Veena’s review of The Red Lily Crown: A Novel of Medici Florence by Elizabeth Loupas
Historical Fiction published by NAL Trade 01 Apr 14
I was on the fence a bit about this book when I picked it up to read. But once I got it open it took me no time at all to jump off the fence and sink in so hard that I didn’t come up for air and ended up being MIA at work the next morning. The author brings alive this period of history in vivid detail through the eyes of her leading character, Chiara Nerini, who manages to worm herself into a front row seat at the Medici court ruled by Francesco Medici. The Medicis were responsible for the Italian Renaissance, but we see that the façade of pageantry and pomp is spread thin over a core of decadence, ambition, and corruption. I felt like I was face to face with a dangerous reptile, repulsive and yet fascinating.
Chiara’s family is starving and ragged after her father was killed in an alchemy experiment gone wrong. Knowing Francesco Medici’s love of alchemy, she decides to convert her father’s alchemical equipment into money by approaching the Prince when he is in the city. Her first meeting doesn’t quite go as she expects, but she has definitely managed to catch the Medici attention, and before she knows it she’s forced into participating in a diabolical test coached by the Duke’s English chemical master, which qualifies her as a virgin acolyte alchemist in service to the newly crowned Grand Duke. Being a woman she’s placed first into the household of Isabella Medici, Francesco’s wild sister, and then subsequently the Grand Duchess herself.
Through her eyes and participation we understand the depths of greed and ambition that motivate Francesco and the rest of the court. He is cruel and capricious, but I have to admit to moments of unwitting sympathy as he relives scenes of his brutal upbringing at the hands of his mother. He definitely embraces pain and the darkness within him, most particularly as it manifests itself into his relationship with his mistress Bianca or her alter ego Bia.
As Chiara grows into her potential, both as a skilled alchemist as well as a woman developing her own loyalties and sympathies, her relationship with the Englishman Ruan also evolves into a relationship that transcends sexual intimacy. Chiara had sustained a head injury in childhood that continues to bother her through her life, especially in the voices that she hears. I like how the author uses these visions and voices to provide background and depth to the story.
Historically the Medicis are well known for their use of poison, particularly the most prominent reputation for that belongs to Catherine Medici, who is a descendant of the ones that we meet in this story. However, the fascination with poisons starts with Francesco Medici – or perhaps it started before with his father Cosimo, since there are references to Cosimo’s possible dabbing with poisons from which Francesco got his own start. The Boboli Gardens are a well-known landmark in present-day Florence. I don’t know if the poison labyrinth still exists or if it is a very clever figment of the author’s imagination, but it certainly plays a key role in our story.
The philosopher’s stone is another myth – or is it? From time immemorial people with a scientific bent have been fascinated by this myth and have tried their level best to recreate it, most times with devastating consequences. However, it is thanks to some of these scientific experiments that some of the metals that we take for granted today in our day-to-day life were created. All in all, the story is very well researched. The historical details are impeccable, the fiction is very believable. I will definitely look for other books by this author.
Grade: A
Summary:
Elizabeth Loupas returns with her most ambitious historical novel yet, a story of intrigue, passion, and murder in the Medici Court…
April, 1574, Florence, Italy. Grand Duke Cosimo de’ Medici lies dying. The city is paralyzed with dread, for the next man to wear the red lily crown will be Prince Francesco: despotic, dangerous, and obsessed with alchemy.
Chiara Nerini, the troubled daughter of an anti-Medici bookseller, sets out to save her starving family by selling her dead father’s rare alchemical equipment to the prince. Instead she is trapped in his household—imprisoned and forcibly initiated as a virgin acolyte in Francesco’s quest for power and immortality. Undaunted, she seizes her chance to pursue undreamed-of power of her own.
Witness to sensuous intrigues and brutal murder plots, Chiara seeks a safe path through the labyrinth of Medici tyranny and deception. Beside her walks the prince’s mysterious English alchemist Ruanno, her friend and teacher, driven by his own dark goals. Can Chiara trust him to keep her secrets…even to love her…or will he prove to be her most treacherous enemy of all?
No excerpt available.
