BOOK REVIEW: "The Black Tower" by Louis Bayard

Louis Bayard's novel, The Black Tower, is like a roller coaster; it builds slowly but before you realize it, you've hit the peak of the hill and the action is moving fast. The first few pages of this book contain a timeline and genealogical charts to help explain the historical context: revolutionary-era France and the family of Marie-Antoinette. During the early chapters I found myself continually referring back to the charts, frustrated at the names (especially the multiple Louises and Charleses!) and family connections tossed around. Once I gave in to the pure enjoyment of reading The Black Tower, though, the novel rewarded me with an unpredictable outcome on the heels of a series of plot twists that I didn't see coming but made sense in the rearview mirror.

The story follows Hector Carpentier, whose financial missteps have left him and his difficult mother running a student boarding house and whose academic pursuits are less than successful. Carpentier unwillingly joins with a notorious French crime fighter to investigate a murder, and the investigation ends up leading them through the story of the lost son of Marie Antoinette and the difficult moral choices faced during revolutionary times. As the plot progresses we also see Carpentier and Vidocq, the inspector, expand into fully-developed and fascinating people, alongside other memorable characters. Bayard creates sympathy for his very flawed protagonists and allows them to carry the story through to its conclusion. The final sequence of events, though rushed and possibly unbelievable, feels right in the context of the entire book.

For readers who enjoy a mystery, or well-imagined history, this will be a pleasure. Aspects of both genres are well-developed and thoughtful, and Bayard's voice is intelligent and enjoyable to read.

---Katy Wischow
imagineatrium.com