Madame Tussaud: a novel of the French Revolution

Have you ever been to a Madame Tussaud Wax Museum?  Ever wonder who she was and how she got started?  Madame Tussaud: a novel of the French Revolution (#68) by Michelle Moran tells the story of Marie Grosholz and how she rose to prominence during the French Revolution.

Marie's uncle ran a weekly salon at their Paris wax museum, the Salon de Cire.  The men who were influential in the Revolutionary movement - Robespierre, Marat, Demoulins, the Duc d'Orleans - all attended and were well known to the family.  The museum was also visited by the Royal Family and Marie herself was invited to Versailles to tutor Madame Elizabeth, the king's sister, in wax modeling.  The family walked an ever more perilous political and emotional tightrope as they scrambled to adjust their wax tableaus to keep up with currrent events and their heads on their shoulders as the monarchy collapsed and the Revolution ignited.

Ms. Moran does a good job of creating suspense in a story whose outcome is already known.  This is a change in period and place for her, since her three previous novels dealt with ancient Egypt.  Ms. Moran does take some liberties with the historical record in the narrative, but she does introduce a very interesting minor character in the person of Grace Elliott. 

I recently read a biography of Grace Elliott, mistress to both the Duc d'Orleans and the Prince of Wales among others - My Lady Scandalous: the amazing life and outrageous times of Grace Dalrymple Elliott, royal courtesan by Jo Manning.  If you find the period of the French Revolution interesting, you might enjoy Elliott's perspective of the unfolding events and her miraculous escape from the guillotine.

Another aside for one of my pet hobbyhorses: I hated the cover of Madame Tussaud.  The publishers would have been better served putting together composite images that didn't strike such a false note.  The model in the photograph is wearing a dark brown pouf with a cheap theatrical costume dress.  It's so wrong, it's off-putting.  I'm glad I persisted and read the book anyway!