Book Review: DUCHESS OF MILAN by Michael Ennis

Beatrice d’Este Duchess of Bari was married to one of the most powerful men in Italy during the Italian Renaissance. Lodovico Sforza, Duke of Bari, Regent for the Duke of Milan ruled Milan for his incapable nephew Gian Galeazzo Sforza. Gian prior to Beatrice’s marriage had married her cousin Isabella of Aragon. The cousins had shared a grandfather, Ferrante I, King of Naples and were not strangers to the brutal rivalries between Italy’s powerful leading families.

The cousins had been reunited upon Beatrice’s marriage and it was clear from the beginning there was no cousinly love between them at all. An intense rivalry was instantly born, hate at first sight, as I like to call it. The cousins knew they could each be each others undoing yet at times they found they did love each other but really could not stop the rivalry that had escaladed as the years progressed. On the cusp of the Italian Wars the cousins find each other at odds over titles and the rights to rule Milan. Beatrice had everything to loose and Isabella had already lost everything. Faced with an uprising and the French practically at the city gates the cousins discover their fates are forever intertwined with the survival of Milan.

4/5 I enjoyed this novel but it was a bit on the dramatic side. I enjoyed the liberties the author took and found it a bit on the smutty side at times. This is not a novel I would recommend to my more reserved readers. Yet if you’re anything like me you enjoy a little bit of smut in your history then this is the novel for you!

X~ Rating for graphic sexual encounters.

FTC~ this novel is from my personal collection. 

Amazon: DUCHESS OF MILAN by Michael Ennis

~Lizzie~

Book Review: THE NEW COLORED PENCIL by Kristy Ann Kutch

What a wealth of colored pencil knowledge. This small book is more like a college art class just on colored pencils. As many of you know colored pencils and watercolor pencils are my favorite art medium. I have struggled with the more technical aspects of using colored pencils and I think this book really will help me in the future. After reading this book I discovered that I have been using the wrong kind of paper all this time and had no idea that my choice of paper affected my pieces so much. With in this book there are numerous colored pencil tips that really will help me and I cannot wait to try them all.

Here are some of the key tips that I found really useful. For my style I need to use Bristol board because it works the best for artists who layer their pieces. I would love to try using colored paper because then the background is the paper and I always struggle with how to make a decent background. I think it would also be helpful if I keep a log of the colors I use because then I will be able to easily go right back to what I started with. I am astonished I never thought of doing that until it was mentioned in this book. I would love to try the “grid method” because this book gave detailed directions on how to do a grid for making a photo into a colored pencil work. I also found that I really could benefit from investing in a battery-operated eraser which I had no idea existed until this book. I found the section on how to create delicate lines impressions very helpful because I would like to try it and had no clue how to go about it until now. By far one of the most helpful sections I found was on watercolor paper. Hot press paper verses cold press paper and it actually showed how the paper affects the watercolor pencils with pictures and all. Since I mentioned that I struggle with how to create backgrounds the section on creating muted foliage backgrounds was a real eye opener on how easy it can be to create a natural backdrop. Last but not least I really liked that at the end of the book it had a complete index of color pencil brands with a full color chart of their pencils. This would be immensely helpful if I was in the market for a new pack of pencils. It really gives you an idea of what you get for your money and can give you a jump off point of which brand would best suite your style and taste.

5/5 this book is a quick read, informative, and a perfect addition to any color pencil artist’s reference library. Small as this book was it really was a wealth of knowledge that I hope to apply to my future projects.

G~Rating for art reference.
FTC~ I received this free novel from Blogging for Books for review, I received no compensation for this review.
Amazon: THE NEW COLORED PENCIL by Kristy Ann Kutch
~Lizzie~

Mailbox Monday: Kate Furnivall and Allison Pataki

The White Pearl by Kate Furnivall
"National bestselling author of The Russian Concubine, Kate Furnivall spins a tale of war, desperation, and the discovery of love off the coast of Malaya.
Malaya, 1941. Connie Thornton plays her role as a dutiful wife and mother without complaint. She is among the fortunate after all-the British rubber plantation owners reaping the benefits of the colonial life. But Connie feels as though she is oppressed, crippled by boredom, sweltering heat, a loveless marriage. . .

Then, in December, the Japanese invade. Connie and her family flee, sailing south on their yacht toward Singapore, where the British are certain to stand firm against the Japanese. En route, in the company of friends, they learn that Singapore is already under siege. Tensions mount, tempers flare, and the yacht's inhabitants are driven by fear.

Increasingly desperate and short of food, they are taken over by a pirate craft and its Malayan crew making their perilous way from island to island. When a fighter plane crashes into the sea, they rescue its Japanese pilot. For Connie, that's when everything changes. In the suffocating confines of the boat with her life upended, Connie discovers a new kind of freedom and a new, dangerous, exhilarating love".

The Traitor's Wife by Allison Pataki
"A riveting historical novel about Peggy Shippen Arnold, the cunning wife of Benedict Arnold and mastermind behind America's most infamous act of treason . . . Everyone knows Benedict Arnold--the Revolutionary War general who betrayed America and fled to the British--as history's most notorious turncoat. Many know Arnold's co-conspirator, Major John Andre, who was apprehended with Arnold's documents in his boots and hanged at the orders of General George Washington. But few know of the integral third character in the plot: a charming young woman who not only contributed to the betrayal but orchestrated it.


Socialite Peggy Shippen is half Benedict Arnold's age when she seduces the war hero during his stint as military commander of Philadelphia. Blinded by his young bride's beauty and wit, Arnold does not realize that she harbors a secret: loyalty to the British. Nor does he know that she hides a past romance with the handsome British spy John Andre. Peggy watches as her husband, crippled from battle wounds and in debt from years of service to the colonies, grows ever more disillusioned with his hero, Washington, and the American cause. Together with her former love and her disaffected husband, Peggy hatches the plot to deliver West Point to the British and, in exchange, win fame and fortune for herself and Arnold".~Lizzie~

Isabella d'Este Marchesa of Mantua

Isabella d'Este Marchesa of Mantua done in watercolor pencil and colored pencil. I recently fell in love with Isabella and her sister Beatrice in one of my new favorite novels "Leonardo's Swans" by Karen Essex. Isabella was a leading lady in The Italian Renaissance. She was a avid art collector and benefactor to many of the artist that had made the Italian Renaissance. I was moved not by her deeds but by her life. Like many of the strong leading women of history I love, Isabella's life was filled with turmoil and tragedy. Considered a great beauty of her times she was also a very well educated woman that excelled in trying new things. She was also politically savvy and played a major role in the Italian Wars that had also involved her sister The Duchess of Milan. I was truly inspired by a bust that I came across on the web of Isabella. Beautiful does not even describe this bust and yet I am saddened by the history that the Nazi's had stolen it during WWII. Luckily for me and the future generations of the world The Monuments Men had a very intriguing story of how the bust was recovered. It is sad to think that the bust could have been lost forever and I never would have even seen it had they not found it. This is my ode to Isabella and the insight she had brought to the start of a art revolution that even today continues on. She is gone but will never be forgotten.

"Isabella d'Este (18 May 1474 – 13 February 1539) was Marchesa of Mantua and one of the leading women of the Italian Renaissance as a major cultural and political figure. She was a patron of the arts as well as a leader of fashion, whose innovative style of dressing was copied by women throughout Italy and at the French court. The poet Ariosto labeled her as the "liberal and magnanimous Isabella", while author Matteo Bandello described her as having been "supreme among women". Diplomat Niccolò da Correggio went even further by hailing her as "The First Lady of the world".

She served as the regent of Mantua during the absence of her husband, Francesco II Gonzaga, Marquess of Mantua and the minority of her son, Federico, Duke of Mantua. In 1500 she met King Louis XII of France in Milan on a diplomatic mission to persuade him not to send his troops against Mantua.

She was a prolific letter-writer, and maintained a lifelong correspondence with her sister-in-law Elisabetta Gonzaga. Lucrezia Borgia was another sister-in-law; she later became the mistress of Isabella's husband". -Wiki

Attributed to Gian Cristoforo Romano, Italian (c. 1465– 1512)

Portrait of a Woman, Probably Isabe!a d’Este, c. 1500 T erracotta, formerly polychromed

21-3/8 x 21-1/2 in. (54.3 x 54.6 cm) 

"This summer, the Monuments Men Foundation and Kimbell Art Museum in Ft. Worth, Texas announced that a Renais- sance portrait bust in the Kim- bell collection had been stolen by the Nazis during World War II and was one of thousands of works of art found in the Al- taussee Salt Mine in Austria.

This incredible discovery oc- curred in conjunction with an unrelated project. In the fall of 2009, while researching the missing albums containing photographs of the works of art destined for Adolf Hitler’s Linz
Museum, we came across a war- time photograph of the Steinberg salt mine in Altaussee, Austria. In early May 1945, during the closing days of the war, the Monuments Men were in a race against time to locate the last great Nazi repository of stolen works of art. A key tip led them to the Steinberg mine. They arrived to discover that a Nazi plot to destroy the salt mine and its priceless contents, including more than 6,000 paint- ings, had only hours before been thwarted, a harrowing story recounted in The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves, and the Greatest
Treasure Hunt in History.

Hidden inside the mine were many of civilization’s greatest artistic mas- terpieces including Michelangelo’s Bruges Madonna, Jan van Eyck’s Ghent Altarpiece, and two Vermeer paintings (The Astronomer and The Artist’s Studio), to name just a few. Of the many photos taken inside the salt mine, we had not come across the photo above before. The photo shows the Kimbell's terra cotta bust of Renaissance art patron Isabelle d'Este being removed from the mine. We recognized the sculpture imme- diately and knew it had to be the Kimbell's version and not a copy be- cause of the vertical firing-line cracks on the sculpture's front. We were aware that the Kimbell’s provenance for the bust made no mention of be- ing in Hitler's art hideout. 

When the Monuments Men discovered the cache of artwork in the Altaussee salt mine, they had to remove the art as quickly and as carefully as they could from a narrow mine shaft. The artworks were then taken to the Munich Collect- ing Point, which was housed in the former Nazi party head- quarters in Munich, as it was one of the largest buildings left standing after the war. Upon the arrival of the works of art in Munich, the Monuments Men created property index cards for each object. In researching those cards we discov- ered the “smoking gun”: Altaussee inventory card number 1246, which documented the arrival in Munich on June 28, 1945 of the terra cotta bust of Isabelle d’Este, which at the time was “attributed to Leonardo da Vinci.” The back of the inventory card revealed that the sculpture was returned to the Netherlands on June 3, 1946". -Monuments Men Foundation

For more on Isabella d'Este Check out the other good reads on her:
Light on Lucrezia by Jean Plaidy
The Duchess of Milan by Michael Ennis

~Lizzie~

Mailbox Monday: Emma Campion, Susan Carroll, Kate Quinn, Jeanne Kalogridis, Clare Gibson

A Triple Knot by Emma Campion Releasing 7.8.2014

"The critically acclaimed author of The King's Mistress brings another fascinating woman from history to life in an enthralling story of political intrigue, personal tragedy, and illicit love.

Joan of Kent, renowned beauty and cousin to King Edward III, is destined for a politically strategic marriage. As the king begins a long dynastic struggle to claim the crown of France, plunging England into the Hundred Years’ War, he negotiates her betrothal to a potential ally and heir of a powerful lordship.

But Joan, haunted by nightmares of her father’s execution at the hands of her treacherous royal kin, fears the king’s selection and is not resigned to her fate. She secretly pledges herself to one of the king’s own knights, one who has become a trusted friend and protector. Now she must defend her vow as the king—furious at Joan’s defiance—prepares to marry her off to another man.

In A Triple Knot, Emma Campion brings Joan, the “Fair Maid of Kent” to glorious life, deftly weaving details of King Edward III’s extravagant court into a rich and emotionally resonant tale of intrigue, love, and betrayal".

The Dark Queen by Susan Carroll
"From Brittany's misty shores to the decadent splendor of Paris's royal court, one woman must fulfill her destiny while facing the treacherous designs of Catherine de Medici, the dark queen.

She is Ariane, the Lady of Faire Isle, one of the Cheney sisters, renowned for their mystical skills and for keeping the isle secure and prosperous. But this is a time when women of ability are deemed sorceresses, when Renaissance France is torn by ruthless political intrigues, and all are held in thrall to the sinister ambitions of Queen Catherine de Medici. Then a wounded stranger arrives on Faire Isle, bearing a secret the Dark Queen will do everything in her power to possess. The only person Ariane can turn to is the comte de Renard, a nobleman with fiery determination and a past as mysterious as his own unusual gifts.

Riveting, vibrant, and breathtaking, The Dark Queen follows Ariane and Renard as they risk everything to prevent the fulfillment of a dreadful prophecy even if they must tempt fate and their own passions".

The Serpent and the Pearl by Kate Quinn
"One powerful family holds a city, a faith, and a woman in its grasp--from the national bestselling author of "Daughters of Rome" and "Mistress of Rome."
Rome, 1492. The Holy City is drenched with blood and teeming with secrets. A pope lies dying and the throne of God is left vacant, a prize awarded only to the most virtuous--or the most ruthless. The Borgia family begins its legendary rise, chronicled by an innocent girl who finds herself drawn into their dangerous web...
Vivacious Giulia Farnese has floor-length golden hair and the world at her feet: beauty, wealth, and a handsome young husband. But she is stunned to discover that her glittering marriage is a sham, and she is to be given as a concubine to the ruthless, charismatic Cardinal Borgia: Spaniard, sensualist, candidate for Pope--and passionately in love with her.
Two trusted companions will follow her into the Pope's shadowy harem: Leonello, a cynical bodyguard bent on bloody revenge against a mysterious killer, and Carmelina, a fiery cook with a past full of secrets. But as corruption thickens in the Vatican and the enemies begin to circle, Giulia and her friends will need all their wits to survive in the world of the Borgias".

I, Mona Lisa by Jeanne Kalogridis

"My name is Lisa di Antonio Gherardini Giocondo, though to acquaintances, I am known simply as Madonna Lisa. My story begins not with my birth but a murder, committed the year before I was born…"

"Florence, April 1478: The handsome Giuliano de' Medici is brutally assassinated in Florence's magnificent Duomo. The shock of the murder ripples throughout the great city, from the most renowned artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, to a wealthy wool merchant and his extraordinarily beautiful daughter, Madonna Lisa.

More than a decade later, Florence falls under the dark spell of the preacher Savonarola, a fanatic who burns paintings and books as easily as he sends men to their deaths. Lisa, now grown into an alluring woman, captures the heart of Giuliano's nephew and namesake. But when Guiliano, her love, meets a tragic end, Lisa must gather all her courage and cunning to untangle a sinister web of illicit love, treachery, and dangerous secrets that threatens her life.

Set against the drama of 15th Century Florence, I, Mona Lisa is painted in many layers of fact and fiction, with each intricately drawn twist told through the captivating voice of Mona Lisa herself".

The New Colored Pencil by Kristy Ann Kutch
"Learn to draw and paint using colored pencils in The New Colored Pencil: a how-to guide for creating vibrant, textured, and easy art illustrations by best-selling author and teacher Kristy Kutch
Master the Latest Breakthroughs in Colored Pencil Art

If you want to create colorful, radiant works of art, colored pencil and related color media (wax pastels, watercolor pencils, and so on) provide you with limitless options for adding vibrancy to your creations. In The New Colored Pencil, artist and instructor Kristy Ann Kutch guides you through the latest developments in color drawing media with examples of and recommendations for the newest pencil brands, drawing surfaces, and groundbreaking techniques (including using the Grid Method, grating pigments, blending with heat, and more). Supported by step-by-step demonstrations and showcasing inspiring art from some of today’s best colored pencil artists, The New Colored Pencil shows you how to use color theory to your advantage, combine color media, create and enhance textures, and experiment with surfaces to create interesting effects. Whether you use traditional wax-based, or watercolor colored pencils,The New Colored Pencil will take your art to the next level".

The Ultimate Birthday Book by Clare Gibson
"The Ultimate Birthday Book; Revealing the Secrets of Each Day of the Year." ~Lizzie~

Book Review: LEONARDO’S SWANS by Karen Essex

The d’Este sisters Isabella and Beatrice were destined for grand marriages during the Italian Renaissance. Their father the Duke of Ferrara nicknamed “the diamond” for his hard negotiation tactics secured a betrothal for his eldest daughter Isabella to the Captain of the Venetian army: Marquess of Mantua Francesco II Gonzaga. It was a love match, which was a rarity for the time and Isabella grew up receiving passionate love letters from her betrothed. The younger of the sisters Beatrice was to marry Ludovico Sforza the regent for the Duke of Milan. Ludovico Duke of Bari was dragging his heels from the beginning because he was reportedly in love with his current mistress that he was not allowed to marry. Eventually both sisters would go on to their new glamorous lives. Newly married the sisters both had high hopes of love and ruling their new kingdoms. Despite all the changes in their lives everything was not as they thought it should be especially between the sisters. It  all had started as childhood differences and later became complicated womanly differences. It was a childish rift that could affect them for the rest of their lives.

The rift between the sisters started when they were brought up in separate households. Isabella was at her mother’s knee and received a very fine education. She was also taught the finer qualities of being a lady. Meanwhile her grandfather raised Beatrice at his court. She was encouraged to ride horses and do exactly what she pleased. Isabella grew to become a cultured lady while Beatrice remained the fearless tomboy. Despite of their differences they loved each other and were close enough yet everything was a competition to see who was better. The rivalry between them did not change much as they grew into women. Then everything took a dramatic turn when they married because it was obvious fortune had played a cruel joke on the sisters as far as husbands go.

Isabella’s husband Francesco was a solider at heart; his family was of the lesser nobility and was famous for their extraordinary horses but they were not a super rich family. Beatrice’s husband Ludovico was a rich and powerful Duke. He collected art, employed Leonardo da Vinci, was well read, and not to mention handsomely charismatic. Each of the sister’s husbands possessed qualities that the other sister coveted. It was truly sad that if the husbands had been switched both sisters would have been a much happier from the beginning. Taking what fortune had dealt them the sister’s lives changed dramatically overnight. They both became deeply involved in the politics of the worldly courts. There was an abundance of intrigue between all the Italian states at this time and even with in their own courts. Everywhere they turned there were courts filled with vipers just waiting for a moment of weakness to attack. All of Italy was on the verge of all out war and now they had to worry about not just their home fronts but the French were now after them. The French might just be unstoppable if they were victorious all would be lost. Differences and husbands aside the sisters were not just fighting for their own livelihood but for the future of their houses, all of Italy and to save the fragile love that was only recently born between the sisters and their husbands.

5+/5 I LOVED this novel and found it really complicated to write a review about not because the book was complicated but because the sister’s lives were very complicated. They were jealous of each other yet they loved each other at the same time. It really was a beautiful novel set in a heartbreaking era of turmoil: the Italian Wars.

R- rating for sexual references
FTC-This novel is part of my personal collection. I received no compensation for this review.

Amazon: LEONARDO’S SWANS by Karen Essex
~Lizzie~

Mailbox Monday: Michael Ennis and Tarot Cards

The Malice of Fortune by Michael Ennis
"Against a teeming canvas of Borgia politics, Niccolò Machiavelli and Leonardo da Vinci come together to unmask an enigmatic serial killer, as we learn the secret history behind one of the most controversial works in the western canon, The Prince...When Pope Alexander dispatches a Vatican courtesan, Damiata, to the remote fortress city of Imola to learn the truth behind the murder of Juan, his most beloved illegitimate son, she cannot fail, for the scheming Borgia pope holds her own young son hostage. Once there, Damiata becomes a pawn in the political intrigues of the pope’s surviving son, the charismatic Duke Valentino, whose own life is threatened by thecondottieri, a powerful cabal of mercenary warlords. Damiata suspects that the killer she seeks is one of the brutal condottierri, and as the murders multiply, her quest grows more urgent. She enlists the help of an obscure Florentine diplomat, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Valentino’s eccentric military engineer, Leonardo da Vinci, who together must struggle to decipher the killer’s taunting riddles: Leonardo with his groundbreaking “science of observation” and Machiavelli with his new “science of men.” Traveling across an Italy torn apart by war, they will enter a labyrinth of ancient superstition and erotic obsession to discover at its center a new face of evil—and a truth that will shake the foundations of western civilization".

Learning the Tarot by Joan Bunning
"Learning the Tarot is a complete course on how to use the tarot cards for personal guidance. The 19 lessons in the course cover the basics and then move gradually into more advanced concepts. Exercises and sample responses for each lesson help you learn and practice. For simplicity, only one easy layout is used throughout the course - the Celtic Cross Spread. Learning the Tarot focuses in detail on the actual process of discovering meaning in the cards. Lessons cover topics such as how to consider one card by itself, how to look for card pairs, and how to create the "story" of a reading. A convenient reference section contains two pages of information for each card including a picture from the popular Waite deck, a description, keywords, action phrases and suggestions for cards with similar and opposite meanings.




The Duchess of Milan by Michael Ennis
"Set amid the intrigue and pageantry of 15th-century Italy, this gripping, meticulously researched historical novel features two unforgettable heroines and a supporting cast that ranges from Leonardo da Vinci to Christopher Columbus. Ennis depicts the personal and political struggles in which these ambitious and amorally cunning women take part. Map; family trees".

The Complete Guide to Tarot Reading by Hali Morag
"Tarot card reading, dream symbolism, astrology, and the reading of body characteristics are explored in depth, as is the use of objects, such as crystals and coffee grounds, significant in their ability to connect humans with another realm of existence. Other avenues into otherworldly experience, such as channeling, the I Ching, meditation, and Wicca are also extensively discussed".

Complete Book of Tarot Spreads by Evelin Burger and Johannes Fiebig
"Tarot is like a puzzle or a work of art—and a great way to maximize intuition and have fun, too. In this insightful, imaginative look at interpretation, two of the best-known authors in the field examine 122 card layouts, complete with instructions on when and how to use them. Learn the basics; read personality and year cards in a way that's specifically related to your own interests; and explore larger cards and networks of cards. Featuring a rich variety of approaches—including Cycle of the Year (with 20 major layouts), tarot and astrology, and Arthur A. Waite and Aleister Crowley's Golden Dawn System—this guide contains the tools for finding answers to life's pressing questions".

True Love Tarot by Amy Zerner and Monte Farber
"Love's Magic is Right at Your Fingertips!
Simply concentrate on your question, pull one card from Amy Zerner's gorgeous, new True Love Tarot deck, and let Monte Farber's accompanying, 176-page illustrated guidebook give you direct and insightful advice for finding love or improving an existing relationship. It is easy to use! The twenty-two included love spells also work on a deep heart-and-soul level that will entertain and empower you and help you find your way on the road to happiness and romance that lovers throughout time have tread.

Monte and Amy are tarot experts, legendary lovebirds, and the creators of the best-selling Enchanted Tarot and Instant Tarot Reader. In their True Love Tarot kit they have focused the ancient power of tarot on the art of love. This time-honored system is designed to show you the steps to take to romance, partnership--even your soul mate!
Each of the 78 cards of the True Love Tarot deck is a uniquely beautiful collage--a magical fairy-tale world of dreams and fantasy that makes every one of your tarot readings a work of art.
True Love Tarot uses Monte and Amy's proven relationship secrets and the timeless spiritual teachings of the ages to guide you to open your heart and make wise decisions on the path to love.
If love is a game, True Love Tarot will provide your winning strategy for long-term companionship and happiness"!

Tarot for Beginners by P. Scott Hollander

"The Tarot is much more than a simple divining tool. While it can give accurate and detailed answers to questions when used for fortune-telling, it can also lead you down the road to self-discovery. This text tells the reader how to use the Tarot cards for meditation and self-enlightenment, as well as for divination. It offers a straightforward definition of the meaning of each card that can be applied to any system of interpretation, with any Tarot deck, using any card layout. The book also requires no prior knowledge of the Tarot. It provides an overview of the cards of the Major and Minor Arcana in terms of their origin, purpose and interpretive uses as well as clear, in-depth descriptions and interpretations of each card".
~Lizzie~
 

Book Review: THE SCARLET CONTESSA by Jeanne Kalogridis

In 15th century Italy Caterina Sforza was a formidable foe. She was a woman with the heart of a man and she ruled just as any man could maybe even better. Her adopted sister Dea was her constant companion all through their childhood. Growing up in the home of the vicious Duke of Milan’s house meant not living a sheltered life. One of the Duke’s favorite “pass times” was raping the local women and he never excluded the nobility. Caterina and Dea could not ignore the screams that came from her father’s rooms at night. Both girls would grow up and realize that even though they were women they could wield just as much power as any man could.

Dea by chance discovered she had a gift for reading “triumph cards”. She could foretell the future from the cards good or bad; she saw it all. Caterina and Dea shared the same fate and the same cards came up almost every time. The tower card always appeared but who’s tower was it, when and where were unknown but even if the women knew the end all that really mattered was how they got to that point and if they could survive it. They had to be prepared for whatever the tower held in the future.

Caterina married one of the most powerful men in Italy. Count Girolamo Riario was nephew to the Pope and leader of the papal army. It was not a love match but it evolved into a power match with Caterina being the leader in the end. Caterina ruled everything, she took lovers, ordered her armies, and all the while had Dea consult the cards for what the future held. Dea had her own ambitions; top on the list was to find her beloved husband Matteo’s murderer. Matteo was secretary to Caterina’s father and held not only the duke’s secrets but fiercely protected his own. In the end Pope Alexander VI and his son Cesare became their greatest enemy. A one-time friend that could also be considered a foe, Pope Alexander and his son lusted for not just Caterina’s person but her lands also. At this time in Italy the Borgia’s were on a rampage and not even the bravest women in all of Italy were left unscathed and Caterina was next on the list to take down all in the name of the Holy Father.

4.5/5 Awesomely far fetched but wildly exciting historical fiction readings. I enjoyed this novel but the whole time I read it I knew there must have been a lot of historical liberties taken by the author. I would not recommend this novel to readers that need historical accuracy because this would not be your cup of tea. I would highly recommend this novel to newbies in Italian historical fiction.

X-Rating for sexual encounters and violence
FTC- this novel is part of my personal collection and I received no compensation for it.

Amazon: THE SCARLET CONTESSA by Jeanne Kalogridis
~Lizzie~

Giveaway: O, JULIET by Robin Maxwell

Good Luck Everyone and Happy Reading!
~Lizzie~

Book Review: LIGHT ON LUCREZIA by Jean Plaidy

At this point in Lucrezia Borgia life she was deeply entangled in the devious plots hatched by her notorious family. Lucrezia’s divorce was officially finalized and she was to be married again. This time she would truly love her new husband. Her new husband was a very handsome young man named Alfonso of Naples he was was the younger brother of her sister in law Sanchia of Aragon. He was very young but Lucrezia fell in love with him at first sight. The pair shared a vibrant young love and they suffered a bitter blow early on in their marriage. Lucrezia took a tumble and sadly she lost the babe she was carrying. The disappointment was bitter but it did not last long for she was quickly pregnant again and they both looked forward to the better days that were yet to come.

Those better days were marred by the return of Lucrezia’s domineering brother Cesare. Once he had been Sanchia’s lover but those days were over. Sanchia spent her days with her brother and Lucrezia. Cesare was sickened by the couples love and devotion. He became bound and determined to do away with this new pretty brother in law of his that usurped Lucrezia's affection. Alfonso had been acutely aware of Cesare’s growing animosity and began to fear for his life. Sanchia had begged him to flee for his life because she knew what Cesare was really capable of and he did so with all speed. Yet he came back because Lucrezia begged him to come back home. With in days of telling Lucrezia his fears of Cesare he was not only injured but also strangled to death by one of her brother’s henchmen. Cesare blatantly admitted he ordered it done and there would be no punishment for the most fear man in Italy. Lucrezia and Sanchia were inconsolable in their grief. They tried in vain to protect him and they were tricked in the end into leaving Alfonso alone and it only took a minute for him to be murdered. Sanchia vowed revenge on her one time lover and Lucrezia began to fear the family that loved her too much. It was at this point she realized the only way to escape was through another marriage far away from Rome.

This time around Pope Alexander VI was determined that Lucrezia should have the best and the best was another Alfonso. Lucrezia was to marry Alfonso d‘Este the heir to the dukedom of Ferrara and with this marriage came a glorious title. Since this was Lucrezia's only option to escape she threw herself fully into committing to this new marriage in Ferrara. She would be an official princess and when she finally went to her new home she was utterly disappointed. Her new sister in law despised her from the beginning. Alfonso her new husband did not care for her, and the lavish lifestyle she was accustomed to would be stripped away from her. Lucrezia became melancholy and tried to find some pleasure in what little life had to offer her. After several conflicts with-in the Este house Lucrezia was dealt a debilitating blow; the sudden loss of her father. Grieving deeply Lucrezia was shocked that those around her in the house of Este celebrated the downfall of the Borgia’s. Her only joy now rested on her murderous brother Cesare. In her cruel life Lucrezia had to steal what little happiness she could even if it meant having illicit affairs behind her unfaithful husbands back. She had survived the fall of the great Borgia’s but surviving the house of d'Este’s was a whole different matter.

5+/5 Love, love, loved this novel. The concluding chapters to Lucrezia’s life I thought would be tamer. I could not be more wrong, her life was in constant turmoil. After reading Jean Plaidy’s version of Lucrezia Borgia I could never see her the same again. She gave her love freely where she deemed fit and was cursed for it. I encourage HF lovers to read Plaidy’s duo on Lucrezia because she will really touch your heart in the end just like she probably did to everyone she met in her lifetime. I am officially a new lover of Lucrezia Borgia.

R-Rating for Violence and Sexual Reference.
FTC-This novel is part of my personal collection.
Amazon: LIGHT ON LUCREZIA by Jean Plaidy
~Lizzie~

Book Review: MADONNA OF THE SEVEN HILLS by Jean Plaidy

The Borgia’s are one of histories most notorious families. They were known for their many scandals that rocked Rome to its very core. Pope Alexander VI had illegitimate children before he became Pope with his long time mistress Vannozza Catanei. Alexander was the doting father and the children loved him for it. Lucrezia was the baby girl of the family and was adored by her many brothers and parents. Her brothers Cesare, Giovanni, and little Geffredo all shared a bond that was unusual from the beginning. With the exception of Cesare all of the siblings inherited their fathers carefree view of life. Anything was forgivable in the Borgia family including murder.

Lucrezia from the moment she was born was meant to love and be loved. She was the heart of the Borgia family especially her older brother Cesare’s heart. As children Cesare had an intense rivalry with his younger brother Giovanni. When she was born Cesare made it his mission to make sure that Lucrezia would always love him above all others. Through out their lives Lucrezia and Cesare had an intense type of love. Which may have been because Cesare was the dark brooding personality type where love and violence met together in a hazy grey area of emotions. No one could ever love Lucrezia like her brother could and because Cesare had no moral qualms holding him back he would stop at nothing to make sure his little sister had the very best of everything life had to offer.

Like most of the noble women of her time Lucrezia was married young for political advantages to Giovanni Sforza. It was a typical loveless marriage that eventually had to be undone because it no longer had any benefits to the Borgia family. Her father could give her a divorce or her jealous brother could just murder him with out any consequences. A divorce will set her free but all of that was put on hold when in a traumatic turn of events Lucrezia sought refuge in a convent because she was whole heartily sick of all the murderous intrigue that was dealt by the hands of her family. Her father did not want her to take the nun’s vows and repeatedly sent messengers to try and coax her out of the convent. Surprisingly Lucrezia had found some comfort in the most impossible of places. She fell madly in love with her father’s messenger and life outside of the convent walls began to call her back. Lucrezia had come to the nunnery with the hope of escaping one scandal yet she managed to created another one entirely of her own doing. Lucrezia now had a secret and it was due to be on its way shortly. Her choices from that moment on would give way to heartbreaking consequences that even her loving Cesare could not protect her from.
4/5 Another lovely Plaidy novel, she really did have a gift for making messy historical situations seem logical. There was no incest in Plaidy’s version of the Borgia’s. Her view on the dynamics between Lucrezia and Cesare to me was way more plausible than incest. I cannot wait to read the next novel on Lucrezia “Light on Lucrezia” to finish her story. I would highly recommend this novel to historical fiction lovers new to the house of Borgia because Jean Plaidy is always a good place to start.

R-Rating for Violence and Sexual Reference.
FTC-This novel is part of my personal collection.
Amazon: MADONNA OF THE SEVEN HILLS by Jean Plaidy

~Lizzie~

Mailbox Monday: Robin Maxwell

O, Juliet by Robin Maxwell
"Before Juliet Capelletti lie two futures: a traditionally loveless marriage to her father's business partner, or the fulfillment of her poetic dreams, inspired by the great Dante. Unlike her beloved friend Lucrezia, who looks forward to her arranged marriage into the Medici dynasty, Juliet has a wild, romantic imagination that takes flight in the privacy of her bedchamber and on her garden balcony.
Her life and destiny are forever changed when Juliet meets Romeo Monticecco, a soulful young man seeking peace between their warring families. A dreamer himself, Romeo is unstoppable, once he determines to capture the heart of the remarkable woman foretold in his stars".

No Will But His: A Novel of Kathryn Howard by Sarah A. Hoyt 

"The author who "masterfully builds a dramatic story" presents another gripping novel of the women of Tudor England.

As the bereft, orphaned cousin to the ill-fated Anne Boleyn, Katherine Howard knows better than many the danger of being favored by the King. But she is a Howard, and therefore ambitious, so she assumes the role Henry VIII has assigned her-his untouched child bride, his adored fifth wife. But her innocence is imagined, the first of many lies she will have to tell to gain the throne. And the path that she will tread to do so is one fraught with the same dangers that cost Queen Anne her head".
~Lizzie~

REIGN on CW Review

I know that not everyone likes the new show Reign on CW. I have to admit that I LOVE IT! It is so far left field on everything especially on Mary Queen of Scots life in France that it is insanely bad. But it is so bad that it is GOOD! The clothing, the hair, and now even the music. The whole cast is to die for beautiful men and women. Yet Mary stands out as the shows great beauty. I know that the show has not just caused scandal on the historical accuracy front but it also air the CW networks raciest scene to ever air. I became hooked on it after I watched this raunchy scene between Mary's lady in waiting Kenna and the King of France. It was a down and dirty little sex scene that left my mouth gaping open. The moment proved that this show was defiantly an adult show. In Reign the women are glamorous with a modern day edge making for some very cute bohemian aristocratic fashion's. All of Mary's ladies are to die for beautiful and very different from each other which makes it all the more exciting. They even made Catherine De' Medici a beautiful mature woman. I guess Reign just makes everyone beautiful. I totally understand if this show is not your cup of tea but I thought I would share some of the cool things I love about this show just in case it sparks your interest.

From top left to right: Dauphin Francis, Mary Stuart, Sebastian, Catherine de Medici, Henry II. From bottom Left to right: Aylee, Kenna, Greer, Lola, Nostradamus. 

The Cast 

Kenna, Lola, and Greer.

Mary Stuart ~ Adelaide Kane
King Henry II of France ~ Alan van Sprang

Queen Catherine de Medici ~ Megan Follows

Dauphin Francis ~ Toby Regbo

Diane de Poitiers ~ Anna Walton

Sebastian (King Henry II and mistress Diane de Poitiers son) ~ Torrance Coombs

Nostradamus ~ Rossif Sutherland

Kenna ~ Caitlin Stasey

Lola (Mary's lady in waiting) ~ Anna Popplewell

Greer (Mary's lady in waiting) ~ Celina Sinden

Aylee (Mary's lady in waiting) ~ Jenessa Grant

On episode #118 the show was at a turning point. Mary and Francis are firmly married and the king Henry II has gone mad. Henry allowed a servant woman to usurp Queen Catherine De' Medici's crown after she won the queen of the bean contest. The little servant girl won and Henry being mad at the time let her take it way too far. Meanwhile in a turn of events a new contract was being negotiated with the Pope for certain land rents and Henry not being fit to negotiate means that the golden couple Mary and Francis would swoop in and save the day by taking over the negotiations. 

Catherine de Medici and Nostradamus

Did mention that all of this took place at a ball? That was the best part. Mary and Francis were taking the stage and finding their royal footing at this time. But surprisingly the best part of this scene was not the ball it was the music! It took me while to pick up on it but playing in the background for the ball there was a string quartet playing, I knew this song but until the courus broke out I had no idea how I knew it. Best song ever for the moment goes to Lordes "Royal" performed by Vitamin String Quartet. The music was oh so fitting and I loved it, loved it, LOVED it. I wanted to share the music with you and some info about my new favorite show even if it is not your cup of tea consider it a train wreck that you just can't take your eyes off of. I hope that through this show some might watch it and wonder what was the real Mary Queen of Scots like. Maybe they will become a historical fiction junkie too and who knows maybe just maybe someone will give Mary a chance and find out that her life was way more dramatic than anything a TV show could ever hope to produce. I am sad to say though that Reign had it's season finally last week and I hope to goodness they do not cancelled it but for now check out the stuff below for more on Reign including where to watch the full episodes for FREE.

More on Reign! Main CW Reign Page  ~ Full Episodes ~ Reign Music List

~Lizzie~

Book Review: THE SECOND DUCHESS by Elizabeth Loupas

Barbara of Austria was anything but a young and extraordinarily beautiful new bride. "Imperial" Barbara was married to the Duke of Ferrara; Alfonso d’ Este. The newly married couple was older and Barbara unlike her husband was a novice. She became Alfonso’s second Duchess of Ferrara. The death of the first Duchess of Ferrara was mysterious and it was the one topic that hovered on everyone’s lips at the Ferrarese court. Lucrezia de’ Medici was a forbidden topic unless you wanted to incur the wrath of the Duke by bringing up his dead wife.

The great mystery surrounding Lucrezia’s life and death would haunt Barbara from the moment she arrived in Ferrara. To save herself from becoming a victim of her new husband she must find out the truth about the circumstances that surrounded young Lucrezia’s death. It was rumored that she had died from ill humors in the Duke’s own nunnery but behind whispering hands at court it was said she was murdered by the Duke himself. Terrified of her new husband Barbara devised a plan to safe guard herself and gain the higher hand on the cold Duke. Barbara became determined to find the truth or die trying.

5++++/5 loved it! Poison, murder for hire, scandal, and every other plot you could think of and not think of all rolled into one engrossing novel. I inhaled this novel and read it in a matter of days and since I had just finished “The Red Crown Lily” it made it all the much better. I actually got lucky and discovered this novel was already in my collection because I remember around the release of this novel that there were so many book bloggers raving about it. Now I see why they all fell in love with this novel. I am elated that I finally got the chance to read this one because this lady has a new favorite author to add list of my favorite picks. I would highly recommended this novel for intrigue lovers.

R-Rating for Violence and Sexual References
FTC- this novel is part of my personal collection.

Amazon: THE SECOND DUCHESS by Elizabeth Loupas
~Lizzie~

Book Review: THE RED CROWN LILY by Elizabeth Loupas

Chiara Nerini was starving and terrified, she left what remained of her family owned bookshop in a last ditch effort to survive. Her father had blown himself and most of his bookshop up practicing alchemy in secret. Her family suffered greatly because of the loss. She had planned on selling a piece of her father’s alchemy equipment to the highest bidder she could think of. At this time in Italy Francesco de’ Medici the son of the great Duke was a known dabbler in alchemy. The future Grand Duke would be the only man that would have the means to pay top dollar for her rare decanter and Chiara was desperate to buy food for her family.

As the Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo de’ Medici lay dying, his son Francesco waited to inherit his birthright. Chiara had devised a plan to approach the Prince but it failed miserably. Right when she thought her situation could not get anymore worse she was about to be defiled right at the palace gates by the guards when a rescuer suddenly came to her aid. He was one of Francesco’s men that had previously not even given her a second look. She had brazenly shouted the tiny bit of Latin she had memorized from her fathers alchemy book but Francesco never even reacted. Fortunately for her Francesco sent his man Ruanno dell Inghilterra on his giant beast of a horseback to investigate. Ruanno made the guards release her with a crack of his whip and he hauled her up on his horse like a sack of potatoes. Chiara awoke alone in a cell of some sorts in a place she had never been. Abducted right off the street by one of the heir's men but for what dark purpose, all she could do was wait for someone to return.

Francesco aka "Franco" spent most of his free time with his two loves alchemy and his evil mistress Bianca Cappello. Franco decided that he needed a “Mystic Sorra” which was considered to be the female component of all things in alchemy. The newly made Grand Duke would need her to be a virgin and possess malleable alchemy skills if she was to ever help him produce the philosopher’s stone. If Chiara could pass Franco’s tests she could become his new Mystic Sorra and maybe someday she could become a recognized alchemist in her own right. Ruanno who seemed so cold in the beginning helped her pass the trials of becoming the Mystic Sorra and Chiara became Franco’s new recognized Sorra Mystica. Becoming the Sorra Mystica of the new Grand Duke of Tuscany Chiara instantly was thrown into the viper pit that is the de’ Medici court. Court life is treacherous among the de' Medici's and it was a life Chiara knew nothing about.

The de’ Medici’s are a notoriously ruthless house of poisoning murder’s specializing with in their own family. Nothing could have prepared Chiara for the devastating heartbreak she would come to know at the hand of the de’ Medici's. She was quick to learn that no one was ever really safe with in a court filled with murderous intrigue. Chiara and Ruanno bonded together in an oath of vengeance for the same murdered loved one. The new duo swore to exact their revenge upon the Grand Duke and his second wife Bianca Capello for their sinister deeds. Just when life could not get complicated enough Chiara discovered she was falling head over heels in love with Ruanno and the cost of their revenge could be their love and their lives.

5+/5 this book was AMAZING! It was fast paced, filled page to page with intrigue after intrigue. It was a real nail bitter for me because you had no idea which way the story was going to go next. Sexy and violent it made for an engrossing page-turner. I have not read much on the de’ Medici’s and I found this novel eased me into their house. I HIGHLY praise this novel but it is defiantly in the R rating category and I loved every single bit of it.

R-Rating Violence and Sexual Reference.
FTC- this novel was sent to me by the publisher for review. I received no compensation for this review.

Amazon: THE RED CROWN LILY by Elizabeth Loupas

~Lizzie~