6 h 54 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 6 h 54 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the love you cannot resist threatens the honor you most want to protect?
At the glittering court of King Henri II, ambition and love affairs fill every room. The young Princess of Cleves arrives with her mother’s lessons firmly in mind: virtue matters more than pleasure. She marries the Prince of Cleves, an honorable man she respects but does not love.
Then a dance at a royal ball brings her face to face with the Duke of Nemours. Charming, brave and admired, he awakens feelings she cannot command. In The Princess of Cleves, Madame de La Fayette follows glances, silences and small decisions as a young woman struggles between passion and duty.
What you’ll discover
- A court of secrets Enter rooms where love affairs, ambition and gossip surround a heroine who longs for peace.
- A heart divided Follow the princess as respect for her husband meets her powerful attraction to Nemours.
- A mother's watchful love Meet Madame de Chartres, whose warnings reveal how much her daughter’s reputation matters.
- The weight of honesty Consider what truth and self-control cost when feelings refuse to follow a clear moral path.
- Drama in small gestures Discover a quiet novel where a glance or silence carries the force of deep feeling.
Who will love it
Readers who love royal courts and historical settings will enjoy this quiet emotional drama. It rewards those who like clear storytelling and thoughtful looks at hidden feelings, love, marriage, and honor.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A guarded heart enters the court
- Esteem does not become love
- A dance awakens unexpected feeling
- Her mother recognizes the danger
- Jealousy reveals what silence hides
- Honesty wounds the marriage it protects
- Duty does not erase desire
- Private feelings become public currency
- Every choice carries an inward cost
Who’s who
- Princess of ClevesA virtuous young heiress raised by her mother to fear passion, she wants to honor her husband yet cannot stop loving another man.
- Prince of ClevesA generous, brave nobleman who loves his wife deeply and wants her heart as well as her loyalty.
- Duke de NemoursThe most charming man at court, a famous lover who gives up his usual conquests and even a crown for one woman.
- Madame de ChartresThe heroine's watchful mother, who teaches her daughter to distrust love and to guard her reputation at any cost.
- Viscount de ChartresThe princess's uncle and Nemours's close friend, a gallant courtier tangled in secret affairs and the queen's jealousy.
- Queen-DauphinMary Stuart, young wife of the heir, who befriends the princess and loves to learn court secrets.
- Chevalier de GuiseA loyal, open-hearted prince who loves the heroine from the first day and reads her feelings sooner than anyone.
Formats and delivery
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- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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The Princess of Cleves
by Madame de La Fayette · 1678
A young wife kneels before her husband and confesses a love she has never acted on, in the court of Henry II.
Challenging2–5 hours to readEnglish
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In short
Picture a ballroom in Paris, with the king and both queens looking on, as a young wife dances for the first time with a man she has never met. The whole room senses that something has begun.
The Princess of Cleves at a glance
- Reading time
- About 3 h 55 min3 h 5 min fast, 4 h 40 min slow
- Length
- 55,800 words
- Library level
- Challenging long sentences, a rich vocabulary
- First published
- 1678by Madame de La Fayette
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A glittering court shapes a guarded young heiress
The story opens in the final years of Henry II's reign, when the French court shines with beauty, music, tournaments, and rivalry. The king loves the older Diana of Poitiers, Duchess of Valentinois, and she holds great power over him. Love and business are tangled so tightly that nobody can tell where one ends.
Into this world comes a girl of sixteen, one of the richest heiresses in France. Her mother, Madame de Chartres, has raised her in the country and shaped her intelligence and virtue. Unlike most mothers, she speaks openly of love, then lays out its dangers, the falseness of men and the misery of a wrong attachment. She asks to hear about every flirtation her daughter meets, and offers advice as a friend.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1678
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 4 h 30 min
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
La Fayette, Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne. The Princess of Cleves. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-princess-of-cleves.
La Fayette, M.-M. P. de L. V. (2026). The Princess of Cleves. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-princess-of-cleves (Original work published 1678)
La Fayette, Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne. The Princess of Cleves. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-princess-of-cleves.
@book{lafayette2026princess,
author = {La Fayette, Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne},
title = {The Princess of Cleves},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-princess-of-cleves},
note = {First published 1678}
}
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What is The Princess of Cleves about?
It follows a young noblewoman at the court of Henry II who marries a good man, then falls in love with the Duke de Nemours. She struggles to stay true to her duty while her feelings grow.
Is The Princess of Cleves a true story?
The setting and many people, such as Henry II, Diane de Poitiers, and the Guise family, are real. The princess and her story are invented. Madame de La Fayette published the novel in 1678, about a century after the events.
Why does the princess confess to her husband?
She wants to keep herself from acting on her feelings for Nemours. She asks her husband to let her leave court, hoping honesty and distance will protect both her duty and her marriage.
The author
Madame de La Fayette
1634–1693 · French novelist
Madame de La Fayette (1634–1693) was a French writer born in Paris, where she also died. Her name was Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne. She married François de La Fayette in 1655. Her published works include La Princesse de Montpensier (1662) and La Princesse de Clèves (1678).
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