dangerous liaisons by pierre choderlos de laclos

On the plus side the prose is superb - like eating a large and rich box of chocolates. The book, in contrast does not so much dwell on as wallow in the detail and to the modern reader it does drag, particularly in the middle and it beggars belief somewhat that people wrote such long, articulate and closely argued letters to one another. The movie managed to retain the complex relationships between the characters, and the moral ambiguity of the story, but it had a much sharper focus and narrative drive. I did enjoy this book but it was somewhat spoilt for me for having seen the excellent movie starring John Malkovich and Glenn Close (the updated version with Sarah Michelle Gellar is pretty good too). The audio quality may not be up to modern day standards.Īn interesting but very old fashioned book Please note: This is a vintage recording. Pierre Ambroise Francois Choderlos de Laclos (1741 - 1803) was a French novelist, official and army general. The relevance of this grew due to the ensuing the French Revolution.

It depicts a decadent and corrupt aristocracy exposing the perversions of the so-called Ancien Regime. The story, composed entirely of letters written by the various characters to each other, tells of the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont, two rivals who use sex as a weapon to humiliate and degrade others,The story, composed entirely of letters written by the various characters to each other, tells of the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont, two rivals who use sex as a weapon to humiliate and degrade othersThe story, composed entirely of letters written by the various characters to each other, tells of the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont, two rivals who use sex as a weapon to humiliate and degrade others, uncaring of those who face social ruin or whose hearts are broken.

Les Liaisons dangereuses (Dangerous Liaisons) is a French epistolary novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos.įirst published in four volumes by Durand Neveu from March 23, 1782, the book cause scandal on its release.

Dangerous liaisons by pierre choderlos de laclos