Review: Renaissance Rivals by Karen Essex

Renaissance Rivals, the long-awaited sequel to the global bestseller Leonardo’s Swans, tells the story of the brutal rivalry between two of history’s most fascinating power women: Isabella d’Este, Marchesa of Mantua, celebrated in her own lifetime as “The First Lady of the World,” and Lucrezia Borgia, Duchess of Ferrara, daughter of the infamous Pope Alexander VI and one of the most maligned women in history.

Before Maggie O’Farrell’s doomed duchess in The Marriage Portrait, there were the women who built the courts, forged alliances, and commanded works of artistic genius. In both Renaissance Rivals and Leonardo’s Swans, Essex invites readers to step back one generation into the glittering courts of Renaissance Italy, where beauty, intellect, marriage, and ambition could determine the fate of nations.

My Review

This is an interesting look at a pair of beautiful women, joined together in an unhappy family situation. Poor Lucrezia Borgia, a pawn in her father and brother’s game of conquest, is obliged to marry into the Este family even before the fallout from her previous husband’s murder has settled. She had no choice in the matter, but gamely managed to please her new husband Alfonso, brother of the petulant Isabella who was determined to make her life miserable. However, the patriarch of the Este family, Ercole, has laid down the law:

“Our alliance matters as much to the Borgias as theirs matters to us,” Ercole answered. “Otherwise I would never permit this union.
”Yet Isabella could not silence her fears. “What if their larger plan is for Lucrezia to bear sons and then eliminate Alfonso so Cesare may rule Ferrara through her child?”
“I shall manage such concerns,” Ercole answered.
Alfonso wiped a finger across Isabella’s brow. “Do not worry. I shall treat Lucrezia Borgia and all Borgias exactly as they deserve.”
“My son, you will do no such thing,” Ercole interrupted sharply. “We will never dishonor ourselves by behaving like the Borgias. From this moment forward, the Borgias are family. The girl shall be treated as a true Este. We will elevate her through association with us.”

Easier said than done! There are a lot of uneasy romances and intrigues going on between all parties. Isabella can barely suppress her indignation toward Lucrezia, and the Borgia duchess seems to limp along, buffeted by episodes as they arise. Her surprising passion for Isabella’s husband certainly shakes things up! Was Lucrezia really the wanton she is portrayed as?

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Meet Karen Essex

Karen Essex is the national and international bestselling author of RUN, DARLING, KLEOPATRA, PHARAOH, LEONARDO’S SWANS, STEALING ATHENA, DRACULA IN LOVE, AND BETTIE PAGE: LIFE OF A PINUP LEGEND. All feature iconic women—powerful women that seduced the world and ruled it.

Essex is also an active screenwriter and speaker, and an award-winning journalist. She divides her time between Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Europe. Her novels are published in twenty-nine languages.

Leonardo’s Swans, the prequel to Renaissance Rivals, was a runaway bestseller in Italy and won the prestigious Premio Roma for Foreign Fiction.