But maybe that’s changing — The New York Times caused a stir recently when, in an article about pandemic book sales, it disclosed that “98 percent of the books that publishers released in 2020 sold fewer than 5,000 copies.” Though this statistic was shocking to many, it is not new information. People don’t read books…

In which the philanthropist prepares for his pending nuptials. — We last read The Thirty-First Chapter — in which we spent a sleepless night in the care of those left behind by the widow. If you have recently joined us, start with The Prologue. The Christmas season was upon them, and the philanthropist’s wedding hung suspended above it as the…

In which we spend a sleepless night in the company of those left behind by the widow. — We last read The Thirtieth Chapter — in which the Comte met his end at last. If you have recently joined us, start with The Prologue. On the night of the Comte’s murder, there were three members of society for whom sleep would not come. The first was the child…

In which the Comte finds his wife alone, at last. — We last read The Twenty-Ninth Chapter, in which the mercenary was lost to the arms of opium. If you have recently joined us, start with The Prologue. In the street there was a man playing the violin, its melody mournful and melancholy. …

In which the mercenary hunts the Comte. — We last read The Twenty-Eighth Chapter, in which a rose wilted. If you have recently joined us, start with The Prologue. Rémy carried that deceased woman to the chapel where she was laid in a wooden box washed with white paint and poured over with peonies. How Séverine desired to…

In which a rose wilts. — We last read The Twenty-Seventh Chapter, in which the mercenary discovered a rather unsettling scene. If you have recently joined us, start with The Prologue. There was, in that town, a woman as beautiful as she was sensual. She knew she could not live out the modesty so desired of…

And build a community of readers while I’m writing it. — The sci-fi series Foundation inspired Elon Musk to launch SpaceX. Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea inspired Simon Lake to invent the submarine. Verne’s Clipper of the Clouds inspired Igor Sikorsky to invent the helicopter. …

In which the mercenary discovers a rather unsettling scene. — We last read The Twenty-Sixth Chapter, in which the abbess had a premonition. If you have recently joined us, start with The Prologue. The mercenary stepped into the residence where he was met with the most discerning silence, the kind left behind once an intruder has left. At first there…

In which the abbess has a premonition. We last read The Twenty-Fifth Chapter, in which the territory faced unrest. If you have recently joined us, start with The Prologue. We wonder if there has ever been a moment when the reader has noticed something rather peculiar — a person standing…