For Opera fans
Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley.
If you have seen the older movie version of Annie, you have heard of Marie Duplessis, whose fictional mirror appears briefly when Annie attends a film.
Marie Duplessis inspired one of the most famous novels in literature -
La Dame aux Camélias. It is one of those stories - a mistress of gold, the undeserving lover.
In many ways this book is important because it puts more than a face to Marie Duplessis - though she doesn't really seem to move far from the idea of a romantic figure. She is still, somewhat, in shadow.
This isn't due to any fault of Weis. While some of the statements are too general, the research does seem to be solid (though I would have liked more footnotes/endnotes in some sections).
At times, I felt the language was a bit too romantic, but the book is a good study of the subject. Recommend for Dumas and Opera lovers.