Alexandre Dumas, author of The Three Musketeers and so many sequels, all but invented the action adventure novel, and certainly he has few peers, in all the years since.
His stories are thrilling works of dering-do, foul deeds, close escapes, and glorious victories. Like all of Dumas's novels, The Black Tulip is a thrilling tale; it also captures the time and tenor of the setting exactly. (jacketless library hardcover.)