Lost illusions. Honore De Balzac. 2004.

Handsome would-be poet Lucien Chardonnay is poor and naive, but highly ambitious. Failing to make his name in the dull provincial hometown, he is taken up by a patroness, the captivating married woman Madame de Barberton, and prepares to forge his way in the glamorous beau monde of Paris. But Lucien has entered a world far more dangerous than he realises, as Madame de Bargeton’s reputation becomes compromised and the fickle, venomous denizens of the courts and salons conspire to keep him out of their ranks. Lucien eventually learns that, wherever he goes, talent counts for nothing in comparison to money, intrigue and unscrupulousness.