[I1V]≫ PDF Free In The Name of the Family A Times Best Historical Fiction of the Year Book Sarah Dunant 9781844087464 Books

In The Name of the Family A Times Best Historical Fiction of the Year Book Sarah Dunant 9781844087464 Books

Download As PDF : In The Name of the Family A Times Best Historical Fiction of the Year Book Sarah Dunant 9781844087464 Books

In The Name of the Family A Times Best Historical Fiction of the Year Book Sarah Dunant 9781844087464 Books

In the Name of the Family is the second of Sarah Dunant’s novels, following Blood and Beauty, about the infamous Borgia family of the Italian Renaissance. Over the years, the Borgias have gained a reputation for being brutal, bloody, and corrupt. In Dunant’s version of the story, there is some truth to this, but the worst stories about them, including poisonings and incest, are untrue, and inventions of their enemies.

The patriarch of the family is Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia). Originally from Spain, he is seen as a foreign upstart by the Italian nobility. He has fathered several illegitimate children, most notably Cesare, leader of a mercenary army, and Lucrezia, who serves as her father’s marriage pawn in the complicated political games of Renaissance Italy. The book opens in the winter of 1501-1502, as Lucrezia, at twenty-two, journeys to the court of Ferrara to marry her third husband, Alfonso d’Este, the heir to the Duke of Ferrara. She is still grieving for her beloved second husband, another Alfonso, who was murdered at her brother’s orders when her marriage became politically inconvenient. With only her loyal ladies-in-waiting for support, Lucrezia enters the hostile environment of the Ferrarese court. Her husband is a surly, uncommunicative man, whose chief interests are forging cannons and sleeping with prostitutes, from whom he has contracted syphilis. Lucrezia’s miserly father-in-law withholds the enormous dowry her father had promised her. He and Lucrezia’s snobbish sister-in-law, Isabella, regard Lucrezia as too low-born for the Este family, who are members of the old Italian nobility. But Lucrezia asserts her rights, and eventually she is allowed to keep her dowry. She finds comfort in her friendship with the poet Pietro Bembo, and becomes his muse. But when it seems that their relationship will develop into something more, she realizes she cannot act on her feelings for Bembo without shattering her father’s alliance with Ferrara.
Meanwhile, Lucrezia’s brother Cesare plunders his way through the cities of the Romagna at the head of his army as he attempts to carve out a Borgia state. He becomes more and more unstable as he descends into syphilitic madness. Even his father starts to fear him. Cesare brutally puts down a rebellion against him among his subordinates. But Cesare, who always seems to do the unexpected, has a tenderer side, as can be seen when he rushes to Lucrezia’s bedside when he hears she is ill.

Dunant tells the story from several points of view, including Lucrezia, Cesare, and the Pope. A compelling addition is the point of view of Niccolò Machiavelli. A young Florentine diplomat, Machiavelli goes as an envoy to Cesare Borgia and becomes fascinated by him. His experiences with Cesare will become the inspiration for The Prince. Machiavelli is a complex character, who drinks heavily and spends time with prostitutes, but with strong feelings for his new wife, Marietta, a young woman with an interest in politics that is unusual for a woman of her time. In fact, I would have liked to see more of Marietta Machiavelli.

In the Name of the Family is a masterful historical novel. It’s not the easiest book to follow, with its many points of view, but it makes for rewarding reading. It is probably best to read Dunant’s first novel about the Borgias, Blood and Beauty, first, but In the Name of the Family can be read on its own.


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In The Name of the Family A Times Best Historical Fiction of the Year Book Sarah Dunant 9781844087464 Books Reviews

Rodrigo Borgia tells his part of this story, as does Cesare. But the narrators we can trust for truth in this family are Lucretia and Niccolo. Niccolo Machiavelli, that is. And though we know Machiavelli is definitely NOT a Borgia, in this account he knows Cesare better than anyone else, the driven leader, ambitious, ruthless, and the overreaching, vulnerable, ill, but beautifully, endlessly attractive young man. The story begins as Lucretia travels toward Ferrara to take her place as the Duchess wed to the heir to the dukedom, her dream to establish a court that will be renowned for its grace, art, and culture. Cesare, on the other hand, is beginning his conquest of southern Italy, financed by his father Rodrigo, bent on establishing the Borgia family as the most powerful force in the region. Dunant is too skillful a writer to let the story lag or the characters stumble, but I did find some jumps across years and miles to be a bit disorienting, but always, when we picked up another character’s narration, his or her situation came back to me as clearly as when I last listened to them.
She killed it with some of her previous works, but this one -- I kept waiting to really like the character Lucrezia and really get into this story, but too much battle/war history (zzzz). I like a book to wrap me so much into the story that I have to finish it -- not phone calls, kids, nothing - I'm 100% sucked in. This book did not do that. I could walk away/put it down while reading it..... I wasn't hooked. Bummer too, because I really like her writing style. Previous books have been dazzlers. The Birth of Venus --- AMAZING!
Sarah Dunant is known for her novels about Renaissance Italy and I've all of them in the past. When I saw IN THE NAME OF THE FAMILY, I immediately chose to read it. It focuses on the Borgias and gives us a very different view of Lucrezia that historians see differently. She is the daughter of Pope Alexander VI and the sister of Cesare, both a Cardinal and a warrior.

Dunant paints an exquisite backdrop for us with vivid descriptions of places, clothing, transportation, and foods and drinks. She does an outstanding job of transporting us back to Italy in the 1500s.

If you enjoy novels set in the Renaissance, I suggest Dunant's THE BIRTH OF VENUS, one of my favorites.
I am a Sarah Dunant fan! I have read each novel of hers with great delight as the Italian renaissance and High Renaissance are my areas of study. Dunant draws the figures from history with a skillful pen every wart and blemish are revealed. The Borgia's were an incestuous, sly, cruel clan that the reader is immediately repelled by and attracted to. It was marvelous to learn about Machiavelli and his relationship to Cesare Borgia. I stayed up quite late every night unable to put down the book. This book, and every other by Dunant, are a first rate read.
I read a highly favorable review of this book and decided to read it. I admire the work of the author in researching the various letters and documents that contributed to her analysis. Much has been written about the Borgia family, and Sarah Dunant, correctly in my view, corrects some of the long-standing myths and reports of the nature of the Borgia family. The only reason i didn't give it 5 stars is because the information about Lucrezia Borgia sort of trails off at the conclusion, essentially left to a postscript. Perhaps Dunant covered this in her earlier work, but not having read the previous work, I would have liked some additional information about the remainder of her life--particularly because the author is extremely good at portraying the feelings of the family members. Additionally, the addition of Machiavelli was a nice touch.
In the Name of the Family is the second of Sarah Dunant’s novels, following Blood and Beauty, about the infamous Borgia family of the Italian Renaissance. Over the years, the Borgias have gained a reputation for being brutal, bloody, and corrupt. In Dunant’s version of the story, there is some truth to this, but the worst stories about them, including poisonings and incest, are untrue, and inventions of their enemies.

The patriarch of the family is Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia). Originally from Spain, he is seen as a foreign upstart by the Italian nobility. He has fathered several illegitimate children, most notably Cesare, leader of a mercenary army, and Lucrezia, who serves as her father’s marriage pawn in the complicated political games of Renaissance Italy. The book opens in the winter of 1501-1502, as Lucrezia, at twenty-two, journeys to the court of Ferrara to marry her third husband, Alfonso d’Este, the heir to the Duke of Ferrara. She is still grieving for her beloved second husband, another Alfonso, who was murdered at her brother’s orders when her marriage became politically inconvenient. With only her loyal ladies-in-waiting for support, Lucrezia enters the hostile environment of the Ferrarese court. Her husband is a surly, uncommunicative man, whose chief interests are forging cannons and sleeping with prostitutes, from whom he has contracted syphilis. Lucrezia’s miserly father-in-law withholds the enormous dowry her father had promised her. He and Lucrezia’s snobbish sister-in-law, Isabella, regard Lucrezia as too low-born for the Este family, who are members of the old Italian nobility. But Lucrezia asserts her rights, and eventually she is allowed to keep her dowry. She finds comfort in her friendship with the poet Pietro Bembo, and becomes his muse. But when it seems that their relationship will develop into something more, she realizes she cannot act on her feelings for Bembo without shattering her father’s alliance with Ferrara.
Meanwhile, Lucrezia’s brother Cesare plunders his way through the cities of the Romagna at the head of his army as he attempts to carve out a Borgia state. He becomes more and more unstable as he descends into syphilitic madness. Even his father starts to fear him. Cesare brutally puts down a rebellion against him among his subordinates. But Cesare, who always seems to do the unexpected, has a tenderer side, as can be seen when he rushes to Lucrezia’s bedside when he hears she is ill.

Dunant tells the story from several points of view, including Lucrezia, Cesare, and the Pope. A compelling addition is the point of view of Niccolò Machiavelli. A young Florentine diplomat, Machiavelli goes as an envoy to Cesare Borgia and becomes fascinated by him. His experiences with Cesare will become the inspiration for The Prince. Machiavelli is a complex character, who drinks heavily and spends time with prostitutes, but with strong feelings for his new wife, Marietta, a young woman with an interest in politics that is unusual for a woman of her time. In fact, I would have liked to see more of Marietta Machiavelli.

In the Name of the Family is a masterful historical novel. It’s not the easiest book to follow, with its many points of view, but it makes for rewarding reading. It is probably best to read Dunant’s first novel about the Borgias, Blood and Beauty, first, but In the Name of the Family can be read on its own.