The twentieth book: #20 The Princess of Cleves - Madame de Lafayette
This is a French courtly love story, set in the French courts of the day - and indeed written by someone who was there. Published anonymously, Madame de Lafayette became the credited writer, set in the courts she moved in herself. Indeed, apparently the details of court life are fairly accurate.
It's an interesting read - somewhat for the love stories, although that doesn't feel quite as accurate - but because of the way court life is described. Not romanticized, as we might do now, writing partially to what we'd expect it to be like - but nothing too ugly either. There are in fact some historical seeming details, concerning political maneuvering of which princes married which and what power they got. It's sort of interesting, but probably less so now as it was at the time.
Those get a bit tedious at times, but on the whole it makes for an interesting read, seeming fairly modern in set up and apparently set up the psychological novel for the future. I am looking forward to seeing where this will lead.