On November 9th, 1422 in Paris, a long procession carries King Charles VI to his final resting place. During the long walk towards the tomb, those who knew him, especially his women, reminisce about the controversial sovereign.
Christine de Pisan, the young girl who played with the dauphin as a child in the Hotel Saint- Paul, Isabeau de Bavière, his wife, and Odette de Champdivers, his mistress and companion for the last eighteen months of his life are three of the most important.
"The king is unavailable" was the most often pronounced phrase during Charles VI's reign.. But who really was this man? A mentally disturbed, violent king? A chivalrous knight overcome by the immensity of his dream? Or perhaps simply a man, and like all men waged battle between his good sides and dark ones.
In the background of his story is a long, drawn-out war in a foreign land, and an even more destructive civil war. Surrounding the ailing king are a gallery of oppressive characters: a poisonous group of uncles, a brother and cousins, anxious for their share of wealth and titles. Charles VI, the eternal "absent" is at the center of this novel but, as the women of his life depict their king, much is
revealed of their own lives....
Monique Demagny was first a history professor then the principal of a lycée. She has written several novels among which Marie L'Acadienne (JC Lattès, 2004)
