The instant Sunday Times bestseller from the acclaimed author of Hamnet, The Marriage Portrait is a dazzling evocation of the Italian Renaissance in all its beauty and brutality.
Winter, 1561. Lucrezia, Duchess of Ferrara, is taken on an unexpected visit to a country villa by her husband, Alfonso. As they sit down to dinner it occurs to Lucrezia that Alfonso has a sinister purpose in bringing her here. He intends to kill her.
Lucrezia is sixteen years old, and has led a sheltered life locked away inside Florence’s grandest palazzo. Here, in this remote villa, she is entirely at the mercy of her increasingly erratic husband.
What is Lucrezia to do with this sudden knowledge? What chance does she have against Alfonso, ruler of a province, and a trained soldier? How can she ensure her survival.
The Marriage Portrait is an unforgettable reimagining of the life of a young woman whose proximity to power places her in mortal danger.
Format: Paperback
Pages: 448
Imprint: Tinder Press
Publication date: 06/07/2023
The Marriage Portrait
by Maggie O’Farrell
Review by Bryony
Maggie O’Farrell, author of Hamnet and many other gems, has written yet another captivating novel! Set in Renaissance Italy with all its fierce beauty, culture and cruelty, The Marriage Portrait plunges us into the life of the young duchess Lucrezia de’ Medici.
O’Farrell has a startling ability to take you deep into character, time and place. I got lost in Lucrezia – the intricacies and nuances of her life. The story is poignant and quiet in its writing, with clever subtleties of character, but it builds to a shocking end.
This thrilling tale based on historical events will delight fans of O’Farrell’s work. If you are yet to read her, please start today.
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