MADONNA OF THE SEVEN HILLS

by Jean Plaidy



"In a castle in the mountains outside Rome, Lucrezia Borgia is born into history's most notorious family. Her father, who is to become Pope Alexander VI, receives his daughter warmly, and her brothers, Cesare and Giovanni, are devoted to her. But on the corrupt and violent streets of the capital it is a very different story: the Borgia family is feared, and Lucrezia's father lives up to his reputation as 'the most carnal man of his age'." (From the cover of the Arrow Books edition.)

I was gushing just the other day about the ability to get Jean Plaidy reprints from Book Depository. Madonna of the Seven Hills was my first purchase from there, and I'm so glad I took the plunge! I've read Jean Plaidy a couple of times before, and I still feel that she is great for that dose of "history lite" that I find I so often want. The stories tend to move quickly but highlight the important people and events.

One of the best parts of reading this version of Lucrezia Borgia's life is that my memories of The Borgia Bride by Jeanne Kalogridis are so fresh in my mind. It was fascinating to compare how the two authors took the same set of facts and approached them in vastly different ways. For example, Kalogridis took the Borgia incest rumors head on, while Plaidy chose to portray the family as simply weirdly affectionate. They both agreed on the brutality of Cesare and Giovanni Boria and the corruption of Pope Alexander VI, but Plaidy hinted at it much more than blatantly showing their actions. Lucrezia's first pregnancy is told very differently in each book, but I believe the same man dies for it. (I can't check my Kalogridis book right now because a friend has it. Sorry!) Sanchia of Aragon, the heroine of The Borgia Bride, has a wildly different persona in Madonna of the Seven Hills. Both authors, however, cut Lucrezia some serious slack regarding her evil image. Now I'm wondering if she really was as bad as I've heard! Don't worry. I'll keep seeing what I can find out. :-)

Plaidy has split Lucrezia's story into two books, and I have Light on Lucrezia sitting right here to get to very, very soon. I already know how it ends, but it will be so much fun finding out how Ms. Plaidy gets there!

THE QUEEN'S SECRET

by Jean Plaidy



When it comes to Jean Plaidy, there are times I think I could write just two all-purpose reviews with blanks to fill in for names and places – one for her books that focus more on history and one for her books that focus more on relationships – for that is how the books feel sometimes. One or the other, mostly the same, change the details. But that would be greatly disrespecting the enormous corpus this gifted and prolific author has produced, and it would definitely rob the books of their due. The truth of the matter is while few of them are works that I would deem outstanding, I can always count on Jean Plaidy for a fast, informative and pleasing read. In short, she is a writer I turn to when I want a book I know I will enjoy.

If one is reading the "Queens of England" series in historical order, The Queen’s Secret is the second of twelve volumes. (The first is The Courts of Love.) It is the story of Katherine of Valois, mother of the Tudor dynasty. This is one of the Plaidy books that is more relationship-focused than history-focused. The history you learn is mostly via conversations between characters rather than any actions that Katherine is involved in personally. Her direct story is of her marriage to Henry V and her later secret marriage to Owen Tudor. Therefore, when Joan of Arc makes her mark in France, we only get to see it from a great distance. I had hoped there would be a little more about that, but, on the other hand, it piqued my interest enough that I will most likely be scouting out more books about Joan in the future.

One thing I found very interesting in reading the first two volumes of this series was the marked difference in the feelings regarding family in the two queens, Eleanor of Aquitaine (in The Courts of Love) and Katherine of Valois. Katherine cares only for her children and family, and admires the lifestyle of the common people that allows them to raise their own children. Eleanor barely knew her children and didn’t care. Governing the country came first for her. While Eleanor’s attitude was considered normal for nobility in general and royalty in particular, I think many readers will relate more to Katherine’s pain at surrendering her child to the state and her need to have a real family.

Lezlie

More to come in the Queens of England series:

THE COURTS OF LOVE

by Jean Plaidy

The Courts of Love is the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine. It is written as if these are her memoirs, so the story is also of her husbands, King Louis of France and Henry II of England, their children, including King Richard and King John, and England's long rivalry with France.

I love Jean Plaidy's books. I'm not so much enamored of the writing itself. While it's engaging, many of the characters seem little more than paper dolls moved around to illustrate the actions of historical personages. And in this case, I didn't find Eleanor to be a particularly likeable person. However, my personal reason for reading her novels is that I love learning about history via fictionalizations of real people and events. For some reason, I find it easier to remember who's who when it's attached to fiction. Plaidy's books are more interesting than a straight non-fiction history book (with exceptions, of course!), but usually not so dramatic that it's annoying. She pretty much tells things in a straight forward manner with a little intrigue for good measure. (Did the two kings really . . .?? Nah! Did they?? Hmmmmm . . .) And there is just enough detail to get the big picture and decide if you would like to dig deeper in the future or if that's enough to satisfy your curiosity. I knew little to nothing about the reign on Henry II or Eleanor herself when I read this, and I finally have a few more blanks filled in regarding my knowledge of medieval England. Mission accomplished. But I am going out to Wikipedia right now to see if I can find out if that story line about the two kings is true or just an intriguing use of literary license!

Lezlie