The High Place

In the enchanted, ironic world of Poictesme, young Florian de Puysange grows from a questioning child into a restless nobleman shaped by wonder, wit, and disillusionment. A forbidden journey to the mysterious high place in the forest of Acaire leads him into a realm of monsters, sleeping royals, and lonely beauties, where Mélusine teaches him that even terror has its own dignity and that childhood visions may feel truer than waking life. Back in Storisende, his elegant father, the third Duke of Puysange, turns that adventure into family lore, gently schooling Florian in the Puysange creed of tact, discretion, and never offending another's notions. As Florian learns his lineage, he also learns desire: for Melior, for honor, for the strange obligations of love and power. The novel widens into satirical reflections on ancestry, marriage, and social maneuvering, while little Raoul, unhappy Mademoiselle Berthe, and Florian's later affairs add comic and melancholy texture. Florian's encounters with the old gods at the Feast of the Wheel and his dawn bargaining with Janicot deepen the tale's blend of fairy tale, mock-heroic history, and philosophical fantasy, where enchantment is always shadowed by loss, and every bargain carries its cost. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.