It is rare that doctoral monographs are converted with fluency and distinction into influential academic books. However, in this invigorating and scholarly analysis of French prelates in the build-up to the French Revolution, Aston has capably managed the transition. Aston's study is an engaging and useful assertion of the important and conscientious role played in this crucial period by the French high clerisy ... in the fluency of his prose, the depth of his
research and the importance of his subject, Aston has produced a valuable addition to the history of late eighteenth-century France.
