Domestic Peace

In the glittering Paris of Napoleon's 1809 Empire, Balzac opens on a society drunk on military glory, luxury, and ambition, where diamonds, uniforms, and salon wit matter as much as rank or feeling. At a lavish ball hosted by the wealthy Comte de Gondreville, high society gathers in a fever of vanity and calculation, waiting on Napoleon's arrival while men and women maneuver for advantage beneath a surface of elegance. Amid the glitter, a pale young woman in blue draws every eye. Silent, sorrowful, and strangely apart, she becomes the object of speculation, desire, and tactless curiosity. Colonel Montcornet and the ambitious, self-possessed Martial de la Roche-Hugon trade teasing remarks about her, even as Madame de Vaudremont, Paris's celebrated beauty, watches Martial with growing suspicion. The ballroom turns into a stage for hidden motives, jealous glances, and emotional wagers. As Soulanges's reserve gives way to bitter jealousy and despair, the carefully polished world of the Empire is exposed as one where love, pride, and social strategy can become dangerously entangled. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.