” Mistress of the Sun,” the latest novel by Sandra Gulland,  is a fascinating historical fiction piece on the life of Louise de la Valliere, the “maitresse en titre,” or official mistress of the popular King Louise XIV of France. “Petite,” as Louise is known to her family and friends, grows up as the child of a minor country aristocrat. After the tragic death of her father, her mother sends her away to a convent to be cared for by Sister Angelique, her aunt. In time, her mother manages to remarry again, this time to a marquis, and she sends for Petite. Through her stepfather’s connections, Petite finds herself in the court of Louis XIV, the ” Sun King,” as an attendant to Louis’s sister-in-law, Princess Henrietta. Although Petite does not have designs on a higher position at court, she finds herself in a whirlwind relationship with the king, and she negotiates the treacherous intrigues at  court in order to pursue her love, eventually being recognized as the king’s official mistress and elevated to her own titles, Duchesse de la Valliere and Duchesses de Vaujours. A supernatural thread also weaves its way through the story. Gulland, the author, is best known for her Josephine B. trilogy, based on the life of the wife of Napoleon Bonaparte. Readers of other historical fiction titles like ” The Other Boleyn Girl” by Philippa Gregory will also enjoy this one. ~ Submitted by ” Bella, ” staff librarian