Title: The Serpent and the Pearl Series: Borgia Chronicles #1
Author: Kate Quinn
Published: August 6, 2013
Genre(s): Historical Fiction
Page Count: 393
Rating:
Summary from Goodreads:Rome, 1492. The Holy City is drenched with blood and teeming with secrets. A pope lies dying and the throne of God is left vacant, a prize awarded only to the most virtuous--or the most ruthless. The Borgia family begins its legendary rise, chronicled by an innocent girl who finds herself drawn into their dangerous web...
Vivacious Giulia Farnese has floor-length golden hair and the world at her feet: beauty, wealth, and a handsome young husband. But she is stunned to discover that her glittering marriage is a sham, and she is to be given as a concubine to the ruthless, charismatic Cardinal Borgia: Spaniard, sensualist, candidate for Pope--and passionately in love with her.
Two trusted companions will follow her into the Pope's shadowy harem: Leonello, a cynical bodyguard bent on bloody revenge against a mysterious killer, and Carmelina, a fiery cook with a past full of secrets. But as corruption thickens in the Vatican and the enemies begin to circle, Giulia and her friends will need all their wits to survive in the world of the Borgias.
Kate Quinn is a (more or less) consistently good author. Her books are always fast-paced and entertaining, as well as just plain compulsively readable. In my opinion, The Serpent and the Pearl is her best yet, as it has all the positive qualities I’ve come to expect from this author, but seems to be far more historically accurate and well-written than her previous books.
Like, I believe, most of the author’s novels, The Serpent and the Pearl is narrated from the first person perspectives of various characters. In this case, we have the dwarf bodyguard, the runaway female cook, and the Pope’s mistress. All three narrators are likable and win the reader over to their side, though I must confess that the dwarf was somewhat hard to deal with, as he his personality and motivations seemed to shift inexplicably.
The setting is Renaissance Rome at the height of Borgia power. Quinn captures the aura of the period easily (I especially liked the attention given to food as opposed to art or music). As I mentioned, this book seems to be rather more accurate than my past experiences, which I was happy to note. It’s much easier to lose yourself in a good historical setting if there aren’t a ridiculous amount of inaccuracies popping up all the time.
I also appreciated that, even though the potential was certainly there, Quinn never really let this book descend into an outright dramafest. I mean, the Borgias are just begging to be made into a soap opera, and the author’s novels are usually rather soap opera-ish. Rather, The Serpent and the Pearl was much more up-front and honest in the way it told its story. Yes, drama happened, but not in a drawn out or overemphasized way. I find, personally, that I much prefer this style of storytelling.
This is one of Kate Quinn’s better novels, in my opinion. The world of the Borgias is illuminated quite satisfactorily here, the story is engrossing, and the characters are enjoyable. I never really thought to include Quinn on my list of favorite historical authors, but the fact that I stuck around for a fourth book of hers when I’m quite sure I’ve never done that before in the genre…it says something. It says something good.
