In June 1777, nineteen-year-old Marquis de Lafayette landed in the
American colonies to fight in their revolution, and the rest, as they
say, is history. But over time many truths have been stretched,
including, most recently, a singing role in a hit Broadway musical.
Still, the great historical mystery remains: how did the character of
the young Gilbert de Lafayette develop? Lafayette wrote his own words
about his early life serving as an elder statesman in the French Chamber
of Deputies, and, as such, they were shaded both to the heroic, as well
as to the political climate of the day.
S.P. Grogan writes a fascinating fictional narrative about Gilbert
Lafayette and his coming-of-age in the mid-1770s amidst the decadence of
Queen Marie Antoinette's French court. The story begins with young
Gilbert swearing to avenge his military father's death at the hands of
the British. The reader will track how a country boy of Auvergne became
the richest orphan in France, and how forces behind the throne, trying
to gain control over his fortune, seek to marry him off to a
twelve-year-old girl to support one of the most powerful military castes
in France.
Lafayette - Courtier to Crown Fugitive is an 'action' story of highway
robbers, spies, and court intrigues. The reader can see the developing
psychological make-up of Lafayette: his search for a father-figure, his
need for supportive love, and his blind passion for glory and fame. What
is revealed is a young boy in the throes of transformation under the
influences of Queen Marie Antoinette's lifestyle of spoiled privilege,
his attitude toward his young wife in a forced marriage, the secrets of
the Masonic fraternity, the writings of Voltaire, the Encyclopédistes,
and the voice of the anti-slavery Abbot Raynal. All come together to
transform his mindset, as Gilbert, blinded by class liberté idealism,
seeks to run away to join the American revolutionary army. In doing so,
he becomes a fugitive from the King's edicts, and his ensuing flight and
pursuit climax in a showdown on the beaches of Spain.
Author S.P. Grogan is a best-selling author specializing in historical
fiction. His other books include Vegas Die: A Quest Mystery.
