Where the Shy Nerdy Guy Gets the Girl

The Black Tulip by Alexandre Dumas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a historical adventure romance--sort of. The history part comes right at the beginning, with the lynching of two Dutch politicians, Johan de Witt and his brother Cornelis, by a mob at The Hague that supported the House of Orange. That part is quite true, including the dismemberment part. Dumas thoughtfully left out the cannibalism. The rest concerns another character, Cornelis van Baerle, the godson of Cornelis de Witt. Just before the lynching, de Witt sent an urgent note to van Baerle to burn a packet of letters he had given him to hold. The advice comes too late, and van Baerle is arrested with them in his possession. (His neighbor is the nemesis who turned him in. More on him later.) In fact, he never actually reads the note or the letters, but is convicted just the same.

He carries away three bulbs with him, the result of his long efforts to grow a black tulip, which comes with a prize of 100,000 guilders. While in prison, he falls in love with the sweet daughter of the jailor, Rosa, and she falls in love with him. Together they try to secretly plant one of the bulbs so that at least she could earn the prize money.

The rest of the story is concerned with his stay in jail, the brief visits from Rosa, the brutal treatment he gets from her father, and the jealous rival tulip-grower (his neighbor) who knows van Baerle has the tulip and tries to steal it to get the prize himself. There is a little action, but not much; there is some intrigue; there is certainly a bit of romance; and there is a lot of suspense. Gentle suspense, though, really. It's not much at all like The Three Musketeers or The Count of Monte Cristo or any of his other adventures.

Rosa is awesome and very sympathetic, but van Baerle is not a great main character. He's really focused on his flowers, even to the point of making Rosa feel overlooked, and he does little to make himself an action hero--but he's intelligent and honorable and rather likable, like a nerdy scientist who wants to be left alone.

It is said to be Dumas's shortest novel, and it actually could have been a novella if he'd wanted, but I enjoyed it. It's a pleasant, light read, and has the virtue of a (spoiler!) happy ending.

If you're looking for big, classic adventure, I recommend you go back to the Musketeers, or find something by Scott you haven't read before. If you're happy with something a little smaller, a little sweeter, a little more self-contained, you may enjoy this one.

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