Review: Medicis Daughter by Sophie Perinot

Publication Date: December 1, 2015
Thomas Dunne Books
Hardcover & eBook; 384 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis

Winter, 1564. Beautiful young Princess Margot is summoned to the court of France, where nothing is what it seems and a wrong word can lead to ruin. Known across Europe as Madame la Serpente, Margot’s intimidating mother, Queen Catherine de Médicis, is a powerful force in a country devastated by religious war. Among the crafty nobility of the royal court, Margot learns the intriguing and unspoken rules she must live by to please her poisonous family.

Eager to be an obedient daughter, Margot accepts her role as a marriage pawn, even as she is charmed by the powerful, charismatic Duc de Guise. Though Margot’s heart belongs to Guise, her hand will be offered to Henri of Navarre, a Huguenot leader and a notorious heretic looking to seal a tenuous truce. But the promised peace is a mirage: her mother’s schemes are endless, and her brothers plot vengeance in the streets of Paris. When Margot’s wedding devolves into the bloodshed of the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, she will be forced to choose between her family and her soul.

Médicis Daughter is historical fiction at its finest, weaving a unique coming-of-age story and a forbidden love with one of the most dramatic and violent events in French history.

 

What Did I Think About the Story?

As much as I love history and historical fiction, my knowledge of French history is just dreadful. It's not that I don't enjoy it, I actually find it quite fascinating, I just haven't read very much about it. Because of this I know only the very basics about the most infamous figures, including Catherine de Medicis, and so was eager to see what delicious new information I would learn within the pages of Medicis Daughter. I am so happy to report that Medicis Daughter not only ignited my fascination of the complex and manipulative Medicis but completely immersed me in a time and place I won't soon forget.

Medicis Daughter begins with our young heroine, Margot, coming to the court of her brother, Charles IX, and continues until shortly after the vicious massacre of many of the Huguenots who had come to Paris to celebrate Margot's wedding to her cousin, Henri of Navarre, in what is now known as the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre. While this time period only covers about eight years those years are chock full of manipulation, political intrigue and a rollercoaster of appeasement and fighting between the Catholics and Huguenots of France. Laced between these is the luxury of the court, its bed-hopping courtiers and the heady games of power and influence. With all this going on (and there is a lot of action and intrigue to delight in, perfectly presented by the author) the real heart of the story, to me, is much smaller: that of a beautiful, intelligent girl long held prisoner to her family's demands, threats and machinations finally learning how to break free, at least in part, from their control to become the woman of honor she longs to be.

I think one of my favorite thing about Margot (and really all of these characters) is that she isn't perfect, not even close. Sophie Perinot did an astounding job of making each character so well rounded and complex that they felt wholly real to me, not just glitzed up or vilified representations of what someone might want them to be. Not one character is completely good or bad, thought some fall pretty far towards the dastardly end of the spectrum. In Margot's case, when we first meet her she's quite naïve and pretty full of herself. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor, disheveled and ill mannered Duc of Navarre as she was just so mean to him when they were young and, truth be told, never seemed to care for him much throughout the story, even when she (seemingly begrudgingly at times) came to his defense and saved him from an almost certain death. Even the passionate romance between Margot and the Duc de Guise wasn't over romanticized, but was real and raw and painful at times like real love can be. And, best of all, we get to witness not only Margot's voice but her very character shift and grow as she learns that even those she thought she could trust could let her down and she needed to look within her own heart and mind to determine what actions she would take and what sort of person she wanted to be.  This very human element within these larger elements of historical fact is what really grabbed me and kept me glued to the pages.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention my two favorite characters within the novel, Margot's two best friends, Henriette, Duchesse de Nevers and Charlotte, Baronne de Sauve. They both added a wonderful note of levity throughout the story and were always ready with a sardonic comment or observation to entertain Margot as well as the reader. Both were quite adept at seduction and taught Margot how to maneuver her way through the lascivious yet religious court and ultimately get what she wanted even within the barriers set up by her family. They also gave her two people to turn to and lean on when she had no one else she could safely turn to. I would love to see one of them, especially Henriette, get her own story as I think both have a slew of potential as main characters.

Medicis Daughter is a delightful yet heartbreaking story of what one must do and sacrifice in order to survive a court like that of Charles IX, especially with the vice-like influence of a conniving woman like Catharine de Medicis. I feel a need to read  more about this court, the Medicis and Margot herself as I'm not quite ready to let them go just yet.  Thank you to Sophie Perinot for introducing me to a whole new section of historical fiction to now become obsessed with (move over Tudors)!

  

What Did I Think About the Cover?

I...Love...It!! If you haven't noticed from the blog's color scheme, I love pink so covers with soft pinks, golds, etc. always draw me in. This combined with the splash of red in the dress makes for one eye-catching cover! The fact that it also has the gorgeous French chateau and greenery makes it perfectly capture the setting of the story. I can't really think of anything I would like better for this cover.


My Rating: 4.5/5.0

Thank you to Amy at Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours for providing me with a free copy of Medicis Daughter in exchange for an honest review. Be sure to continue below for more information about the author, the book and the rest of the blog tour.

 

 

 

Advance Praise

 

“This is Renaissance France meets Game of Thrones: dark, sumptuous historical fiction that coils religious strife, court intrigue, passionate love, family hatred, and betrayed innocence like a nest of poisonous snakes. Beautiful Princess Margot acts as our guide to the heart of her violent family, as she blossoms from naive court pawn to woman of conscience and renown. A highly recommended coming-of-age tale where the princess learns to slay her own dragons!” –Kate Quinn, Bestselling author of LADY OF THE ETERNAL CITY

“The riveting story of a 16th century French princess caught in the throes of royal intrigue and religious war. From the arms of the charismatic Duke of Guise to the blood-soaked streets of Paris, Princess Marguerite runs a dangerous gauntlet, taking the reader with her. An absolutely gripping read!” –Michelle Moran, bestselling author of THE REBEL QUEEN

“Rising above the chorus of historical drama is Perinot’s epic tale of the fascinating, lascivious, ruthless House of Valois, as told through the eyes of the complicated and intelligent Princess Marguerite. Burdened by her unscrupulous family and desperate for meaningful relationships, Margot is forced to navigate her own path in sixteenth century France. Amid wars of nation and heart, Médicis Daughter brilliantly demonstrates how one unique woman beats staggering odds to find the strength and power that is her birthright.” –Erika Robuck, bestselling author of HEMINGWAY’S GIRL

Buy the Book

 

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | INDIEBOUND

 



About the Author

 

 

SOPHIE PERINOT is the author of The Sister Queens and one of six contributing authors of A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii. A former attorney, Perinot is now a full-time writer. She lives in Great
Falls, Virginia with her three children, three cats, one dog and one husband.


An active member of the Historical Novel Society, Sophie has attended all of the group’s North American Conferences and served as a panelist multiple times. Find her among the literary twitterati as @Lit_gal or on Facebook.

 

 

Medicis Daughter Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, November 16
Review at The Mad Reviewer
Review at Peeking Between the Pages

Tuesday, November 17
Review at Just One More Chapter

Wednesday, November 18
Review at The Maiden’s Court

Thursday, November 19
Review at The Eclectic Reader

Friday, November 20
Review at The True Book Addict

Monday, November 23
Review at Broken Teepee
Guest Post at A Literary Vacation

Tuesday, November 24
Review at Book Lovers Paradise

Wednesday, November 25
Review at A Literary Vacation

Friday, November 27
Spotlight at Historical Fiction Connection

Monday, November 30
Review at leeanna.me

Tuesday, December 1
Review at To Read, Or Not to Read

Wednesday, December 2
Review at Bibliophilia, Please

Thursday, December 3
Review at The Book Binder’s Daughter

Friday, December 4
Guest Post at Bibliophilia, Please

Monday, December 7
Review at Flashlight Commentary

Tuesday, December 8
Interview at Flashlight Commentary

Wednesday, December 9
Review at Curling Up By the Fire

Thursday, December 10
Review at The Readers Hollow

Friday, December 11
Review at Reading Lark

Monday, December 14
Review at A Book Geek

Tuesday, December 15
Review at The Lit Bitch

Wednesday, December 16
Review at CelticLady’s Reviews

Friday, December 18
Review & Interview at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book

Monday, December 21
Review at Bookish

Tuesday, December 22
Spotlight at Passages to the Past

Wednesday, December 23
Review & Guest Post at Historical Fiction Obsession

Monday, December 28
Review at Unshelfish

Tuesday, December 29
Interview at Unshelfish

Thursday, December 31
Review at The Reading Queen

 

 



Guest Post by Sophie Perinot, Author of Medicis Daughter

I am beyond thrilled to have Sophie Perinot, author of Medicis Daughter, on A Literary Vacation today! She has shared a delightful post about the splendid (and long!) royal progress of Charles IX. I'll be sharing my review of Medicis Daughter on Wednesday (hint: it's awesome!) but in the  meantime I hope you enjoy her post as much as I did and be sure to continue for  more information about Medicis Daughter and the rest of the blog tour!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

 

Around the Kingdom in 829 Days:  Charles IX’s Royal Progress

 

 

 

Given the name of this blog—A Literary Vacation—I couldn’t resist talking about one monster of a trip.  In the spring of 1564, the Valois Court began travel through France that would last more than two years.

 

A brainchild of Catherine de Médicis, this grand Royal Progress was intended to build unity between Charles IX and his scattered nobles.  The sight of the young king riding through the countryside or entering a far-flung city in great splendor was also meant to revive his subjects’ loyalty—a loyalty damaged by a religious civil war.  The King and his mother hoped that the fighting which had concluded the previous year would be last of its kind.  They could not know as they set out on their journey that eventually the war ended by the Edict of Amboise would be merely the first of eight French Wars of Religion.

 

 

In addition her domestic agenda, Catherine de Médicis intended to use the Royal Progress for a bit of important foreign diplomacy—a rendezvous with her son-in-law Philip II of Spain.  Relations between Spain (where Catherine’s eldest daughter, Elisabeth was queen) and France were strained because the Spanish King felt the French had been too soft on Protestant rebels, and too lenient in their peace terms.  Catherine believed such hard-feelings would be more easily smoothed over face-to-face.  She was greatly disappointed and angered when Philip declined to come to the eventual meeting at Bayonne.

 

 

With all these lofty goals in mind, the Valois entourage departed from the Château of Fontainebleau approximately fifteen-thousand strong.  The royal train was so large that sometimes the first riders reached a new destination before the rear members of the party had departed from the previous one.  It included horses and beasts of burden, a veritable army and, of course, household furnishings.  Needless to say, this Royal Progress did not progress rapidly!  By modern standards it crawled.  The average distance between stops was a mere twelve miles, and the maximum was thirty-six miles.  Imagine traveling over 2,700 miles at such a pace!  The speed of travel was affected by weather.  But also by the King’s health (Charles was ill twice during the journey), outbreaks of plague along the planned route, road conditions, and even Catholic feast days.

 

 

The traveling party was as fluid as it was large.  Individuals took short cuts and freely came and went from the train as it moved through the kingdom.  Perfect attendance awards, were they to be give, would have been few.  For example, while the royals made the entire journey, only two foreign dignitaries (the Papal Nuncio and the Spanish Ambassador) managed the whole trip.  Many of the chief nobles of the Court, including for example the Prince de Condé, were absent for chunks of the journey.

 

 

Social status dictated mode of travel.  The royal family went by litter, coach or horseback.  Most of the nobles of the Court went on horseback as well.  A large mass of “lesser” travelers walked.  Where navigable rivers were available, boats were employed and who got a seat on which boat (or any boat at all) was based on royal favor and who out-ranked whom.  The task of maintaining discipline over the whole of this city-on-the-move, and making sure everything was in order to receive the King at various destinations fell to Anne de Montmorency, Constable of France.  This was an honor but also a herculean task, and Montmorency was not a young man—in fact he was seventy-one as the Royal Progress began.  Definitely NOT a pleasure trip for the Constable.

 

 

All in all the Royal Progress lasted 829 days, 201 of which were spent traveling.  That was a long time to be away from the center of Valois power, and Catherine, ever worried about keeping control of matters in Paris, was in close contact with those left behind.  Of the more than four-hundred letters she sent during the trip, one-hundred-and-ten went to Parisians, including the Governor of the city, the Prévot des Marchands and the Parlement of the city.

 

 

If you are interested in exhaustive details of the French Royal Progress, a cook who traveled with the Valois chronicled the trip.  Check out The Royal Tour of France by Charles IX and Catherine de’ Medici.  Festivals and Entries, 1564-6 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1979).

 

 

If you are interested in getting a flavor for the trip without committing to 829 days, I promise you glimpses in Médicis Daughter including: the exotic gift the city fathers of Troyes gave their king (which, incidentally did not impress Princess Marguerite); a boat trip with His Majesty down the Saone from Chalon-sur-Saône to Lyon; and theatricals performed on the Isle of Aiguemeau to entertain and impress the Spanish.

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

 

Publication Date: December 1, 2015
Thomas Dunne Books
Hardcover & eBook; 384 Pages

 

Genre: Historical Fiction

 

 

Winter, 1564. Beautiful young Princess Margot is summoned to the court of France, where nothing is what it seems and a wrong word can lead to ruin. Known across Europe as Madame la Serpente, Margot’s intimidating mother, Queen Catherine de Médicis, is a powerful force in a country devastated by religious war. Among the crafty nobility of the royal court, Margot learns the intriguing and unspoken rules she must live by to please her poisonous family.

Eager to be an obedient daughter, Margot accepts her role as a marriage pawn, even as she is charmed by the powerful, charismatic Duc de Guise. Though Margot’s heart belongs to Guise, her hand will be offered to Henri of Navarre, a Huguenot leader and a notorious heretic looking to seal a tenuous truce. But the promised peace is a mirage: her mother’s schemes are endless, and her brothers plot vengeance in the streets of Paris. When Margot’s wedding devolves into the bloodshed of the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre, she will be forced to choose between her family and her soul.

Médicis Daughter is historical fiction at its finest, weaving a unique coming-of-age story and a forbidden love with one of the most dramatic and violent events in French history.



 

Advance Praise

 

“This is Renaissance France meets Game of Thrones: dark, sumptuous historical fiction that coils religious strife, court intrigue, passionate love, family hatred, and betrayed innocence like a nest of poisonous snakes. Beautiful Princess Margot acts as our guide to the heart of her violent family, as she blossoms from naive court pawn to woman of conscience and renown. A highly recommended coming-of-age tale where the princess learns to slay her own dragons!” –Kate Quinn, Bestselling author of LADY OF THE ETERNAL CITY

“The riveting story of a 16th century French princess caught in the throes of royal intrigue and religious war. From the arms of the charismatic Duke of Guise to the blood-soaked streets of Paris, Princess Marguerite runs a dangerous gauntlet, taking the reader with her. An absolutely gripping read!” –Michelle Moran, bestselling author of THE REBEL QUEEN

“Rising above the chorus of historical drama is Perinot’s epic tale of the fascinating, lascivious, ruthless House of Valois, as told through the eyes of the complicated and intelligent Princess Marguerite. Burdened by her unscrupulous family and desperate for meaningful relationships, Margot is forced to navigate her own path in sixteenth century France. Amid wars of nation and heart, Médicis Daughter brilliantly demonstrates how one unique woman beats staggering odds to find the strength and power that is her birthright.” –Erika Robuck, bestselling author of HEMINGWAY’S GIRL

 

Buy the Book

 

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | INDIEBOUND

 

 

About the Author

 

SOPHIE PERINOT is the author of The Sister Queens and one of six contributing authors of A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii. A former attorney, Perinot is now a full-time writer. She lives in Great
Falls, Virginia with her three children, three cats, one dog and one husband.


An active member of the Historical Novel Society, Sophie has attended all of the group’s North American Conferences and served as a panelist multiple times. Find her among the literary twitterati as @Lit_gal or on Facebook.

Medicis Daughter Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, November 16

Review at The Mad Reviewer
Review at Peeking Between the Pages

Tuesday, November 17

Review at Just One More Chapter

Wednesday, November 18

Review at The Maiden’s Court

Thursday, November 19

Review at The Eclectic Reader

Friday, November 20

Review at The True Book Addict

Monday, November 23

Review at Broken Teepee
Guest Post at A Literary Vacation

Tuesday, November 24

Review at Book Lovers Paradise

Wednesday, November 25

Review at A Literary Vacation

Friday, November 27

Spotlight at Historical Fiction Connection

Monday, November 30

Review at leeanna.me

Tuesday, December 1

Review at To Read, Or Not to Read

Wednesday, December 2

Review at Bibliophilia, Please

Thursday, December 3

Review at The Book Binder’s Daughter

Friday, December 4

Guest Post at Bibliophilia, Please

Monday, December 7

Review at Flashlight Commentary

Tuesday, December 8

Interview at Flashlight Commentary

Wednesday, December 9

Review at Curling Up By the Fire

Thursday, December 10

Review at The Readers Hollow

Friday, December 11

Review at Reading Lark

Monday, December 14

Review at A Book Geek

Tuesday, December 15

Review at The Lit Bitch

Wednesday, December 16

Review at CelticLady’s Reviews

Friday, December 18

Review & Interview at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book

Monday, December 21

Review at Bookish

Tuesday, December 22

Spotlight at Passages to the Past

Wednesday, December 23

Review & Guest Post at Historical Fiction Obsession

Monday, December 28

Review at Unshelfish

Tuesday, December 29

Interview at Unshelfish

Thursday, December 31

Review at The Reading Queen