The Bright Face of Danger

The Bright Face of Danger, by Robert Neilson Stephens, is billed as "Being an Account of Some Adventures of Henri de Launay, Son of the Sieur de la Tournoire". The author's note says the book is, "in a distant way, a sequel to" "An Enemy to the King", but "may be read alone, without any reference to that tale". The contents list names chapters, among others, "Monsieur Henri de Launay Sets Out on a Journey", "A Young Man Who Went Singing" and "Where the Lady Was".

A speaker who says "Well, my son" bids good-bye with the advice "Don't trust the outward look of things or people" and "Be cautious; yet conceal your caution under courtesy". The narrator says his mother "could no longer refrain from sobbing as she embraced me at the last", while his young brother and sister "began to whimper". A narrator says he intended "to wait in the hall till morning and be the first to greet the Count when he appeared". The text says of Hugues that his marriage to Mathilde "was no longer delayed".