Definitely not for everyone this one, and it seems to be extremely polarizing even among Balzacien/nes for its complete remove from the realist style he's usually credited for, high pulp quotient, cloak and dagger antics, melodrama and eccentric cast of characters. I've got to say though for as much as I can recognize its drawbacks, I found this really fascinating for its focus on taboo subjects, mysteriously seedy and almost noir atmosphere and flowery, descriptive prose; a good chunk of this novelette is a detailed and memorably characterized analysis of Paris and its different classes which seems to set things at a much slower pace than the breakneck insanity it descends into from there. Speaking of which, I have to respect just how much Balzac was willing to throw things to the wall for the ending which drops a pretty monumental twist reframing all that's come before it. Unique, sometimes quite difficult reading in the original French, a little scattershot and sloppy in its execution, not for everyone... but definitely for me. ( )

CONSIDERADO UM DOS MAIS BRILHANTES EXEMPLOS DE EROTISMO DA LITERATURA DO SÉCULO XIX,ESTE ROMANCE EVIDENCIA DA FORMA MAIS DIRETA E EXPLICITA POSSSIVEL ,,DO OUTO LADO DO EROS,,, A HOMOFOBIA DOS PERSONAGENS FEMININOS ,COM A PEREEMPTÓRIA CLAREZA DOS RAIOS SOLARES NUMA TARDE DE VERÃO .

Though it begins with some promise with astute (and highly pessimistic) observations of the Parisian character, that is where it should have stayed. The novel itself is abrupt, disturbing, confusing, and dour. Pass on this, and read Père Goriot I should note, however, that Balzac's home and gardens were probably my favorite spot in Paris. ( )

The opening twenty pages were of a torrent of a analysis teeming with lyrcial flourishes begging for the common book. The subsequent tale resembled many an other Balzac tale. ( )

A Balzac novella that is part of the History of the Thirteen, although in this translation published as a standalone work. Its interest lies mainly in how shocking it is to imagine such a novel being written in the 19th century: a man seduces a young girl who is zealously guarded by her family, the girl makes him dress up in women‰ÃƒÂ›Ã‚ªs clothing and calls him by a woman‰Ûªs name when they make love, he returns to her the next night vowing to kill her for it but discovers she has already been murdered ‰ÛÒ by her other lover, who just happens to be his long lost half sister.

The plot driven portion of the novella is preceded by a lengthy and somewhat dull morphology of the exemplary specimens of the different stratas of Parisian life.

Overall enjoyable and worth reading but falls on the uneven side of Balzac. But worth reading nonetheless. ( )