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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
Although the Showtime version of Lucrezia Borgia is the one I fell in love with, Gortner did a spectacular job. I don't have much historical knowledge besides these two media portrayals, I loved Lucrezia's character growth from adoring her father, Pope Alexander VI, and her brother, Cesare, to seeing the corruption the two have and needing to adapt in order to survive in their world. I especially loved that Gortner refused to portray her as a femme fatal who was a mistress of poisons and instead made her a three dimensional character. Though I'm new to historical fiction, from what I read numerous women in major history has been reduced to less than that instead of the complicated person they were, so The Vatican Princess was a breath of fresh air.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
lucrezia borgia i would die for you
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
emotional
informative
medium-paced
First off, let it be known that I really can’t remember what made me got interested in this book. I’m not sure I even have a mild interest in the Borgias. But, damn was I glad that I read this book. For awhile, I was so enthralled by Lucrezia’s voice that I totally forgot the writer was a man, but his narration as Lucrezia Borgia was so beautiful and touched me deeply, I developed a strong sense of empathy for Lucrezia.
I did a research on her family and the scandal that follows. My opinions of Lucrezia might have been bias after I read the book (and some pop culture interpretation of her throughout countless number of books, movies and series). I don’t think Lucrezia is as evil as how people made her out to be. We have to remember that she was around the age of 13 – 20 years old when all hell break loose in her life. I don’t think she was capable in doing the things that people thought she did. And one important aspect that I was glad brought up in the book was that, Lucrezia was a female. No matter my age we are in, remember that being female is a shitty place to be, especially during the olden times. Women are merely a pawn in a male’s game, and so was Lucrezia.
Whether or not Lucrezia was evil, one thing for sure, the author managed to humanised a lot of the characters in the book. Even the Pope was not made as corrupt as what history has proven him for, even when the author slowly peel the skin of Cesare from such a sweet loving boy, to a crazy power hungry and jealous man; it was such an interesting ride to have had read this book and become intimate with the characters.
But it sucks that the book has to end. I was wondering how the author was going to end the book, and I must say that it ended nicely, even though I’m still bummed that the book ends. Lucrezia definitely was an interesting historical figure to write and muse about. Her family’s intrigue left so much for people’s imagination to wander, and I can’t really blame different interpretation of her life and her personality.
I did a research on her family and the scandal that follows. My opinions of Lucrezia might have been bias after I read the book (and some pop culture interpretation of her throughout countless number of books, movies and series). I don’t think Lucrezia is as evil as how people made her out to be. We have to remember that she was around the age of 13 – 20 years old when all hell break loose in her life. I don’t think she was capable in doing the things that people thought she did. And one important aspect that I was glad brought up in the book was that, Lucrezia was a female. No matter my age we are in, remember that being female is a shitty place to be, especially during the olden times. Women are merely a pawn in a male’s game, and so was Lucrezia.
Whether or not Lucrezia was evil, one thing for sure, the author managed to humanised a lot of the characters in the book. Even the Pope was not made as corrupt as what history has proven him for, even when the author slowly peel the skin of Cesare from such a sweet loving boy, to a crazy power hungry and jealous man; it was such an interesting ride to have had read this book and become intimate with the characters.
But it sucks that the book has to end. I was wondering how the author was going to end the book, and I must say that it ended nicely, even though I’m still bummed that the book ends. Lucrezia definitely was an interesting historical figure to write and muse about. Her family’s intrigue left so much for people’s imagination to wander, and I can’t really blame different interpretation of her life and her personality.
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was a hate reading and a gift. Every time a flip page I see something worse. I you want to torture yourself read that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Rape, Violence
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, Abandonment, War
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.75
From all the Borgia novels I've read this so far was my least favorite, just because the characters had less depth and the writing (particularly in the beginning) could at times be quite juvenile and immature.
I did like that this novel had nuances in the rumors of the Borgia and reasonings for killings etc, whereas most books have the same plot line, this changed up some of the events of altered them. I do think if this novel had been longer and there had been a greater depth of exploration into the characters, this could've gone up to 4 stars.
From all the Borgia novels I've read this so far was my least favorite, just because the characters had less depth and the writing (particularly in the beginning) could at times be quite juvenile and immature.
I did like that this novel had nuances in the rumors of the Borgia and reasonings for killings etc, whereas most books have the same plot line, this changed up some of the events of altered them. I do think if this novel had been longer and there had been a greater depth of exploration into the characters, this could've gone up to 4 stars.