Honoré de Balzac

Horace de Saint-Aubin

This early Balzac novel, which has never before been translated into English, was written under the pseudonym of Horace de Saint-Aubain. Balzac wrote several of his early works under pen names, but this work--with its controversial subjects of incest and rape--certainly seems to have justified Balzac's hidden identity. The novel begins with a brilliant comedic scene in which the local bourgeoisie wonders about its new vicar, a dashingly handsome young man with a dark, brooding personality. Ultimately, they begin to uncover his "terrible" past, which includes a passionate love for his sister Mélanie (who turns out not be his sibling) and a friendship with the local Marquise, who herself is attracted to the young man--until she discovers that he is her son! At times comic, always adventurous and erotic, and brilliantly satiric, this is an important rediscovered work in the career of one of the greatest authors of world literature.

The Vicar's Passion

Honoré Balzac

A mix of gothic elements, romance and SF, this disjointed novel is a mishmash of stories set in different time frames, loosely linked by the two characters of the title-the Centenarian father and his illegitimate son Tullius, or General Beringheld. The monstrous, immortal father-who sustains his powers by extracting the life-essence from young peoplei̮s the novel's central figure, but Tullius's diaries form the main story.

Horace de Saint-Aubin

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