Louis XIV lover biography pulled

A book on life of Madame de Maintenon, lover of Louis XIV, is delayed after author admits accidentally using a fake source

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A biography of Madame de Maintenon – the lover of Louis XIV – has been delayed after its author accidentally used a fake diary as a main source.

The error came to light after previews of the book entitled Madame de Maintenon: The Secret Wife of Louis XIV were released.

Author Veronica Buckley, whose first book Christina, Queen of Sweden received good reviews, apologised saying she had used Le Journal secret de Louis XIV thinking it was a proper source.

The book was actually written by French historian François Bluche imagining what the diary of the ‘Sun King’ would have been like.

Mr Bluche never intended the diary to be read as the real thing.

Publishers Bloomsbury have delayed the launch while the book is re-written.

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