|  |  | At last, we learn the history of Marguerite Sadoulas, once 
        an obscure young actress who, through her stunning beauty and Machiavellian 
        intelligence, overcame all obstacles and reached the pinnacle of Parisian 
        high society, becoming the much-envied Countess de Clare, while, at the 
        same time, rising in the criminal hierarchy of the Black Coats, to eventually 
        be admitted into the much-feared High Council of that all-powerful, evil 
        society. Written in 1865, Heart of Steel is the first chapter chronicling the 
          Black Coats' attempts at stealing the fabulous fortune of the de Clare 
          family. Paul Féval, the father of the modern detective novel, 
          continues the dark chronicles that gave its lettres de noblesse to criminal 
          literature by introducing the first, great female villain in the history 
          of crime fiction.Cover by J.-M. Ponzio 
 Published by Black Coat Press in 2010ISBN: 978-1-935558-05-7
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