The Black Tulip is a brilliant work by Alexander Dumas. I truly don’t understand why this is a lesser-known work of his. In my opinion, every fan of Dumas must read this beautiful short novel.
The Black Tulip touches on themes of love, courage, resilience, and jealousy. Weaving all these themes into one perfect knot, Dumas crafts a beautiful and unforgettable story. It mainly revolves around Dr. Cornelius Van Baerle, a tulip grower who has been wrongly imprisoned. As the story progresses, the readers go through his courageous journey to see his dream of producing a black Tulip become a reality. His dream is aided by Rosa Gryphus, the jailer’s daughter, who becomes the love of his life.
I loved both the male and female lead. They left an everlasting impression on me with their resilience, love, devotion, and honesty, even to the extent of incriminating themselves. They will be added to my classical favourite couples list. The villains Gryphus, the jailer, and Boxtel, the jealous rival tulip grower are portrayed so well that I detested them with passion for all the suffering they caused for Cornelius and Rosa.
Although Cornelius is said to be the hero of the book, I felt there was a more active heroine in the character of Rosa. Her strong love for Cornelius drives her through all obstacles with courage and strength of steel, never yielding, and ensuring justice is done to him.
The start was tight with the first few chapters touching on a bit of gruesome history, but once past that, it was extremely interesting. I loved every moment of the read. Having read so many different books, it takes such a book to shake me as this one did. I didn’t want it to end.
Rating: 5/5
