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Referenced as a brilliant book with a chapter about the controversy surrounding The Marriage of Figaro and how it foreshadows the French Revolution. Also cited later for its discussion of the public appetite for news and gossip in Paris during the 1780s.

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Referenced when discussing Marie Antoinette's attitude toward the play The Marriage of Figaro, noting 'the more outrageous the denunciations of the established order, the better the queen liked it.' Also quoted regarding the Cardinal's comfortable imprisonment in the Bastille.

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Described as a brilliant account of the diamond necklace scandal. The host mentions Beckman plays cricket with him. The book is quoted for its description of Nicole Gay and later for explaining the implications of the Parliament's ruling on the queen's reputation.

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Referenced as a novel written during this period that captures the gossiping culture at court - people gossiping about each other, overhearing conversations, and reading letters not meant for them.

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Described as 'her wonderful book about the pamphlets and Marie Antoinette's relationship to them.' The book discusses how Marie Antoinette didn't understand the power of the written word and how pamphlets portrayed her.

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Referenced as the Marquis de Sade's most famous novel, with its heroine Justine described as impeccably virtuous but persecuted by aristocratic monsters. Used as a comparison to how Jeanne de Lamotte portrayed herself as an innocent victim.