After several works set in maritime environments, he depicted, in sensational novelistic forms, the environment and customs of high Parisian society of the time (Atar Gull [1831], Plik et Plok [1831], La Salamandre [1832], Latréamont [1837], etc.). Economic ruin and sentimental disappointments soon disgusted him with that society, from which he withdrew to retire in Sologne, where he continued his literary activity (Mathilde [1841], Les mystères de Paris [1842], etc.).
In the stark portrayal of the customs and vicissitudes of the less affluent social strata, there is almost precocious realism. In Les Mystères, the exaltation of a romantic spirit perverted by a pseudo-mystical social outlook is evident. He also engaged in politics and was a pioneer of the "serial" genre. His work (85 volumes) is an open apology for free love and vice, a persistent mockery of the dogmas and most cherished figures of the Catholic religion. All his amorous tales are on the Index (decree of 22 Jan. 1852).