Release date is 2005-05-10

Produced by Carlo Traverso, Renald Levesque and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team. This file was produced from images generously
made available by the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF/Gallica)

"Le serment des hommes rouges: Aventures d'un enfant de Paris" by Ponson du Terrail is a historical novel written in the late 19th century. The story revolves around a young boy named Tony, who is adopted by a seamstress, Madame Toinon, in Paris during the 18th century. As the narrative unfolds, Tony finds himself entangled in the tumultuous lives of the French nobility, marked by intrigue, duels, and romantic entanglements. The opening portion of the novel sets the stage in January 1746, with the Parisian opera ball creating a vibrant backdrop. We meet Madame Toinon, who prepares to attend the ball, as well as her adopted son, Tony, who is eager to join her. However, their evening is soon disrupted by a duel between two gentleman, with Tony witnessing the dramatic fallout as one is mortally wounded. The dying man's last request sends Tony on a quest involving a mysterious ebony box and a promise made in the heat of the moment, which propels him into a world fraught with danger and intrigue, leaving him to navigate relationships burdened by past oaths and secrets. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Original publication data not identified