Love and terror

the long version

Joseph Fouche, chief of Robespierre's personal police, is a cold-blooded revolutionary whose loyalty to the regime has come into question: he is unwittingly falling in love with Nenette, a former prisoner he saved from the guillotine. Because of her uncanny resemblance to Marie Antoinette, Fouche had planned to use her to entrap other royalists, but now passion is eating away at his hard heart. When Marie Antoinette escapes from prison on the eve of her trial, Fouche, who had been charged with her safekeeping and execution, covers up her absence in the only way he can: he substitutes Nenette for the queen. If the real queen is not found by morning, Nenette will go to the guillotine in her place, to save the Revolution and Fouche's own neck. Love and Terror offers a mesmerizing and meticulously researched portrayal of Parisian life during this strange and violent era - where anyone might be an informant and the most cunning maneuverings are required simply to survive.