gently subversive" "An incredibly charming story … funny and titillating."
- Chicago Center for Literature and Photography, review of A Lost Argument

About the Author

Therese Doucet’s publications have included novels, essays, poetry, and literary translations. She is a former Fulbright fellow, as well as a creative writing residency fellow of the Virginia Center for Creative Arts. She divides her time between Washington, DC, and Knoxville, TN. Learn more at https://theresedoucet.com.

[_book_topia_]

Hi
This sounds just up my street!
I would like to review it if possible.

[Therese]

Gemma wrote: "Hi
This sounds just up my street!
I would like to review it if possible."

Awesome! I just need to know what format you'd prefer and your e-mail or mailing address to get it to you, and I'll pass the information on to the publisher, who is taking care of sending out review copies. You can either inbox me with your info or drop me an e-mail at theresedoucet.author@gmail.com ... thanks!

[A Robin Reads]

Is it part of a series? And is it very romance heavy and then especially smutty, because I really don't like to read that (only romance is oke). Do you need a review before a certain date in February? The book sounds good and I would like to try it.

[Therese]

A Robin Reads wrote: "Is it part of a series? And is it very romance heavy and then especially smutty, because I really don't like to read that (only romance is oke). Do you need a review before a certain date in Februa..."

Hi Robin, it is not part of a series, it's a standalone book. There are definitely romantic elements in the storyline, but it's not a traditional genre-style romance, and there are also subplots dealing with friendships, family relationships, philosophical exchanges, nature scenes, and so on. I would say there are maybe about four paragraphs in the book that get into "spicy" material, including some historically accurate mild kink, and some of the characters are very non-traditional libertine types, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend the book to religiously conservative readers ... Let me know if it still sounds like something that might interest you and I'd be happy to check with the publisher whether any review copies are still available!

[A Robin Reads]

I will send you a private message, sounds really good.