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The Dark Queen
A Novel
Written by Susan Carroll
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Synopsis
From Brittany’s misty shores to the decadent splendor of Paris’s royal court, one woman must fulfill her destiny–while facing the treacherous designs of Catherine de Medici, the dark queen.She is Ariane, the Lady of Faire Isle, one of the Cheney sisters, renowned for their mystical skills and for keeping the isle secure and prosperous. But this is a time when women of ability are deemed sorceresses, when Renaissance France is torn by ruthless political intrigues, and all are held in thrall to the sinister ambitions of Queen Catherine de Medici. Then a wounded stranger arrives on Faire Isle, bearing a secret the Dark Queen will do everything in her power to possess. The only person Ariane can turn to is the comte de Renard, a nobleman with fiery determination and a past as mysterious as his own unusual gifts.
Riveting, vibrant, and breathtaking, The Dark Queen follows Ariane and Renard as they risk everything to prevent the fulfillment of a dreadful prophecy–even if they must tempt fate and their own passions.
Excerpt
The chamber lay hidden beneath the old part of the house, far from prying eyes. During Roman times, when a fortress had stood on the island, the room had been part of a catacomb of prisons, a dark place where frightened souls had been imprisoned awaiting torture and death. But that had been centuries ago.The chains and manacles were long gone, the stone walls now lined with jars of herbs, dust-covered bottles, and books preserving knowledge forgotten by the rest of the world. The grim place had been completely transformed by feminine hands into a repository of ancient learning and a keeper of secrets. There was enough evidence stacked upon these shelves to get a woman condemned for witchcraft seven times over.
No one could have looked less like a witch than the young woman stirring the hearth’s bubbling cauldron. Ariane Cheney was tall and thin, her slender form clad in a russet brown gown protected by the apron knotted round her waist.
The orange-red light of the torches imbedded in the walls flickered over her grave features; her thick chestnut hair was demurely bundled beneath a kerchief. Ariane had an unusually solemn face for a woman barely one and twenty, her pensive gray eyes seldom given to laughter, her lips rarely transformed by a smile.
She had little to smile about these days since her mother’s death. With her father still missing, that left only Ariane to protect and care for her two younger sisters. Speculation grew daily that the Chevalier Louis Cheney’s grand voyage of exploration had come to disaster, that the Chevalier was either lost at sea or killed by natives on some hostile foreign shore.
Ariane gave the contents of the cauldron one final stir, then carefully ladled some of the clear liquid into a thick clay flagon. She carried it over to the long wooden worktable. The powder she had ground rested in the bottom of the iron mortar, a concoction partly gleaned from her books, partly from her own ingenuity.
Setting the flagon down, Ariane scooped out a spoonful of the powder. She hardly knew how much to use. It was a matter of guesswork. Ariane closed her eyes and sent up a silent prayer.
“Oh, please, please let this work.” Opening her eyes, she carefully ladled the powder into the flagon. She watched anxiously, preparing to give the potion a stir, but she never got the chance.
The reaction was immediate and violent. The liquid began to smoke and hiss, bubble and foam. As the potion roiled over the sides of the flagon, Ariane emitted a cry of dismay. She grabbed for a cloth to check the mess, but the spitting flagon forced her to retreat.
She backed away, flinging up one arm just in time as the vessel shattered, spraying the chamber with flecks of red foam and broken pottery. An acrid haze hung over the room, a sharp stench that caused Ariane to choke and her eyes to sting with tears. She flapped her cloth to clear the air and then mopped her eyes to survey the damage.
She was not hurt, but her potion had left a scorch mark on the table and burned tiny holes in her apron. Ariane had failed.
If only Maman was here to help me, Ariane thought, The familiar ache of loss tugging at her heart. It was a wish she made a dozen times every day.
Evangeline Cheney had been a true descendent of the Daughters of the Earth, as learned in the old ways as any woman who had ever lived. She had been known as a leader among wise women, the Lady of Faire Isle, a title that had passed to Ariane, but she had never felt equal to slipping into her mother’s shoes.
It had been over two years since Ariane had watched the life ebb away from the once indomitable Evangeline. Still, not a day went by that she did not miss her mother’s gentle strength, the wisdom of her counsel.
Oh, Maman, Ariane thought, to be able to hear your voice again. She wondered, would it really be so dreadful, to summon her mother’s spirit, just this once? She knew well what her mother’s answer to that question would have been. Evangeline Cheney had taught her three daughters many marvelous things, but she had solemnly adjured them against any meddling with dark magic.
Ariane forced her attention back to the mess she had made of her workshop. She had most of the broken pottery picked up when she realized that someone was shifting the trap door that concealed the way down to the hidden chamber.
“Ariane?”
Gabrielle’s voice floated down to her from the regions above. Ariane had just enough time to dump the shards of pottery into the ash bin before her sister came down the twisting stone stair with all the air of a grand duchess about to make her curtsy at the royal court.
The girl had been cutting and refitting one of her old gowns again in an effort to appear more fashionable. What had once been a sweet and simple frock had been dyed carnelian and trimmed in a rich pattern of gold embroidery. The full skirts flared out over a farthingale and opened in the front to reveal a cream-colored underskirt frothing with lace. But it was the bodice Ariane eyed with misgiving, cut too low and displaying far too much of Gabrielle’s generous bosom.
As she descended the stairs, Gabrielle lifted her skirts, managing to keep the gown clear of any stray dust with one elegant twitch of her hand. Her hair was of fairest gold, her face noted for its alabaster complexion, full red lips, and jewel-blue eyes.
She was so perfectly lovely that it often made Ariane’s heart ache to look at her. Perhaps because she missed the days when Gabrielle had not been quite so concerned about her appearance, when her little sister had torn about Faire Isle barefoot, her curls in a flyaway tangle, a smudge of paint on her cheek, as she had demanded a fresh canvas to work upon. Her hands had been callused, her nails broken from her latest effort at sculpting.
Now Gabrielle’s hands were soft, her nails perfectly manicured. It was her eyes that seemed in danger of turning hard and brittle.
“Ah, there you are. I have been looking for you everywhere,” she complained. Gabrielle rarely visited the hidden workshop and Ariane was disturbed to realize that she had not made any effort to close the concealing door above them.
“Gabrielle, I do trust that you remember this is supposed to be a secret room.”
“It is not as if all our servants don’t know that the room is here and that we are witches.”
When Ariane frowned at her, Gabrielle rolled her eyes and amended, “Oh, pardon me, I forgot. Witches is a bad word. I should have said wise women.”
“And what about any chance visitor?” Ariane demanded.
“There is no one here. Not unless you count your noble suitor.”
“What! Renard is here?” Ever since Ariane had awakened that morning to discover the mist burned off the island, she had feared his return.
“Just teasing,” Gabrielle grinned.
Ariane recovered her breath. “Blast you, Gabrielle. It is nothing to jest about. You know I have been dreading the comte’s return.”
“Ah, well, if you will persist in rescuing these stray men—”
“He was lost in the woods. All I did was point him to the right path,” Ariane retorted. The first time she had met Renard was on the mainland and he hadn’t seemed frightening or intimidating, only a man who had lost his way in the woods. The Deauville forest covered many acres and could be a treacherous place, full of wild boar and the occasional wolf. Ariane had simply led him back to safety.
She had fully expected that to be the end of the matter, never dreaming that the next time she saw Renard, he would coolly inform her that he had selected her to be his comtesse and he was arranging their wedding. Ariane had puzzled over Renard’s actions so much, it threatened to bring a permanent crease between her eyes.
Gabrielle noticed the familiar frown gathering on Ariane’s brow. “Oh, do stop worrying, Ariane. After the wedding gift we sent Monsieur le Comte—”
“The gift you sent,” Ariane corrected. “You should not have done it, Gabrielle. I don’t think it was wise to insult the comte.”
“Pooh! Insults are the only way to be rid of a man as overbearing as Renard. I doubt he’ll trouble you again.”
Gabrielle’s prank of the straw bride might have temporarily forestalled the comte, but Ariane feared that Renard, like the Deauvilles before him, was not a man to be easily defied.
Ariane turned to clean up the rest of the potion spattered across the table. As it cooled, it turned darker, assuming the appearance of spilled blood.
Gabrielle sashayed around Ariane, glancing down at the mess and wrinkling her nose. “What in the name of all the saints have you been doing down here?”
“Nothing of any success. I was trying to develop a potion to add to the soil and hopefully double our grain crop this year.”
“I thought Maman said we should never attempt to perform black magic.”
“This is science,” Ariane lifted the sopping rag and tossed it into the dustbin. Gabrielle peered at the scorch mark on the table.
“It looks to me like the kind of science that destroys crops instead of growing them.”
“I don’t seem able to get the formula right, but I have to do something to generate more funds.”
Funds that were badly needed to pay off the debts their father had left and insure that her sisters had dowries if Papa did not return. But that was not something that ever concerned Gabrielle.
She shrugged. “Why don’t you try turning lead into gold instead of attempting to burn the house down?”
Ariane glared. Repenting of her teasing, Gabrielle sidled closer to wrap her arm around Ariane’s shoulders and give her a light hug.
“Your fretting is going to give you permanent wrinkles. I have told you before, a woman’s fortune is in her face. You would be better off trying to develop some new skin creams. I could certainly use a new perfume.”
“Another perfume is the last thing you need, Gabrielle. I remember a time when you were far more interested in concocting new shades of color for your palette.”
Excerpted from The Dark Queen by Susan Carroll. Copyright © 2005 by Susan Carroll. Excerpted by permission of Ballantine Books, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
About Susan Carroll
Photo © Brian Westin
Author Q&A
Interview with Susan Carroll, author of The Dark Queen:
Question:Which came first: the idea of setting a novel in sixteenth century France, or the idea of using Catherine de Medici as a main character? Was this different from the way your books usually begin?
Susan Carroll:I have been intrigued by Catherine de Medici and the legends surrounding her for a long time. But my books always begin with my fictional characters. I developed the idea of my three sisters and then decided on a setting that would provide a backdrop to developing their story. Sixteenth century France seemed perfect, with its epidemic of witch-hunts, and, of course, Catherine provided a marvelous villain.
Q:The Dark Queen combines elements of a historical novel, a feminist romance, and a supernatural fantasy. Did you try to strike a particular balance, or just follow where the story led?
SC:I am not an analytical writer. Once I flesh out my characters and decide on the elements of my plot, the story unfolds in my head almost as though it was a movie reel.
Q:Is there a historical basis for the Daughters of the Earth? In many respects, I was reminded of new-age Wiccan practices. But you’re talking about something much, much older.
SC:I have heard a little about the new-age Wiccans, but never really researched them. The Daughters of the Earth are a product of my own invention. But the idea was inspired by what I have read of wise women in Celtic cultures and some American Indian tribes.
Q:How historically accurate is your depiction of the Inquisition? Is Le Vis based on a particular inquisitor?
SC:Le Vis and his order of witch hunters are once again my own invention. As far as I know there was no organized band of traveling witch hunters. The inquisition in France was handled as elsewhere through the church and local governments.
Q:In general, how closely do you feel obligated to follow the historical record in your novels? How much wiggle room do you give yourself?
SC:I freely admit that I took great license in writing The Dark Queen, more so than my other historical romance novels. This is largely because I viewed the book as a fantasy novel as much as an historical. I do feel that writers should strive for as much accuracy as possible, but in the end remember that we are writing fiction. As a reader, I can forgive a writer historical license if the tale is vivid and compelling. But if the story is weak, no matter how great the research, I will set the book aside.
Q:Can the Daughters of the Earth coexist with Christianity–not only in your books, but outside them, in today’s world? Do you think the inquisitorial mindset is returning, as religious fundamentalists seek to exercise greater authority in politics and society?
SC:I did not intend The Dark Queen to be an expression of my own religious beliefs, but I tend to be open-minded. I feel all the religions should be able to co-exist if the various factions would be willing to respect and learn from each other’s faiths. The Daughters of the Earth as I created them believed in harmony with nature, healing and peace. These values certainly are not anti-Christian as I see it.
To answer the second part of your question, I regret to say that I don’t feel that the inquisitional mindset has ever entirely died. I don’t regard witch-hunting as activity based merely on the punishment of heretics. Sadly, I think there is an element in our society that is always ready to persecute anyone who dares to step out of line and to think differently.
Q:Did you come to feel sympathy for Catherine de Medici as you researched her for the novel? She’s a fascinating character.
SC:I definitely felt sympathy for Catherine. Despite her high birth, she never had an easy life. She was orphaned at a young age, nearly killed during the revolts in Florence during her childhood. She was only thirteen when she was married and sent off to a country where she was despised and never considered good enough for their prince. She fell in love with Henry, only to take second place to his mistress until the day he died. She had many children (many of which I did not depict in the novels for lack of space), and yet she outlived nearly all of them. She had to learn to hold her own in a court seething with intrigue and animosity. Despite some of the ruthless activities she was drawn into, the real Catherine essentially was a peacemaker and did her best to bring order to France.
Q:I was intrigued by Catherine’s “Flying Squadron” of beautiful spies and assassins. Did they really exist? How were these women recruited, and how many were there?
SC:Catherine’s Flying Squadron did exist. They were chosen by her for their beauty and intelligence, but were not any sinister, secret organization. They would have seemed to be nothing more than her ladies in waiting. I have no idea of their exact number and I doubt she used them as assassins. They acted more as her spies and helped her keep some of the powerful men at court under control by seducing them.
Q:Justice Deauville, the Comte de Renard, is a man of contradictions: a peasant and an aristocrat, a knight and a wizard, a man who hates his father yet finds himself in danger of becoming very like him. In fact, at the outset of the novel, it’s hard to tell whether he’s a hero or a villain!
SC:Yes, that’s all accurate. I wanted the reader to be as confused and intrigued by him as Ariane is.
Q:As the novel opens, Ariane Cheney is the Lady of Faire Isle, yet she doesn’t feel deserving of that title. Why?
SC:Ariane feels inadequate because she so admired her mother, the former Lady of Faire Isle and lost her too soon. She felt she had so much more to learn from Evangeline before she would be ready to fill her shoes. I never base characters on real people, but this mirrors some of my own experience. My own mother died when I was twenty-two and I still miss her gentle guidance.
Q:Tell us a little about the other two Cheney sisters, Gabrielle and Miri.
SC:Gabrielle is middle Cheney sister, exquisitely beautiful and at one time a gifted artist. But a devastating incident causes her to lose her magic with paint and canvas. She strives to seem worldly wise and cynical, but beneath all her bravado lies a painful secret and a wounded soul.
Miri is the youngest, an ethereal fairy child, far more comfortable with animals than she is with people. She possesses an uncanny gift for communicating with four-legged creatures, but she is also cursed with prophetic dreams. Shy, gentle and trusting, she sees good in everyone until her trust is betrayed.
Q:Was the character of Melusine based on an actual person?
SC:No, Melusine is purely a fictional creation. There were occasionally peasant revolts in France. I just invented a witch to be the leader of one.
Q:Your descriptions of the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre are harrowing. Did you find contemporary accounts in your research?
SC:I came across many descriptions of the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. Using these accounts, I created fictional characters, Nicolas Remy and his friends, the Devereaux family, to illustrate the horrors and sadness of one of the darkest events in French history.
Q:There are a number of fairy tale motifs in the novel: the magic rings, the three wishes, and so on. Are fairy tales a source of inspiration to you?
SC:I have always adored fairy tales. I devoured the works of Hans Christian Anderson and the Brothers Grimm as a child.
Q:There are two more novels to come in the trilogy, the next featuring Gabrielle, and then one with Miri, the youngest Cheney sister. Can you give us a preview of these books? Will we be seeing more of Simon, Le Vis’s young apprentice? And what of the missing Chevalier Cheney?
SC:The next book in the series will be The Courtesan. This continues Gabrielle’s story as she journeys to Paris to pursue her destiny. Determined never to feel vulnerable or helpless again, she pursues one of the few paths to power that was open to a woman, by becoming a courtesan. Her ambitions will once more put her into conflict with Catherine de Medici. Gabrielle will also be obliged to choose between ambition and love.
Simon Aristide will definitely play an important role in the next two books, and readers will finally learn the fate of the missing Chevalier Cheney in book three. The next two books will also introduce many new characters, some heroes, some villains.
Q:What other projects are you working on?
SC:I am currently finishing the third book (as yet untitled), which will be Miri’s story. I also have an idea for a possible fourth book in this series dealing with a character that will be introduced in The Courtesan, but I cannot say more without giving too much away.
Also, I have had so many requests from fans regarding more St. Leger tales that I have begun a notebook outlining the plots for three more books about the cursed family from Cornwall. As I currently envision the stories, these books will deal with three brothers and carry the St. Legers into the Victorian era.
Praise
“An intoxicating brew of poignant romance, turbulent history, and mesmerizing magic.”–Karen Harper, author of The Fyre Mirror
“Utterly perfect–rich, compelling, and full of surprises. A fabulous, feminist fantasy from a masterful storyteller that’s bound to be one of the best books of the year!”
–Elizabeth Grayson, author of Moon in the Water
Discussion Guides
1. The Dark Queen is set in France, in 1572, where the rule of the Valois line, and the behind-the-throne power of Catherine de Medici, is threatened by religious ferment between Catholics and Protestant Huguenots. Why do you think the author chose to set her book in this place and time?
2. The novel begins with a recounting of the legend of the Daughters of the Earth, a sect of women devoted to a mother goddess whose history precedes the Catholic Church. Do you believe there is any truth to this legend? Were there really such “wise women” in Renaissance France?
3. The Daughters of the Earth make a distinction between black magic and white magic. The Catholic Church and its witch-hunting inquisitors do not agree; to them, all magic is evil. What is your opinion?
4. Catherine de Medici is presented as a villain, a Daughter of the Earth who has chosen to follow the path of black magic. But given the time and her position, not to mention the difficulties faced by any woman of talent and ambition in a male-dominated society, is she really to be condemned for utilizing every advantage in the struggle for power? Is she being held to a different standard than would apply to a man of the time?
5. How important is historical accuracy in a romance like the Dark Queen? Where do you think that the author strays from the historical record, and why?
6. Ariane Cheney inherits the title and responsibilities of the Lady of Faire Isle from her mother. Does that mean she is the wisest or the most powerful Daughter of the Earth on the island? If not, what is the significance of the title?
7. Magic involving the dead is known as necromancy and is generally viewed as the blackest of black magic. Yet Ariane employs necromancy three times in order to commune with the spirit of her mother. Doesn’t that make her evil, regardless of her intentions?
8. Is the spirit of Ariane’s mother too quick to forgive her husband for his betrayal of her with one of the Dark Queen’s Flying Squadron? And is Ariane to slow to forgive him?
9. Why is Gabrielle Cheney so suspicious of the Comte de Renard? Are her suspicions justified in any way?
10. How did Gabrielle lose her powers? Do you believe her powers are truly gone, or is she psychologically blocked from using them
11. What abilities set Miri apart from her older sisters?
12. Do you think the portrayal of the Inquisition in The Dark Queen is a fair and accurate one?
13. What evidence is there in the novel that the religious beliefs of the Daughters of the Earth are valid? Is there any evidence in the novel for the validity of the religious beliefs of Catholics and Protestants? On the whole, where do you think the author’s sympathies lie?
14. What initially draws Justice Deauville, the Comte de Renard, to Ariane?
15. If you were a woman pursued by Renard in the manner that he pursues Ariane, how would you react?
16. What is the magic of the rings worn by Ariane and Renard? Are the rings black magic?
17. How are Melusine and Catherine de Medici alike? In what ways are they different? Which did you find a more sympathetic character, and why?
18. There are many traditional fairy tale motifs in this romance. How many can you identify? How has the author adapted them to her story?
- The Dark Queen by Susan Carroll
- March 29, 2005
- Fiction - Historical; Fiction; Fiction - Romance - Historical
- Ballantine Books
- $13.95
- 9780345437969
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