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1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 Brilliant Mar 13, 2009
Bijoux is a brilliant masterpiece of historical fiction. I was captured from the beginning to the end by the intrigue of this book. It's obvious that the author put a lot of time and energy into the historic accuracy. Some of the real historical characters are Prince Philippe, Gaston Duc d'Orleans, Musketeer d'Artagnan, Abbe Guibourg, Cardinal Richelieu, and King Louis XIV.
Set in 17th century Paris, France, it's full of romance, mystery, peril, and revenge. This book will keep you turning the pages from cover to cover without wanting to put it down. Fueled by the desire to restore her family name, to atone and secure reparation for the injury, suffering, and offense done to her and her family, the irresistible Bijoux weaves a web that brings her from a shamed and lowered position in society to the heights of the aristocratic elite in the French court. Along the way, she uncovers momentous secrets that were intended to be hidden and erased from history because of the threat it imposed to those in power. But, the strength, intelligence, and will of the heroine refuses to let that happen. Even though she is well aware of all the real and imminent danger her life is in at every moment, she never gives up.
This book is most definitely a must have and one you will enjoy reading again and again, each time finding more and more information and truth within the layers of this story. Enjoy!!
2 of 5 found the following review helpful:
 unsympathetic heroine, historical errors mar book Dec 03, 2007
Don't get me wrong. Bijoux by Olivia Peyton is an exciting book with a hard to predict storyline and fairly good command of the historical period and it is very suspenseful but the author makes some errors in characters, plot and historical research that make this less than a 4 star/5 star effort.
First, the main heroine is an amoral character who is a Satanist and engages in Black masses and is sexually unfaithful to her husband with many characters--including Louis Xiv, a married D'Artgnan,Louis' homosexual brother, Prince Philippe--you get the picture. It is hard to identify with such a heroine--especially the Devil worship part. I kept waiting for her to come to her senses and get a more moral life but it never kicked in.
The plot also left me cold when it was revealed she and her husband are involved in a secret society to restore the Merovingen kings--a plot device lifted out of the Da Vinci code and lacking in historical accuracy as a lot of the research in Da Vinci Code and its source, Holy Blood Holy Grail, was the product of forged and hoaxed documents put into the French National archives by a con man and this was proved in a public trial in France several years ago. Therefore there was no such secret society in the 1600's to restore the Merovingens. In fact, the story that the Merovingen kings claimed descent from Christ was well known in Medieval France and in Europe as a whole and was widely debunked and discredited as a ruse by the Merovingens to bolster their claims of Kingship in the Middle Ages and no one would have seriously entertained that theory in the 1600's as depicted in the novel.
This use of a "trendy" plot therefore left me cold, especially since if the author had done her research, she would have seen there was ? of the legitimacy of Louis XIV and his brother in many sources as they were born 20 years into their parents' marriage and there were rumors that Cardinal Marazin fathered at least Louis, if not both princes.
Other parts of the plot that were far fetched was Bijoux's continual off-on again with Louis, especially after he saw her do a black mass and the whole Vampire bit was stupid and an anti-climax at the end. I will not spoil it but I will say, the author sure erred in picking the identity of the Vampire as the person in question had a very public death.
Other errors abound such as everyone acknowledging the heroine as the marquise of Cinq mars when her mother was a prostitute and there was no record of the marriage--Bijoux would not have been considered a noble and especially not by sticklers such as Louis XIV. Also, she refers to the king as Louis Bourbon several times when the given name was Louis de Bourbon as befits noblility. And lastly, Louis XIV was said to be very prejudiced against red heads( for a ridiculous reason) and preferred blondes to brunettes so the book having him be infatuated by a red head was a stretch but that is a small failing. She also depicts Louis' second wife, Madame Maintenon, as some kind of saint when history depicts her as a bigoted woman who urged Louis to persecute the Protestants. Madame Maintenon does at least bring a more Christian point of view and more morality to the story.
What I did like was the pace of the novel, the suspense and some of the period detail was quite good--Peyton obviously did some research into Versailles, Louis XIV--as a student of Bourbon history, I found she did well overall. She especially depicted marginal characters found in the study of Louis XIV's court--Naboo, the African Dwarf, Philippe, Duc D' Orleans, etc--with sympathy and good historical research although she has Bijoux having a somewhat farfetched affair with Philippe,one of the most famous homosexuals of the time and also with one of his homosexual lovers but I won't criticise the author too much on this as there was historically a ? of bisexuality of these men as especially Prince Philippe had children(in fact, he fathered whole dynastic lines of noblilty and royalty).
All in all an above average book that is an exciting read. Recommended with slight reservations for Satanism and an unlikeable main character and minor historical glitches.
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Great read. Jun 16, 2007
I found this book very enjoyable with just the right amount of intrigue unlike so many books these days that are so over the top that they become more comical than the authors original intent.
As for Danielle "Dreamland" your review seems alittle jaded maybe you should try reading comic books they are under 200 pages and can be very entertaining...or a prescription for Ritalin.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
"Bijoux": A Delightful Discovery Jun 14, 2007
I LOVED THIS BOOK !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Starting with the heroine Bijoux, we are introduced to a 17th Century Mata Hari, whose intricate relationships with the power brokers of France provides an almost "insider" view into the court within the reign of Louis XIV. In fact the very birth of this character is a subject of intrigue, secrecy and revenge. Her mother was a celebrated courtesan and her father was a noble of high rank whose relations with King Louis the XIII were both political and intimate. From the first page we are moved along at a rapid pace through the high society and political intrigue of 17th century France. I was mesmerized by this heroine who survives and thrives through her use of wit and intelligence.
The novel also incorporates elements of the supernatural with just the right amount of detail and suspense. Pervading the novel is a character whose presence is more felt than encountered. The character of Noctambule represents one of the earlier manifestations of vampirism as it was understood in French society at that time. In fact a large amount of this novel contains accurate historical information that creates a three dimensional feel to the characters and settings of this book. A good example is displayed in the depiction of an evil priest named Guibourg whose unspeakable acts are punished with equal cruelty by the Sun King himself. A little follow-up research into this matter confirmed both the crimes and punishment that were detailed in the novel had indeed taken place as listed.
The mixture of fictional and real characters brings me to two depictions that I truly enjoyed. The character of d'Artagnan as the young swashbuckling hero of the three musketeers was etched into my earliest childhood memories of high adventure. Yet in this novel he is presented as a middle aged man who now works for the Cardinal as one of his most trusted spies. This peek into the progression of this character was truly fascinating within the context of the overall story. In this case we have a much older man who continues to pursue adventure and women with equal zeal. It was surprising to note how this characterization resonated with the many aging singers within our own time that refuse to grow up and put down the microphone. Conversely, I was given the pleasure of encountering the young Louis the XIV both as a child and dashing young man. What a pleasant surprise to see Louis the hunter, lover and absolute ruler of France. This was a far cry from the rather rotund representations that were presented to me within my studies of World History. The Louis that is shown within these pages presents the reader with history's version of a current movie star. In fact the act of "star gazing" along with the court's incessant use of gossip tends to strike home within our own time as we continue to be caught up in the lives of famous people.
Bijoux moves through a fantastic collection of people that includes a dwarf and a trans-gendered noble to name a few. She displays the full range of human emotions from joy, love and lust to sorrow, repentance and humility that is borne of suffering. In all these things and more the reader is given a front row seat into a time that was not as far removed as we may have believed before reading this wonderful book. If lust, history and the supernatural are not enough to tempt you then prepare yourself for intricate plot twists and superb dialogue that is as richly crafted as the royal tapestries that decorate the very palace of Versailles. My only hope is that there is some sort of sequel soon as this type of historical fiction is truly addictive.
Sincerely,
D. Pistone
1 of 7 found the following review helpful:
 Really, really, bad May 25, 2007
What can I say? I really tried reading the entire book but I stopped around page 200. I couldn't read anymore of such badly written drivel.
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