THE DISENCHANTMENT

Madeleine Leslay's appealing voice draws listeners into seventeenth-century Paris and the world of abused wife Baroness Marie Catherine; her lover, Victoire; and the seemingly limitless decadence of posh Parisian nobility. Aristocrats and servants alike dabble in the occult, so when Marie Catherine's brutish husband is murdered, the police expect to find his killer among the corrupt priests, fortune tellers, and poisoners scattered about Paris. Within this convoluted mystery, Marie Catherine weaves wonderful fairy-tale-like stories to distract her children. Leslay's French is impeccable, and her storytelling skills are masterful. Whether dealing with forbidden passion, repressed women, or murder, Leslay navigates the elegant soirees and intellectual salons, as well as the artists' garrets of Paris's seamier side, in a performance that lights up the City of Lights. S.J.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2023]