The book is a brief text book for the French wars of religion. Nicely written, with glossary, extensive bibliography, genealogical charts and samples of period documents. There's really only about 100 pg of text, excluding all the stuff above.

The wars went on for 30 years, so, the book is a chronology and explanation of events. But, a little dry. There is little in the way of information about the people involved (forget it if you want all the juicy bits about Henri III). This is a textbook that was never intended to discuss the salacious details. Sort of a Joe Gannon book "just the facts ma'am".

I would rate the book as a 5-star book, if I were rating it as a textbook. The writing is clear & concise. I also give the author lots of brownie points for the second edition which goes into the latest theories on the St Bart's massacre.

But, if the book is for history buffs (not students)then it is a little dry and lacks the color of the period.

This is not a comprehensive biography, which is what initially attracted me to this book. Knecht's RICHELIEU is part of a series of what are supposed to be short, concise that address the power and politics of various great figures in European history. Thus, we thankfully don't have to read about Richelieu's preference in wine and ad nauseum speculations on whether he died a virgin. The focus is supposed to be on what made this person succeed politically in their time and context, and what they did when they achieved power.

All in all, while I understand the desire for consistency, I found the book often vague about significant events while spending time offering random speculation and criticism of other work in the field. Claims are made without adequate support or argumentation. I also question whether the organization of the book was best strategically. Devoting distinct chapters to Richelieu's use of propaganda or his relationship to the nobility is arguably valuable, but I think the whole work suffers since there isn't a focus towards understanding how these different elements interrelate.

For the most part, though, I just found the prose dull, and only moderately informative. Ultimately, I think the exposition of how Richelieu exercised power suffers as a result.