Honoré de Balzac’s Cousin Bette: Poor Relations, Part One is one of the most powerful works in La Comédie Humaine, a dark portrait of 19th-century Paris where ambition, betrayal, and obsession collide. At the center of the story stands Bette, a woman driven by jealousy and resentment, whose schemes entangle aristocrats, artists, and financiers alike. Through her story, Balzac reveals the fragility of family bonds, the lure of desire, and the destructive force of revenge, offering a vivid depiction of a society torn between old traditions and modern corruption.
Pages: 448
Publication Year: 1965 (Penguin Classics edition)
Publisher: Penguin Books
Language: English
Original Language: French
Translator: Marion Ayton Crawford
Intended Age: Adult
