Cousin Betty

by Honoré de Balzac

"Cousin Betty" by Honoré de Balzac is a novel published in 1847. Set in mid-19th-century Paris, it follows an unmarried middle-aged woman who plots to destroy her extended family. Bette allies with Valérie Marneffe, a scheming young wife, to seduce and manipulate a series of men—including Baron Hulot, who sacrifices his family's fortune for Valérie's affections. Part of Balzac's vast "Human Comedy" series, this tale explores vice and virtue, sexual obsession, and money's corrupting influence on French society.