The Saint vs The Talleyrand Maxim: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Mystery
The Saint
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Elizabethan England: Elizabeth Buckley has been in love with Edward Monk for most of her life. Unfortunately he's only ever had eyes for her older, prettier sister. Five years after he left the village to make himself…
The Talleyrand Maxim
“Linford Pratt, senior clerk to Eldrick & Pascoe, solicitors, of Barford, a young man who earnestly desired to get on in life, by hook or by crook, with no objection whatever to crookedness, so long as it could be performed in safety and secrecy, had once during one of his periodical visit to the town Reference Library, lighted on a maxim of that other unscrupulous person, Prince Talleyrand, which”
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The “Talleyrand Maxim” holds that “With time and patience, the mulberry leaf is turned into satin.” The adage has the character of guidance for life for an ambitious legal clerk, Linford Pratt. Unlike most people, he…
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- The Saint has the widest readership — 771 ratings behind its score.
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Scores by source
| The Saint | The Talleyrand Maxim | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.0 (771) | 3.9 (180) |
| Hardcover | 4.3 (3) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (79) | 4.5 (13) |
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Reception
| The Saint | The Talleyrand Maxim | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 771 | 180 |
| Editions | — | 115 |
| Want to read | 723 | 102 |
| Reading it now | 177 | 28 |
| Written reviews | 22 | 30 |
| Wikipedia attention | 282 | — |
| Pages | 285 | 195 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: The Saint or The Talleyrand Maxim?
The Saint has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Saint 4.0/5, The Talleyrand Maxim 3.9/5).
Which is shorter to read: The Saint or The Talleyrand Maxim?
The Talleyrand Maxim is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Talleyrand Maxim (195 pages, ≈ 3 h 37 m); The Saint (285 pages, ≈ 5 h 17 m).
Which is harder to read: The Saint or The Talleyrand Maxim?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Saint: Moderate; The Talleyrand Maxim: Challenging.