It was at the beginning of summer in 1764 that the Beast first entered the history books, when it attacked a female cowherd on the outskirts of Langogne.

From that moment, for three long years, it was to sow terror throughout the entire region of Gévaudan committing crime after crime, each attack more hideous than the one before, totalling some 250 or so altogether.

By following its bloody trail, and by placing characters and events in their context, the author has succeeded in drawing up an identikit portrait of the Beast, as well as introducing us to other animals, closely related to the Beast of Gévaudan, which, though not enjoying the same notoriety, have nevertheless left their mark on the history of France.

Finally he proceeds to the risky business of actually identifying the Beast, stripping away the veil from a riddle which has lasted for more than two centuries.

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Pascal Cazottes

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