A Place of Greater Safety is a 1992 novel by Hilary Mantel

Hilary Mantel

Hilary Mary Mantel CBE , née Thompson, is an English novelist, short story writer and critic. Her work, ranging in subject from personal memoir to historical fiction, has been short-listed for major literary awards...

. It concerns the events of the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

, focusing on the lives of Georges Danton

Georges Danton

Georges Jacques Danton was leading figure in the early stages of the French Revolution and the first President of the Committee of Public Safety. Danton's role in the onset of the Revolution has been disputed; many historians describe him as "the chief force in theoverthrow of the monarchy and the...

, Camille Desmoulins

Camille Desmoulins

Lucie Simplice Camille Benoît Desmoulins was a journalist and politician who played an important role in the French Revolution. He was a childhood friend of Maximilien Robespierre and a close friend and political ally of Georges Danton, who were influential figures in the French Revolution.-Early...

, and Maximilien Robespierre

Maximilien Robespierre

Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre is one of the best-known and most influential figures of the French Revolution. He largely dominated the Committee of Public Safety and was instrumental in the period of the Revolution commonly known as the Reign of Terror, which ended with his...

 from their childhood through the execution of the Dantonists, and also featuring hundreds of other historical figures.

Background

Mantel explains that, where possible, she used the historical figures' own words, from their speeches or writings.

Reception

A Place of Greater Safety won the Sunday Express Book of the Year award.

The New York Times praised Mantel, but not the book, wondering if "more novel and less history might not better suit this author's unmistakable talent." Another reviewer praises the book saying "the dialogue is unfailingly witty, increasingly desperate, and never predictable."