Red Wrath

By John Oxenham

On the wind-scoured granite islands of Chausey, off the coast of Normandy, young sailor Ronan Kerzec loves Aliette Kerello. Her father, the ruthless quarry-master who rules the islands, has sworn they will never marry. When Kerello is found murdered, the island whispers turn to Ronan, and he is far away when they do.

Swept into the Franco-Prussian War, Ronan defends Paris through the long siege at Fort Issy. Then, as the city turns on itself, the cunning Fernande Vilard, a schemer from Chausey who wants both Aliette and her fortune, presses him into the doomed Paris Commune. Ronan is trapped between the barricades and the firing squads as Paris burns. With his faithful giant friend Gros-Alain beside him, he must survive the Bloody Week, a living tomb, and the prison yards of Versailles, only to be shipped home in chains, to his own islands, where Vilard waits for him.

First published in 1913, Red Wrath is a sweeping story of love, loyalty and revenge set against one of the most savage episodes in French history.

This Read-Me.Org Modernized-Classic has been rewritten line by line in plain modern English and tightened for today’s readers, with a new introduction and discussion questions for book groups.

Read-Me.Org Inc. New York-Philadelphia-Australia. 2026. 300 p.