A Novel
by Peter Prange
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Apr 2011
432 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publication Information
Paris, 1747. Betrayed by God and humanity, Sophie moves to the seething capital of the kingdom. To survive, she works at Café Procope, the meeting place for freethinkers and revolutionaries.
Against her will she falls deeply in love with one of the regular customers: Denis Diderot, the famed philosopher and a married man. He and his colleagues are planning the most dangerous book in the world since the appearance of the Bible: an encyclopedia. Even more explosive are the covert references in the Encyclopedia that threaten to undermine both the monarchy and the church. But Sophie soon realizes that the stakes are even higher for her personally. At risk are her right to freedom, love, and happiness.
"This historic tale is compelling and well written, and Prange particularly brings Paris to vivid life.... [F]ans of historical fiction will find plenty to like." - Publishers Weekly
"Despite some soapy bits, [The Philosopher's Kiss] deserves to score with American audiences too." - Kirkus Reviews
"While the historical information is unobtrusive and enhances the story, the two-dimensional characters and unbelievable coincidences detract." - Library Journal
"Prange's The Philosopher's Kiss... is a careful study of the origins of the Encyclopedia and the life and love of one of its creators, Diderot. Here is historical fiction at its finest - meticulously researched with superbly drawn characters, edifying and entertaining." - Indu Sundaresan, author of The Twentieth Wife and Shadow Princess
This information about The Philosopher's Kiss was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Peter Prange, born 1955, did his PhD thesis on philosophy and the history of life and customs during the Enlightenment. He lives in Tubingen, Germany with his wife.
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