Devil in the Flesh cover

Devil in the Flesh

by Raymond Radiguet

The Devil in the Flesh, one of the finest, most delicate love stories ever written, is set in Paris during the last year of the First World War. The narrator, a boy of sixteen, tells of his love affair with Martha Lacombe, a young woman whose soldier husband is away at the Front. The liaison soon becomes a scandal and their friends, horrified and incredulous, refuse to accept what is happening -- even when the affair reaches its tragic climax. Raymond Radiguet wrote The Devil in the Flesh between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, drawing on his own adolescent love affair with an older woman. He died from typhoid fever at the age of twenty.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?