"It's Renaissance Italy and we meet the captivating young duchess Lucrezia de Medici. It's evocative. It's beautiful. It's brutal. Maggie O'Farrell is the go-to for historical literary fiction. Just perfect."
This novel is not about an artist, but was inspired by a painting, that of Lucrezia de Medici by Alessandro Allori, also the inspiration behind the famous poem by Robert Browning, My Last Duchess. Lucrezia was thirteen years old when she wed Alfonso Il d’Este, Duke of Ferrara. But three years later, at the age of sixteen, she was dead. Rumours abounded that he killed her in a jealous rage. It was likely she died of natural causes, but such a rumour is rich fodder for a historical novelist.
O’Farrell’s richly imagined story is filled with impeccably researched historical details about life, firstly in the luxury of the ducal palace in 1550’s Florence, then as Lucrezia travels across the dangerous country to the lands of her husband, and then in the tyrannical atmosphere of his home. The character of Lucrezia, the third daughter of Cosimo de Medici is exquisitely drawn. Her life changes overnight when her older sister, Maria, dies on the eve of her wedding to Ferrara, and Lucrezia must step into her shoes and replace her as his wife. The tension in the story ramps up as Lucrezia increasingly fears for her life. There was a twist in the story I absolutely did not see coming. Whilst the story itself is fiction, the setting, the atmosphere and the beautiful writing bring into full light the lack of agency, the oppressive reality, of life for women at this time. The way the author chose to end the story was both uplifting and inspired!
Hamnet was one of my books of the year in 2021, and I didn't think it could be bettered. This is equally full of drama, of suspense, of the highs and lows of history and beautifully packaged so it's a joy inside and out.
O'Farrell sweeps us back to Florence in the 1550s and we join her in Lucrezia's plight, her fight for survival.
When her older sister dies on the eve of her wedding to the ruler of Ferrara, Moderna and Regio, Lucrezia is thrust unwittingly into the limelight: the duke is quick to request her hand in marriage, and her father just as quick to accept on her behalf.
Having barely left girlhood behind, Lucrezia must now make her way in a troubled court whose customs are opaque and where her arrival is not universally welcomed. She has one duty: to provide the heir who will shore up the future of the Ferranese dynasty. Until then, for all of her rank and nobility, the new duchess’s future hangs entirely in the balance.
| Primary Genre | Historical Fiction |
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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.
The Marriage Portrait features in the following genres: Recommendations, Star Books, General Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, History of art, Fiction, The Arts: treatments and subjects, The Arts, Literary Fiction
The Marriage Portrait is available in Paperback, Hardback
The Marriage Portrait was written by Maggie O'Farrell and published by Tinder Press
The Marriage Portrait has 438 pages
£9.89
