Love in a Mask

Love in a Mask, or Imprudence and Happiness, is an entertaining short novel by Honoré de Balzac, unpublished in his lifetime. This English edition was first published in 1911.

Beginning with a flirtatious conversation at a masked ball, Balzac introduces his two main characters, a beautiful wealthy young widow and a gallant cavalry officer, and demonstrates his creative genius with deft plot twists of hidden identity and romantic intrigue. 

Honoré de Balzac (1799-1850) was a French novelist and playwright. His magnum opus was a sequence of short stories, La Comédie humaine. Many of Balzac's works have been made into or have inspired films, and they are a continuing source of inspiration for writers, filmmakers and critics.

Before and during his career as a writer, he attempted to be a publisher, printer, businessman, critic, and politician; he failed in all of these efforts. La Comédie humaine reflects his real-life difficulties, and includes scenes from his own experience.