This was interesting in parts. If, like me, you're a bit of a history buff and find seventeenth century history intriguing then you'll probably enjoy this to an extent. I usually prefer to read about the earlier years of Louis XIV's reign and Mitford seems to skip the majority of those years and focus on his obsession with the building of Versailles. It can get a bit dull in places with all the politics and talk of warfare, but otherwise I found this to be an insightful read.