Tales Of Passion, Tales Of Woe

The second volume of Sandra Gulland’s Josephine B. Trilogy traces Josephine’s life from her marriage to Napoleon through to his coup d’etat and appointment as First Consul of France.

I’m pleased to report that this book is every bit as good as the first. Once again, Gulland manages to imbue her heroine with pathos and humanity. I felt deeply connected to Josephine throughout the whole novel. Her frustrations and fears became my own. I found it impossible not to root for her.

The diary format continues to work to great effect. It made this a quick, readable book that builds in momentum as it progresses. By the end, I was hard pressed to put it down. I especially appreciated how Josephine’s reactions fit in with what had come show more before. At no point does Gulland dramatically foreshadow coming events; such an approach would have taken away from the book's overall feel. While there are hints of what’s to come, as there would be in real life, each triumph or betrayal comes upon Josephine in a natural, realistic fashion, and she reacts in kind.

Overall: definitely worth reading and highly recommended. show less

Book #2 in the Josephine Bonaparte trilogy. This installment picks up where the last one left off: the day after Napoleon and Josephine's wedding in 1796. It ends at the beginning of 1800 when Napoleon and Josephine move into the Tuileries Palace.

I can't remember how many times I thought, "Poor Josephine!" Those Bonapartes are a family to be reckoned with and they stop at nothing to foil Napoleon's marriage to her.

This installment is probably going to end up being my favorite because it has my favorite character (so far): Captain Charles. The young captain is absolutely hilarious and adorable. I loved him.

As with all historical fiction, there are some liberties taken, but I'm still learning a lot about a period of time I didn't know show more much about. These books were no doubt extensively researched, and it shows. Josephine is a strong woman who has been through a hell of a lot. Despite the limitations of women at the time, she uses her brains and charm to get things done.

The world and characters in these books are exquisitely drawn up to where you feel like you're right there on the streets of Paris. The smells, colors and faces are clear as day.

Josephine's story is only going to get more intense from here. show less

This is a very entertaining book, written in Journal form by Josephine Bonaparte. This is the second book in the trilogy, the first book covering the period of the Great Terror. This book covers the early years of Josephine's marriage to Napoleon Bonaparte , including Bonaparte's Campaigns in Italy and Egypt as his power base grows. It ends as he assumes power in France. You would think it would be stilted being in diary form, but the book works very well and gives a very interesting snapshot into Josephine's life and France during this tumultuous period. I look forward to reading the final part of this delightful series.

This book is phenomenal. I feel truly like I know Josephine at this point, and care for her and what happens to her family. She literally leaps off the page. This and the first in the trilogy have managed to interest me in French history, which I have to confess has never managed to hold my interest. Gulland's prose is sparse but beautiful and manages to convey emotions amazingly well. I have become completely absorbed in these books, and I'm very glad I found them.

An intriguing story in terms of personalities, history, and plot twists. I found it thoroughly enjoyable and will assuredly read the last book in the series.

The second in this trilogy about the life of Josephine Bonaparte. This is mostly about Napoleon's rise and the early years of the marriage -- through his campaigns in Italy in which she joined him, and while they were separated when he was in Egypt. Of course, we get all the information through Josephine's journal so we are limited to what she knew and thus prevented from really knowing Napoleon, the brilliant general and ambitious leader. But the novel is certainly entertaining nonetheless, albeit light -- similar in quality as the first installment.

The journal entries did not work as well for me this time -- it seemed much more obvious that they contained huge chunks of dialogue and were therefore an unrealistic gimmick. I think you show more either have to bite the bullet and work within the framework of the device you have chosen, or make it a combination of diary and narrative. Also, the dialogue, diction, vocabulary did not strike me as authentic, much too modern -- for instance were words like 'infertility' ever bandied about in the 1700's?

But again - to be positive -- this is an enjoyable, flowing story illuminating the early Napoleonic years as well as a very interesting woman in Josephine. Gullard strikes a fine balace with these novels - not as superficial glorified 'chick lit' like say Phillipa Gregory; but easy yet informative reading that should recommend it to the 'women's book club' crowd. show less

The second Josephine B. book and my favourite of the three. While the story of Josephine's life of how to got to the point of meeting Napoleon, I find him to be the more interesting character so I liked the storyline of this book. I did find it hard to understand why he was so obsessed with her - Gulland could have explored that more.