Die letzte Begegnung is a wondrously worded novella about the supposed last meeting between the Marquise de Motespan and her formal rival for the attentions of Louis XIV, Louise de La Vallière who is now a Carmelite nun. The sparse elevated prose heightens the suspense at this meeting between two old foes who have forgotten nothing with the passing of time, even if it did cause me to resort to the dictionary a bit.

An excellent meditation on sin and grace, recommended for anyone who can read the German. Gertrud von le Fort is probably best known in English for [The Song at the Scaffold] about Carmelite nuns executed during the French Revolution. ( )