“Beautiful and poignant.” —Allison Pataki, NY Times best-selling author of The Queen’s Fortune
“Moving compassion, humor, and wit.” — Sandra Gulland, author of The Josephine B. Trilogy
With its delightful adaptation of Napoleon Bonaparte’s real attempt to write a novel, Finding Napoleon offers a fresh take on Europe’s most powerful man after he’s lost everything. A forgotten woman of history—the audacious Albine de Montholon—narrates their tale of intrigue, love, and betrayal.
After the defeated Emperor Napoleon goes into exile on tiny St. Helena Island in the remote South Atlantic, he and his lover, Albine de Montholon, plot to escape and rescue his young son. Banding together African slaves, British sympathizers, a Jewish merchant, a Corsican rogue, and French followers, they confront British opposition—as well as treachery within their own ranks—with sometimes subtle, sometimes bold, but always desperate action.
When Napoleon and Albine break faith with one another, ambition and Albine’s husband threaten their reconciliation. To survive, Albine must decide whom to betray. To succeed, Napoleon must learn whom to trust.
Two hundred years after Napoleon’s death, this elegant, richly researched novel reveals the man history conceals.
Genre: Historical
“Moving compassion, humor, and wit.” — Sandra Gulland, author of The Josephine B. Trilogy
With its delightful adaptation of Napoleon Bonaparte’s real attempt to write a novel, Finding Napoleon offers a fresh take on Europe’s most powerful man after he’s lost everything. A forgotten woman of history—the audacious Albine de Montholon—narrates their tale of intrigue, love, and betrayal.
After the defeated Emperor Napoleon goes into exile on tiny St. Helena Island in the remote South Atlantic, he and his lover, Albine de Montholon, plot to escape and rescue his young son. Banding together African slaves, British sympathizers, a Jewish merchant, a Corsican rogue, and French followers, they confront British opposition—as well as treachery within their own ranks—with sometimes subtle, sometimes bold, but always desperate action.
When Napoleon and Albine break faith with one another, ambition and Albine’s husband threaten their reconciliation. To survive, Albine must decide whom to betray. To succeed, Napoleon must learn whom to trust.
Two hundred years after Napoleon’s death, this elegant, richly researched novel reveals the man history conceals.
Genre: Historical
Praise for this book
"In her haunting historical novel, Finding Napoleon, Margaret Rodenberg bookends the Emperor’s life. She enlarges upon his own semi-autobiographical novel, giving us insight into his early days, contrasting them with the contracted, duplicitous court that accompanied him into captivity on St. Helena after Waterloo. And yet, it is through unexpected friendships forged on the island, his tumultuous final love affair with Albine de Montholon, and a longing for the son he’s lost that we truly do find Napoleon during these, his last days. Highly recommended." - Michelle Cameron
"Rodenberg inventively uses Bonaparte’s own unfinished novel to tell the story of the despot’s rise to power, which she juxtaposes against the story of his last love affair. Told creatively and with excellent research!" - Stephanie Dray
"From the first words, Finding Napoleon by Margaret Rodenberg enchanted me. Exceptionally well researched, the writing is vibrant, the details evocative. The story of Napoleon's final years is conveyed with moving compassion, humor, and wit. I love Margaret Rodenberg's writing and I look forward to reading more by her. Highly recommended!" - Sandra Gulland
"Napoleon Bonaparte’s life was an incredible, inspiring, and ultimately tragic epic. In Finding Napoleon, readers enter deep into both the beginning and the end of that exceptional drama as Margaret Rodenberg brings to life the inner circle of the ailing emperor as he spends his final years in exile on the remote island of St Helena. No one is more qualified to tell this sweeping tale than Margaret Rodenberg—her research is in a league of its own, and her writing is beautiful and poignant." - Allison Pataki
"A tale within a tale, Finding Napoleon creates three vivid characters—Napoleon in exile, Napoleon becoming a young military hero, and Albine de Montholon, his last and little-known love. Through superb writing, Margaret Rodenberg brings history to life while offering insights into the passions that drove this man to greatness. Highly recommended." - M K Tod
"Finding Napoleon is a fascinating look at Napoleon as a writer of romance, a tender father, and a mature lover examining happier times amid the trials of his life in St. Helena—a side to him not often explored, and one I found completely enrapturing. His forgotten lover, Albine de Montholon, adds an intriguing dimension. Rodenberg’s sense of revolutionary culture and period detail sparkle and her storytelling is truly absorbing. A winner!" - Heather Webb
"Rodenberg inventively uses Bonaparte’s own unfinished novel to tell the story of the despot’s rise to power, which she juxtaposes against the story of his last love affair. Told creatively and with excellent research!" - Stephanie Dray
"From the first words, Finding Napoleon by Margaret Rodenberg enchanted me. Exceptionally well researched, the writing is vibrant, the details evocative. The story of Napoleon's final years is conveyed with moving compassion, humor, and wit. I love Margaret Rodenberg's writing and I look forward to reading more by her. Highly recommended!" - Sandra Gulland
"Napoleon Bonaparte’s life was an incredible, inspiring, and ultimately tragic epic. In Finding Napoleon, readers enter deep into both the beginning and the end of that exceptional drama as Margaret Rodenberg brings to life the inner circle of the ailing emperor as he spends his final years in exile on the remote island of St Helena. No one is more qualified to tell this sweeping tale than Margaret Rodenberg—her research is in a league of its own, and her writing is beautiful and poignant." - Allison Pataki
"A tale within a tale, Finding Napoleon creates three vivid characters—Napoleon in exile, Napoleon becoming a young military hero, and Albine de Montholon, his last and little-known love. Through superb writing, Margaret Rodenberg brings history to life while offering insights into the passions that drove this man to greatness. Highly recommended." - M K Tod
"Finding Napoleon is a fascinating look at Napoleon as a writer of romance, a tender father, and a mature lover examining happier times amid the trials of his life in St. Helena—a side to him not often explored, and one I found completely enrapturing. His forgotten lover, Albine de Montholon, adds an intriguing dimension. Rodenberg’s sense of revolutionary culture and period detail sparkle and her storytelling is truly absorbing. A winner!" - Heather Webb
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