MADELEINE | main

Madeleine wakes to a landscape of sea and sand, all of her memories lost. Soon, the bustling sights and sounds of early 19th century France surround her. From Paris’ thriving streets to the rolling country hills, she follows her unfolding memories through the nation of her childhood.

During The Memory Chase series, France is under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte. The country had suffered from years of civil unrest and a revolution that restructured French society forever. Those years were colored with foreign wars, assassination plots, and shifting political powers.

France was a volatile, frightening place during the war, launching aftershocks that would last for decades. Families were torn apart, entire villages burned to the ground, neighbors converted to enemies. The nation’s traditional Roman Catholic roots were ripped apart, the ideals of nationalism and reason replacing them. Many of the aristocracy fled, their king and queen beheaded, the monarchy abolished.

It’s no wonder that unrest remains during Madeleine’s adulthood. She wakes not only to a barren memory, but a plot to destroy the new empire. Before the Revolution, France had operated under the rule of a monarch in some form or another for nearly a thousand years. Those who remained loyal to the House of Bourbon had to watch Napoleon, a native Corsican, crown himself emperor. Then, after repeated clashes with Pope Pius VII, Napoleon had the religious leader abducted from the Vatican.

In a time of incredible turmoil, Madeleine must rely on the skills she has acquired throughout a difficult life to navigate a perplexing world. This is a story of love, strength, and self-realization, a mystery that unfolds to the reader as layers of one woman’s life open to her. So come to Paris, to the ancient walls of the Château des Rêves, to the verdant beaches of Traitor Isle. I hope you have fun exploring Madeleine’s life along with her and finding a little adventure along the way.