Louis XIV was pretty well known for his many romantic liaisons. He was married to Maria Theresa of Spain. Together, they had six children, with one surviving to adulthood. He seemed to care for her a great deal, but was never faithful to her. He took a second wife after her death. He took a slew of mistresses, including Françoise-Athénaïs, Marquise de Montespan. He had multiple illegitimate children with these women. His second wife was actually a caregiver for Athenais' children, which is how he came to know her. The lives of the women were really interesting to read about. The only one that I was familiar with was Athenais.

I enjoy Antonia Fraser's work. I have all of her books, except one. She always does a tremendous amount of research into whoever she is writing about. I always learn new things when I read her books, and this one was no exception. I enjoyed learning about these women and what court life was like in the time of Louis XIV. Fraser always writes in a way that tells the facts and a story that isn't boring to read. I liked this book a lot.