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The Diamond
The Diamond
Author: Julie Baumgold
The Diamond is a brilliant, dazzling historical novel about a famous diamond -- one of the biggest in the world -- that passed from the hands of William Pitt's grandfather to the French kings and Napoleon, linking many of the most famous personalities of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and serving as the centerpiece for a nov...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780743264815
ISBN-10: 0743264819
Publication Date: 10/25/2005
Pages: 320
Rating:
  • Currently 2.2/5 Stars.
 3

2.2 stars, based on 3 ratings
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review
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Harlowbean avatar reviewed The Diamond on + 18 more book reviews
I found this book an entrancing read. It wasn't the Regent/Pitt diamond that entranced so much as the story of the French people from the time of the glorious court of the Louis XIV, the Sun King to the downfalls of Napoleon I and Napoleon III. The device of using Count Las Cases; Bonaparte's biographer and fellow Saint Helena exile, a man born an aristocrat and later a devoted follower of Napoleon I, lends an additional air of authenticity to this compelling historical narrative.

Baumgold easily glides from the present day (1816) banter between Las Cases and Bonaparte on Saint Helena to the diamond's complex interwoven history with France and England. The overwhelming loss, confusion and tragedy of The French Revolution is captured so powerfully and poignantly, perhaps because the reader has walked the palace halls for 100 years before and the Paris streets for almost 100 years after. This immersion allows for a greater understanding of the changes and pains France went through during and for so long after the Revolution. While all this is unfolding Baumgold also breathes into life the incredible duality of Napoleon Bonaparte.

If you are familiar with the historical aspects covered you should enjoy the refreshing approach and if this is your introduction to this time period you may have a difficult time deciding who or what you want to learn more about first.
Piper avatar reviewed The Diamond on
So boring I couldn't finish reading the book after reading about 1/3 of the way into it. I suppose the author was just trying to set the stage, but it just was taking too long. The names of the French aristocrats became very confusing and the characters were not very interesting or likeable.


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