''Les Royaumes de Borée'' ("the realms of Boreas") is a 2003 novel by the French writer

Jean Raspail Jean Raspail (, 5 July 1925 – 13 June 2020) was a French author, traveler, and explorer. Many of his books are about historical figures, exploration and indigenous peoples. He was a recipient of the prestigious French literary awards Grand Pri ...

. The narrative spans from the 17th century to modern times and focuses on Oktavius-Ulrich de Pikkendorff, an officer who is appointed commander of Valduzia, a grand duchy in

Karelia Karelia ( Karelian and fi, Karjala, ; rus, Каре́лия, links=y, r=Karélija, p=kɐˈrʲelʲɪjə, historically ''Korjela''; sv, Karelen), the land of the Karelian people, is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance for ...

. Pikkendorff's task is to guard the border to the Grand North, a legendary continent located to the north of Europe. The novel is a spiritual sequel to ''

Sept cavaliers ''Sept cavaliers'' is a 1993 novel by the French writer Jean Raspail. It tells the story of seven horsemen who are sent to find why their country, a place with traits of both medieval and modern Europe, is becoming devoid of human life. The charact ...

'' from 1993. The novel received the Jules Verne Prize from the Breton Academy. It was the basis for a three-volume comic-book adaptation by

Jacques Terpant Jacques Terpant, born 11 April 1957 in Romans-sur-Isère, Drôme, is a French comics artist. He debuted in 1982 with the comic book ''Branle-bas de combat'', made together with Luc Cornillon. His style is inspired by Jean Giraud. In 2011 he recei ...

Reception

Jean-Rémi Barland of ''

L'Express ''L'Express'' () is a French weekly news magazine headquartered in Paris. The weekly stands at the political centre in the French media landscape, and has a lifestyle supplement, ''L'Express Styles'', and a job supplement, ''Réussir''. History ...

'' described the book as an "epic, sonorous and majestic novel". The critic wrote: "Riding on the counter-current of conformism, the novelist's heroes invest these frontiers of legend, and the plot, running over three centuries, encompasses a host of colourful characters captured in all their wild grandeur."

References

External links

Publicity page
at the publisher's website

at the writer's website {{DEFAULTSORT:Royaumes de Boree 2003 French novels French-language novels Novels by Jean Raspail Éditions Albin Michel books