Twenty Years After - Week 16 - to the end

[Robin P, Moderator]

This section sees the resolution of d'Artagnan's escape plan, aided by the discovery of Mazarin's secret cache. Dumas and his audience would have been familiar with the character of the Miser from the play by Moliere. There is certainly some of that miser in Mazarin, when his greatest fears are always for his treasure.

We find out that Aramis had designed his own rescue plan, which was quite elaborate. As the friends split up, d'Artagnan uses his knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of each to make sure nothing goes wrong. What do you think of d'Artagnan's interview with the Queen, where the balance of power and morality seems to switch back and forth at times?

Ellsworth has a note stating that although most of the book is historically accurate, the last riot when the young King, the Queen and Mazarin return, is an invention. In true 19th century style, two of our former characters return, in dramatic fashion, as the victims of two of the heroes. One is in grand, tragic style, run through with a sword, the other in somewhat comic, lower-class style, pounded by Porthos' fist - and only revealed in the end to be a despised character from the first book.

Overall, what are your feelings about this book? How does it compare with The Three Musketeers? Did you enjoy or the more complex plot, or did it seem disjointed? Did you learn about French and/or English history?

We will start our next book on May 2nd.

[Ana]

We have reached the end of the second book and it’s bitter sweet. I am sad that Rochfort had to die - but I guess D’Artagnan swore to kill him in the first book so it had to happen.
Other than that Dumas gives us as happy of an ending as he ever does. D’Artagnan finally becomes captain of the Musketeers, Porthos receives his coveted baron title and Aramis gets the king to be godfather of his son. Athos seems to have rekindled his romance with madame de Chevreouse - she says she wants to spend a month with him at Bragellone ;)

Kidnapping the cardinal seems a little ridiculous and far fetched - i think he would have had them all executed as soon as he was set free. Mazarin even says it: ‘gentlemen, I warn you, unless you kill me, your victory will be of very short duration.”

I really don’t like Queen Ann in this book but I enjoyed her last encounter with D’Artagnan. Technically it is a crime to hold the cardinal hostage and it can be considered treason to blackmail her - but it is entertaining. The queen’s comments are very sarcastic.

-Monsieur de Longueville is of royal blood, madame, said D’Artagnan.
-Yes, said the queen; but his son?
-His son, madame, must be, since the husband of the son’s mother is.

Overall I definitely enjoyed this book. I would say it’s my 3rd favorite Dumas book (right after Queen Margot and the Three Musketeers).

[Hedi]

I was also a little surprised about the missing retaliation efforts by the Queen and Mazarin. They signed those treaties, but have they really always been so honorable to keep to the written words? However, Dumas could have barely got our protagonists hanged, especially if he intended to continue the series. 😉

The conversation between Queen Anne and d’Artagnan is interesting. He has the lead over her and gets her to sign everything. And at last when she breaks into tears he is about to give everything up? I did not quite understand this handing back of the papers, which prove the agreements being made. I think as d’Artagnan addresses the weaknesses of his friends, in this scene the weakness of d’Artagnan is shown. He has a weakness for women in distress and maybe since the scenes of the Three Musketeers especially for Queen Anne.

Overall, I liked the flow of the book despite some historical inaccuracies, but somehow it lacks some depth for my taste. It is maybe like today when you watch some kind of good action movie, which is nice entertainment, but it is not anything profound.
With regards to the history behind it, I am not sure whether I learned anything new particularly by the novel. However, trying to understand the historical background I felt myself inclined to research some things now and then.

[Daniela]

I finished the book and overall I liked it. This last part was really enjoyable, in particular D'Artagnan strategies and his meeting with Queen Anne. I like when there are plans that succeed.
I think I liked this book better than The Three Musketeers. The characters of the four friends are here much more delineated and I liked that for most of the book they seem on different parties and then they fight together. Queen Anne was more regal and majestic in the first book, and Mazarin seems a bad copy of who Richelieu was.
Hedi, in the scene between D'Artagnan and the Queen, he offers her back the papers when he sees that she is crying, he gives her a choice to cancel everything, seeing that she is grieving so much. I took it as a courtesy that was not meant to be taken seriously, and it was so.

[Robin P, Moderator]

Great comments, everyone! Hedi, I agree that women in distress are a weak point for d'Artagnan. I wonder how he would have reacted if he had been present when the English queen asked for help. Also, Dumas was certainly an entertainer. I think if he were around today, he would be writing TV shows, which are mostly written quickly and for a popular audience. (He would also be a great talk show guest, as he was famous for his humor and anecdotes.)

Ana, you are right that the book is wrapped up more than first one was. I like the very last sentence where d'Artagnan asks to move to the larger 1st floor apartment, but to keep the small 5th floor one because you never know what can happen.

As far as the lack of retaliation, if Richelieu had still been around, our heroes probably couldn't have avoided it. I think their knowledge of the secret treasure helped. They could have told someone or written up the information and if something happened to them, it would be made public. The Queen seemed to have a more personal response, she came to respect the men. In a way it was her own fault for not using them as they deserved all that time.

In the next book, we will see Louis XIV grown up.

[Hedi]

I liked this one also more than The Three Musketeers (though I still blame the probably “bad” translation of the latter for that).

The request to keep the apartment in the 5th floor reminded me of today’s movies when at the end something comes up that would allow for a sequel and which is often used. I had never thought that this was used back then though - of course -cliffhangers were used quite a lot as many publications were serialized.
I wonder whether Dumas had the intention of writing so many novels about the Musketeers from the start or whether that developed over time.

[Anne]

I'm finishing about a month behind everybody else. I ended up loving this book about as much as I loved The Three Musketeers. I enjoyed the humorous dialogue and the twists and turns in the plot.

I was familiar with the history of this era, but it gave me a different perspective on the historical characters. The history I learned was very critical of Charles I, while Dumas made him much more sympathetic. I disliked Anne of Austria in this book, much more than I did in the first.

I hope to catch up with everyone soon. I have my copy of The Vicomte de Bragelonne ready, and I will get started in the next couple days.

[Robin P, Moderator]

Great, anyone is welcome to read at their own pace and catch up when you can. Glad you enjoyed it!