I recently finished my NetGalley copy of Alison Weir's fabulous new novel JANE SEYMOUR: THE HAUNTED QUEEN. Wow, what a fantastic story. I've always thought of Jane Seymour as a mousy, quiet woman. A woman who was the antithesis of Anne Boleyn. The calm after the storm. Well, this book throws all my preconceived ideas out the window. I have no doubt she was the calm after the storm that was Anne Boleyn, but she was no shrinking violet, either. The Jane Seymour portrayed by Alison Weir (one of THE BEST historical novelist I've ever read), is a calm, but highly intelligent young woman. One who happened to catch the eye of Henry. The only woman who was able to give him the son and heir he required and craved. She was full of life and joy, but the title tells it all. She was haunted. There is an element of the supernatural in this book. She is haunted by a dark figure; she feels partly responsible for the death of ...
Giaconda: A Novel of Leonardo Da Vinci
Publication Date: August 1, 2012
Granta Books
ebook and paperback, 304 pages
Genre: historical fiction
In a world where everyone wants to tell you how to think, what do you do when you know that they are wrong?
Anchiano 1452. A boy is born to a father who will never understand him. Unless he finds the power to become what he could be, he will remain what he is, the son of a notary from a hamlet in the hills, nobody. As he grows up out of step with everyone around him, Leonardo must follow his instincts if he is ever to fulfil the vow he makes: to save people from each other — to save them from themselves. But the time will come when he will have to make a choice. Does he share his knowledge and pay the price for it? Or does he do what his hands have always told him to do? Hide it.
He looks at his aching hands. Runs them over his bony face and rough beard. How long before his body gives up, and when it does, what of it? If he stops now, what will happen – will he live more? What is more, more of what?
Praise
"Gioconda proposes an elegant solution to the problem of why the portrait of the wife of a silk merchant was never delivered ... Gioconda is a qualified success, scrupulous with its sources, careful with its conclusions." -Financial Times
"An elegant, historical debut novel... cleverly constructed and imagined ... full of vivid characters and well-drawn incidents. Turner's careful research and graceful prose style make Gioconda a pleasure to read." -Tina Jackson, Metro
"Renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci's astonishing genius is brought to life in this vividly atmospheric novel. From his solitary childhood to the conception of his iconic masterpiece, the Mona Lisa, this richly imagined life story will inspire you to re-examine his ideas, drawings and paintings." -Easy Living
"Lucille offers a fresh and intimate perspective on da Vinci's life ...From the first page she draws the reader in with such a natural easy style you feel you were observing Leonardo da Vinci as he really was." -Bournemouth Echo
About the Author
Author of Gioconda, a novel about the life of Leonardo Da Vinci, Lucille Turner is an international prize-winning novelist who lives between England and France. She has an MA in Comparative Literature and teaches part-time at university in France.
For more information please visit Lucille Turner's website. You can also connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.
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