In honor of The Mask of Night’s recent release on Nook, I thought this week I’d open the blog up to a Mask of Night discussion. I originally envisioned The Mask of Night as the study of three marriages – Charles and Mélanie, Isobel and Oliver, David and Simon. As the story evolved, it also deals with the marriages of the Pendarveses and the St. Iveses, as well as the long-term relationship between Hortense Bonaparte and the Comte de Flahaut.
All of these relationships are in crisis or experience crises in the course of the story. Which relationship would you say suffers the most damage in the course of the book? Which couple is back on the most stable footing by the end of the story? Which character do you think betrays his or her partner in the most unforgivable way?
In general, do you like stories about married couples? What are some of your favorite literary portraits of a marriage?
I’ve just posted a new Fraser Correspondence letter in which Mélanie/Suzanne writes to Raoul with some distraction about Charles/Malcolm’s confessions about the attack on Acquera that supposedly killed her family. And I’ve added two new services to my Editorial and Marketing Services page, editing and drafting query letters.
Tracy Grant - Novelist 
August 17, 2011 at 6:26 pm
Well, I love the Scarlet Pimpernel, of course.
And Melanie and Charles’ books. I’m hoping the Tasha Alexander series keeps going strong. Deanna Raybourn.
Like many themes, if done well, I enjoy it. Unfortunately, many authors choose the adultery storyline; and I can’t get into that.
August 17, 2011 at 6:43 pm
Yes, as I’ve mentioned the Scarlet Pimpernel was definitely an inspiration for me in the Melanie/Suzanne & Charles/Malcolm books. In fact I was thrilled recently when a friend who read Vienna Waltz but hadn’t read the earlier books in the series said Malcolm & Suzanne reminded her of Percy & Marguerite.
I love the way Tasha Alexander and Deanna Raybourn are exploring the marriages of their central characters.
I don’t necessarily mind books that explore adultery, But it’s makes rebuilding trust problematic. It’s why I think of the couples in Mask of Night, Bel and Oliver probably have the most difficult path ahead. Although I think one could debate their betrayals of each other compared to Mélanie’s of Charles and wonder which weighs more heavily in the balance. I’m not sure myself.
August 18, 2011 at 9:50 am
I like reading about marriages on the rocks, but tend to side with the husbands (if the wives are in the wrong), particularly with historical fiction – I have absolutely no sympathy for Anna Karenina, Irene Forsyte or Emma Bovary!
August 18, 2011 at 7:28 pm
That’s interesting, Sarah. Are you as hard on the husbands if they’re at fault, do you think? I do feel sympathetic toward Anna, Irene, and Emma, but I wouldn’t say any of them is blameless–which is what makes the stories interesting.