Tuesday, January 21, 2014

First Paragraph, Tuesday Teaser -- Marie Antoinette's Head

Every Tuesday, Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea posts the first paragraph of her current read. Anyone can join in. Go to Diane's website for the image and share the first paragraph of the current book you are reading.
I'm reading another book for FranceBookTours. This one is called Marie Antoinette's Head by Will Bashor, who lives right here in Columbus. The book is about the hairdresser to Marie Antoinette. Apparently the hairdresser was quite a character himself. The beginning section puts me off a little because there are notes on sources, notes on royal titles, a chronology and a really long list of historical characters, but the actual writing is entertaining. Here's the intro from the Prologue:
Captain de Busne, Marie Antoinette's last bodyguard, took her back to the cell where she awaited the hour of her execution. He had just accompanied her to the revolutionary tribunal where she was tried and convicted, but on this occasion, Captain de Busne was also guilt of unpardonable crimes. He had held his hat in his hand while escorting the fallen queen, he had taken the trouble of fetching a glass of water for her, and finally, he had offered his arm to help her down the dark staircase leading to her fetid prison cell. Later that day, Captain de Busne was denounced by the tribunal and arrested for his criminal behavior.
Also this week  is Teaser Tuesdays. Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Open to a random page of your current read  and share a teaser sentence from somewhere on that page. BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teaser.
Here's my teaser from 8% on my Kindle:
When finally freed from its curling papers and Léonard's comb, Julie's hair took on a bewitching charm. he had divided it into zones with each one presenting different visions: here emeralds, there pearls with a little flower, and a few blossoms that seemed to pierce through the curls.

13 comments:

Laurel-Rain Snow said...

What intriguing excerpts! Thanks for sharing...and I want to know more....

Here's MY TUESDAY POST

Catherine @ Book Club Librarian said...

I love historical fiction, especially those written about colorful characters. Hope you enjoy it.

My Tuesday post: http://www.bookclublibrarian.com/2014/01/first-chapter-first-paragraph-46.html

grammajudyb said...

I don't know much about Marie Antoinette, but now I want to read this . Thanks for sharing.

Nise' said...

I love the cover.

Sarah (Sarah's Book Shelves) said...

love that first paragraph and Marie Antoinette is such a great character…and that whole time period is fascinating. I would definitely keep reading.

gautami tripathy said...

I like historical fiction. I would definitely go on..

Here is my post

Sandra Nachlinger said...

The hairstyles from that era have always fascinated me. How could women even hold up their heads with all that "stuff" on them? This sounds like a book I'd enjoy.
My Teaser is from REFLECTIONS OF MAMIE.

Literary Feline said...

Now that's sad! I feel bad for the guy. I would keep reading.

kayerj said...

I'd read on, I like historical fiction. kelley—the road goes ever ever on

JoAnn said...

I'd keep reading this one… love the cover, too. Hope you enjoy it.

Yvonne said...

I'm not much into historical fiction but this does sound good.

Margot said...

I'd keep reading out of curiosity. I want to know about all that hair.

(Diane) Bibliophile By the Sea said...

Cool cover, but not an intro that makes me want to read more sadly:( Hope you enjoy this.

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