Dumas' last major historical novel is a tale of romantic love, jealousy and obsession, interweaving historical events surrounding the brutal murders of two Dutch statesman in 1672 with the phenomenon of tulipomania that gripped seventeenth-century Holland. Two brothers Cornelius and Johan de Witt (Grand Pensionary/prime minister of Holland) were charged with treason and sentenced to exile. Cornelis von Baerle, their nephew, had been tortured with the hope that he would confess to plotting with the French king. He did not, but he kept the papers safe so he was a political target
Our Cornelius von Baerle, also the nephew of history, is also a respectable tulip-grower and he lives only to cultivate the elusive black tulip and win a magnificent prize for its creation. But after his powerful godfather is assassinated, the unwitting Cornelius becomes caught up in deadly political intrigue and is falsely accused of high treason by a bitter rival, a neighbor who wants both the prize and the glory for himself, even if he has to cheat to get it. Condemned to life imprisonment, his only comfort is Rosa, the jailer's beautiful daughter, and together they concoct a plan to grow the black tulip in secret.
There are familiar themes here for Dumas fans, but the length and scope of the novel make it something you could read in a day or a week, whereas his longer form works can take a month or more. He has a very accessible writer, easily walking his reader through complex plots and nefarious deeds.
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