"The Thirteen" by Honoré de Balzac is a collection of three tales Ferragus, Chief of the Devorants, The Duchesse of Langeais, and The Girl With the Golden Eyes. These books, through passion and intrigue, showed the dramatic and illicit lives of the men and women of France's high society. Secret societies, torrid affairs, and the helplessness of the men and women who find themselves caught up in society's web are all displayed in great detailed through Balzac's signature way with words.