Rocambole and The Jack of Hearts Club is the second book in the Rocambole series written by Ponson du Terrail, which began publication in 1858 in La Patrie newspaper as a feuilleton-a serialized novel published daily.In the first part of the series, under the title of The Mysterious Inheritance, Ponson du Terrail introduces many of the characters that go on to become central actors in this drama that begins in Russia during Napoleon's great army's retreat. There, we meet Colonel Armand de Kergaz, Captain Filipone, and Cavalryman Bastien. The saga springs forth from that first event and later the rest of the actors come into the scene.Ponson du Terrail's mastery of the serial novel with elaborate plots, subplots, panoply of characters and continuous cliffhangers are the reason he became the most popular writer of his time-his fame growing into stardom and his readers becoming fervent fans that lined up daily to purchase the newspaper that published his novels.