A rose for virtue

by Norah Lofts

Hortense Beauharnais finds herself rubbing shoulders with royalty when her mother remarries to become the wife of Napoleon Bonaparte. As Napoleon struggles for power on the battlefields of Europe, so Hortense navigates her way through the French court - a precarious chessboard world where the motivations are jealousy and greed and the prizes are the thrones of conquered countries. Despite attempts to retain her individuality, Hortense soon finds herself married to Napoleon's younger brother Louis - who is later crowned King of Holland. However, Hortense's heart belongs to Charles de Flahaut, a gallant young officer. Unwilling to cross her stepfather, Hortense must bide her time and wait and see whether time will take her to her lover.

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Chappie’s discussion starters

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

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