Rene Weis is a freelance author and Professor of English at University College London. He has a written on a wide variety of subjects, including Edith Thompson (of the infamous 'Thompson and Bywaters' murder case in the 1920s), the last Cathar insurgency in the Pyrenees in the Middle Ages, and a biography of Shakespeare. As a professional Shakespearian, he has published extensively on Shakespeare and Renaissance drama, his publications including editions of Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, Henry IV Part 2, and an Oxford World's Classics edition of the works of John Webster. A lifelong lover of opera, he also contributes regular pieces to the programmes for Royal Opera House productions.
This diligently researched book casts an astutely observant light upon [Duplessis's] memory and myth. * Aiste Anusaite, Londoniete * [An] immensely detailed biography ... impeccably researched ... an entertaining and informative account. * Susan Elkin, Ink Pellet * Impeccably researched and astutely observed, Weis's book sifts through facts and myth, and conjures up the texture of life in 19th-century Paris, with its many flaneurs, boulevards and cafes. Bravo. * Juanita Coulson, The Lady * Weis traces his protagonist's short but event-filled life - she died at the age of 23 - in painstaking detail. He also offers new insights into the genesis of Alexandre Dumas's fictionalised accounts of her life and of Verdi's opera. This book will intrigue fans of La traviata, but its broader account of the treatment of women in early 19th-century France deserves a wider readership. * Alexandra Wilson, BBC Music Magazine *