# Miss Montmorenci — The Cords of Vanity character guide

> Miss Montmorenci in The Cords of Vanity by James Branch Cabell.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Miss Annabelle Alys Montmorenci

**First appearance:** 0010-i-he-sits-out-a-dance

## Snapshot

An actress and singer Townsend once loved in Fairhaven, now transformed into the celebrated Nadine Neroni and, by rumor, the mistress of Von Anspach.

## Who they are

She first appears to Townsend as a village performer, half-compromised in Lichfield's eyes, yet moving through the world's gutter with a strange serenity he likens to the Lady in Comus. Reencountering her as the glamorous Neroni, he must reckon with the Lichfield traditions he cannot shed, which insist she is now Von Anspach's harlot. Her rise shadows his own choice to make the most of youth, forcing him to ask whether her pragmatism and his are really the same thing.

## In the story

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/chapters/iv)

The actress playing Juliet, praised by the narrator for her beauty and voice, though Charteris finds her lacking in temperament.

### [V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/chapters/v)

The actress playing Juliet, described as having unfathomable eyes and a voice like a love-song, though her acting is deemed poor.

### [He Chats Over a Hedge](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/chapters/vi-he-chats-over-a-hedge)

An actress staying in Fairhaven, described as beautiful and witty; she engages with Townsend but sets boundaries regarding their acquaintance.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/chapters/iii)

Described as large, placid, and beautiful, with black velvet eyes, a stolen Cremona voice, and dimples; compared to the Venus of Milo.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/chapters/iv)

Challenges Townsend's intentions, tests his sincerity, and agrees to meet him in the garden after evening performances.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/chapters/iii)

Mentioned as a contrast to the Neroni, representing a more naive or romanticized figure.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/characters/miss_montmorenci
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_cords_of_vanity_se/characters