The Bashful Lover (Novels of Paul de Kock Volume XIX)

"The Bashful Lover" by Paul de Kock is a novel that starts in 1818, during a wedding celebrating Monsieur le Marquis de Grandvilain, almost seventy, and Mademoiselle Aménaïde Dufoureau, forty-four, who after years of affection and resistance, finally agreed to be with him. The book discusses love, age, and what people expect from society by mixing humor with character studies. It presents the old marquis and his new, younger wife, showing their wedding party and backgrounds. Monsieur de Grandvilain, once charming but now happy in age, decides to marry Aménaïde, who has waited for real love. Through lively words and humor, the book shows their relationship, which started years ago but is now happening, which hints at problems they may face as older newlyweds and how society sees their marriage.