Bette, an excruciatingly cunning, poor relation of the beautiful Adeline, nurses a terrible grudge against her cousin"s family, on whom she depends. That family is slowly being ruined by the uncontrollable sexual appetites of Adelines husband, Baron Hulot--appetites that will, in time, give Cousin Bette opportunity to exact her vengeance.One of Balzac"s scenes of Parisian life, Cousin Bette is a hypnotic vision of the infinitely varied city during the bright, vital, scandalous, and sexually untrammeled era of King Louis-Philippe. The courtesans, swindlers, bankers, artists, murderers, detectives, and saints that pass before us blaze with an unsurpassed vividness and energy.One of the most profound examinations of obsessive passion we have, this masterpiece exemplifies what Henry James described as Balzac"s huge, all-compassing, all-desiring, all-devouring love of reality.