In 1677 the French court was rocked by a plot to assassinate King Louis XIV. Many high-ranking noblemen and -women were implicated, including the monarch's own mistress, Madame de Montespan, mother of his illegitimate children. "The Affair of the Poisons," as it came to be known, was carefully hushed up to avoid public scandal, and the perpetrators quietly disposed of. This dramatic account of the uncovering of the murder scheme is simple, straightforward, and immensely powerful in its rendition of an almost incredible real-life event.