Late one winter night in 1829, in the salon of the Vicomtesse de Grandlieu, the lawyer Derville tells why her daughter should not lose hope of marrying young Ernest de Restaud. His story turns on Gobseck, the cold, all-seeing usurer of the rue des Grès, and the ruin a reckless countess brought on her husband and children.
A short, sharp study of money and power in Restoration Paris, and one of Balzac’s most memorable portraits. Download the free EPUB.