Poetic Justice for a French Executioner - an Editorial Review of "The Truest Son of France"

Book Blurb:

Over 200 years after the death of Louis-Benoit Zamor, the saga inspired by his life comes to an end.

As the French Révolution devolves to the brutal Reign of Terror, the executioner's constant hush-swish song of the guillotine's blade rends the Parisian air with cruel indifference. But Louis-Benoit Zamor is determined to survive his own hunt, even if it means severing his connection with Jeanne du Barry.

Driven by the mysteries of his past, Zamor will journey for answers and, along the way, find a new sense of self. Finally, he'll lead his own type of revolution through written word. But is his effort too little, too late? And will it protect him against judgement from those who only see him as a traitorous servant?

Told through the eyes of a man who straddled times and worlds, read the final chapter in the epic trilogy re-imagining the unexplored life of a fascinating man.

C'est la justice poétique.

Poetic Justice ... and all that.

Book Buy Link: https://geni.us/da5b7E

Editorial Review:

Title: The Truest Son of France: The Last Favorite’s Page: Book Three

Author: Patti Flinn

Rating: 4.5

"The Truest Son of France: The Last Favorite's Page: Book Three" by Patti Flinn is a gripping and dark character study set against the backdrop of the French Revolution's most violent period, the Reign of Terror (1793-1794). It follows Louis-Benoit Zamor, a man of Indian origin who was enslaved as a child and gifted to the French court. He is intelligent, well-educated, and deeply resentful of his lifelong captivity in which he has served as a servant to the infamous mistress of King Louis XV. The core of his story is a journey from a captive seeking freedom to an active agent of destruction.

“I have no moon, Véronique. And I hope to be the absolute best monster I can be. That’s what they’ve made me. And I’ll enjoy that life! It’s clear to me now. My purpose has only ever been to do my part to overturn this vile, putrid way of life or die trying... And I can’t do what I need to do with you around lecturing me... and all that. You’re a burden around my neck. An anchor. Well, I release you. Live your life, free woman, and leave me to live mine.”

Zamor's speech here is not a spontaneous outburst of anger but a chillingly coherent manifesto in which he announces the death of his old self, and the birth of a new identity. The grammar has been carefully crafted, mirroring his psychological state which is a volatile mix of cold calculation and desperate, seething emotion. The short descriptive sentences "I have no moon," "And I will enjoy that life," and "An Anchor," are punches of finality that mimic the doors slamming shut on his old self and on his argument with Véronique. It's structured like a logical argument, that builds from a premise to an inescapable, cruel conclusion. The reader is not witnessing a rant but a coronation. The delivery here is cold and terrifying especially in his embrace of evil as a goal.

“Oui, Madame, you should have.” I nodded vigorously. “They were right! I was miserable. I begged you to let me go. All I ever asked for was my freedom. All these years watching you help to pay for the escape of your noble friends and generals so they could go where they wanted with all their riches and money intact. Half of them are already criminals themselves, stealing from sans-culottes and calling it their due. Noble after noble after noble... coming here to be wined and dined. Setting them up for a comfortable life! Harboring criminals trying to avoid prosecution. Shifting piles of assets from one place to another to make sure your wealthy friends could be safe to live their lives of privilege. Shuffling money to build yourself a new home in England all while denying me the most basic freedom!”

This passage brings out Zamor's other side. He steps from the role of a wronged servant into a public prosecutor role laying charges against the du Barry and the entire aristocratic system. Here, there is repetition of words such as "Noble after noble after noble," which creates a powerful, rhythmic, and overwhelming effect that naturally hammers the point home. The lack of commas or pauses reflects his inability as a wounded man to hold back certain truths. The moment is a critical point of no return in the plot, and the point the fuse is lit for a violent conflict that is covered in the third act of the novel.

"My life didn’t end when Madame’s did. I know that comes as a surprise to some who never truly saw me as a human being in the first place. But, Citizen, at this point in these journals you must know that the will to survive has always been strong in me. You also know I’m a thinking man. And you know that the link between us has always been more of what was put upon us rather than what was true.

Of course, I knew they would come for me. But I thought if I could make myself of new value, it might save me... Madame was gone, and I now had to survive another hunt with new hunters... and all that."

This is a critical passage that shows Zamor fully shed the skin of a revolutionary agent and define himself in his most fundamental, enduring trait- a survivor. He is directly addressing the reader, in a tone that is weary, defiant, and strikingly self-aware. The sentences are long, reflecting a mind that has turned over those thoughts for a long time. The words feel like the words of someone tired of taking stock of his life. Although the protagonist has achieved his goal, these words reveal his understanding that life is a continuous struggle for agency, in a hostile world. Lastly, through them, he forces the reader into the position of a juror, compelling them to see the nuance and reject the simple label of "monster."

"The Truest Son of France: The Last Favorite's Page: Book Three" by Patti Flinn is a unique read that asks whether the reader can root for a man seeking freedom when his method is to become as ruthless as his oppressors. It challenges the simplistic "good vs. evil" binary and explores the morally grey, psychologically devastating reality of fighting for liberation from within a system of absolute power. Lovers of complex, morally gray antiheroes as well as devotees of literary and character-driven historical fiction will love it for its deep dive into a forgotten life.

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