King, queens, favorite. It is in the form of such a magic triangle that the entire elite history of France of the 15th-18th centuries is considered by the historian, graduate of the Sorbonne, Guy Chaussinant-Nogaret. Before us are a succession of queens - brilliant, strong and smart (Louise of Savoy, Anna of Brittany or Anna of Austria), sophisticated in intrigues (Catherine and Marie Medici or Mary Stuart), as well as weak and faceless (Charlotte of Savoy, Claude of France or Maria Leshchinskaya) . Each of them is shown by the author brightly and uniquely. No less convincingly in the book are the images of famous favorites recreated: Agnes Sorel, Louise Lavaliere, Marquise Pompadour, Marquise Montespan, Diane de Poitiers, who had a secret and obvious influence on the life and politics of kings. The author of the book did a lot to understand the true role of women in the history of a romantic era so remote from us.