This intriguing tale of passion and betrayal is set against the well-researched background of late 15th century Renaissance Florence during the rule of Lorenzo de'Medici (il Magnifico). Noble, but impoverished, Sabina Rossi is forced to marry a wealthy wool merchant several years her senior. She is introduced to the dazzling Medici Court where artists, writers, and musicians thrive. After her husband dies in the melee of the infamous Pazzi Conspiracy, she falls under the protection of Lorenzo but struggles socially as a young widow. Intelligent, rebellious, and now rich beyond her dreams, she soon falls in love with a dashing Roman named Massimo. Once she discovers his devastating secret, she must pick up the pieces of her shattered heart while avoiding scandal- for the rules of love between men and women have double standards in the rigid, patriarchal society of Florence.

Spanning three generations (Sabina, her religious daughter, Anne, and her feisty granddaughter, Stefania), the Rossi women witness the most exciting period of Florentine history: the Pazzi Conspiracy, the fanatical rule of Savonarola (when Botticelli burned his own paintings in the Bonfire of the Vanities), the fall of the House of Medici, and finally its reinstatement with Grand Duke Cosimo I in the early 16th century. This page-turner will leave readers breathless, and with a better knowledge of the Renaissance city.

Recommended to book clubs by 1 of 1 members.