Tagged: jeanne kalogridis
The Devil’s Queen by Jeanne Kalogridis
(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)
From Jeanne Kalogridis, the bestselling author of I, Mona Lisa and The Borgia Bride, comes a new novel that tells the passionate story of a queen who loved not wisely . . . but all too well.
Confidante of Nostradamus, scheming mother-in-law to Mary, Queen of Scots, and architect of the bloody St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, Catherine de Medici is one of the most maligned monarchs in history. In her latest historical fiction, Jeanne Kalogridis tells Catherine’s story—that of a tender young girl, destined to be a pawn in Machiavellian games.
Born into one of Florence’s most powerful families, Catherine was soon left a fabulously rich heiress by the early deaths of her parents. Violent conflict rent the city state and she found herself imprisoned and threatened by her family’s enemies before finally being released and married off to the handsome Prince Henry of France.
Overshadowed by her husband’s mistress, the gorgeous, conniving Diane de Poitiers, and unable to bear children, Catherine resorted to the dark arts of sorcery to win Henry’s love and enhance her fertility—for which she would pay a price. Against the lavish and decadent backdrop of the French court, and Catherine’s blood-soaked visions of the future, Kalogridis reveals the great love and desire Catherine bore for her husband, Henry, and her stark determination to keep her sons on the throne.
First off, I have to say that although this is historical fiction because it’s based off of the life of Catherine de Medici, it also has elements of fantasy because Jeanne Kalogridis takes the worst rumours about the queen’s witchcraft and imagines they were real. It’s not a bad approach and the broad strokes of Caterina’s life are of course accurate but just know that this is not strict historical fiction; there is quite a bit of fantasy.
Many of the characters are memorable but of course Caterina herself is the best. Her family was out of power when she was an adolescent and before she got married so not only did she experience the glamorous side of life but the rougher side that comes with strife, conflict and civil war. This early experience with a life-threatening situation leaves a chip on her shoulder that she will carry for the rest of her life. She knows that it is the most important thing she can do as a queen to produce a son (preferably lots of sons) but when her husband seems disgusted by her and she does not get pregnant she turns to witchcraft and blood magic. One particular scene is pretty horrific but it’s in keeping with her character: no matter the cost to herself she will have an heir and avert civil war. She does some pretty horrible things and although she’s not always completely sympathetic, I do feel for Jeanne Kalogridis’ version of her. Her husband is disgusted by her and goes to his mother figure/mistress Diane de Poitiers, she is not an attractive woman and is marginalized politically, etc. Caterina had a hard childhood matched by a hard life; she’s far from perfect but you do have to feel for her.
While the plot isn’t exactly fast-paced it is interesting. I’ve read only one other book about Caterina de Medici so it was nice to learn more about the civil strife that led to her imprisonment in two different nunneries as a preteen and how she was married off to King Henry (then prince). Once she gets to France there’s a lot of interpersonal conflict between characters but it’s not just drama for the sake of drama. Jeanne Kalogridis has a purpose to every scene and even though it may not seem like it at the time, every scene moves the plot forward to the horrifying conclusion. So while The Devil’s Queen is no action/thriller novel, it is very interesting and even if you know about her historical reign as queen and regent, Jeanne Kalogridis may just surprise you with some of the things she speculates at. Nothing is for certain at court, especially when it comes to the royal family.
I know a little about the period but as you’ve probably guessed I’m no expert. However, the main events of the story are very much real and Jeanne Kalogridis inserts those little details into everyday life that make you really feel like you’re there. Personally, I loved that the French all thought Caterina and her Italian entourage were positively barbaric for eating their food with the forks they brought with them. It’s just those little details that both make you laugh and educate you about how certain cultural practices became the norm in pretty much all of the Western hemisphere. There are so many more little details like that that you can tell Kalogridis really did her research (particularly about Medieval astrology). She combines fantasy and history perfectly into this harrowing tale of the complicated life of a complicated woman.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Borgia Bride by Jeanne Kalogridis
(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)
Vivacious Sancha of Aragon arrives in Rome newly wed to a member of the notorious Borgia dynasty. Surrounded by the city’s opulence and political corruption, she befriends her glamorous and deceitful sister-in-law, Lucrezia, whose jealousy is as legendary as her beauty. Some say Lucrezia has poisoned her rivals, particularly those to whom her handsome brother, Cesare, has given his heart. So when Sancha falls under Cesare’s irresistible spell, she must hide her secret or lose her life. Caught in the Borgias’ sinister web, she summons her courage and uses her cunning to outwit them at their own game. Vividly interweaving historical detail with fiction, The Borgia Bride is a richly compelling tale of conspiracy, sexual intrigue, loyalty, and drama.
There’s this image of ancient Rome as a debauched city throughout its whole thousand year history. This perception of debauchery is somewhat true under emperors like Tiberius, Nero, Commodus and Caligula, but it is mostly an undeserved reputation. In reading this book, I learned that the Papacy under the powerful Borgia family had more backstabbing than the Medici court, more sexual debauchery than Caligula’s court and almost as much incest as the Egyptian royal family of Ahmose. The tagline “Incest, poison, betrayal. Three wedding presents for…The Borgia Bride” is certainly justified. Before I get into the details of why this tagline is deserved, let me first warn you that this is a book for people at least fifteen years old—and that would have to be a very mature fifteen.
Sancha of Aragon, the novel’s protagonist, is a wonderful narrator. She’s beautiful, intelligent and ambitious, three of the most dangerous things a woman in her time could be. Even though she was only eleven years old at the time, she had the daring to sneak into her grandfather King Ferrante’s rooms in an attempt to catch a glimpse of the infamous chamber of his enemies’ bodies. This little story may seem like a product of Jeanne Kalogridis’ imagination, but I can assure you that it is true. Like most women of her time, Sancha is incredibly mature for her age, which makes The Borgia Bride an enjoyable read, even though she is young when it starts out. Readers will fall in love with her and cheer for her throughout the novel as she is put up against tremendous odds.
Forcibly married to a boy three years her junior, Sancha still perseveres, even when she knows that she has caught the eye of the debauched Pope. Despite having virtually no friends—even Lucrezia is not a true friend—she manages to find pleasure in small doses, particularly in the arms of the handsome Cesare Borgia. But all is not as it seems and everyone holds their secrets close to their hearts, for any weaknesses were fully taken advantage of in the time of the Borgias. I won’t give away the ending, but I want to say that it is not the stereotypical one where the main character’s husband dies and she gets to marry whomever she wishes. Still, The Borgia Bride is a thoroughly enjoyable book.
I give this book 5/5 stars.