C.W. Gortner's The Vatican Princess - Book Blast and {Giveaway}

The Vatican Princess: A Novel of Lucrezia Borgia by C.W. Gortner

Publication Date: February 9, 2016
Ballantine Books
Hardcover, Ebook, Audiobook
400 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction



Infamy is no accident. It is a poison in our blood. It is the price of being a Borgia.

Glamorous and predatory, the Borgias fascinated and terrorized 15th-century Renaissance Italy. Lucrezia Borgia, beloved daughter of the pope, was at the center of the dynasty’s ambitions. Slandered as a heartless seductress who lured men to their doom, was she in fact the villainess of legend, or was she trapped in a familial web, forced to choose between loyalty and survival?

With the ascension of the Spaniard Rodrigo Borgia as Pope Alexander VI, the new pope’s illegitimate children—his rival sons, Cesare and Juan, and beautiful young daughter Lucrezia—assume an exalted position in the papal court. Privileged and adored, Lucrezia yearns to escape her childhood and play a part in her family’s fortunes. But Rome is seductive and dangerous: Alliances shift at a moment’s notice as Italy’s ruling dynasties strive to keep rivals at bay. As Lucrezia’s father faces challenges from all sides, he’s obliged to marry her off to a powerful adversary. But when she discovers the brutal truth behind her alliance, Lucrezia is plunged into a perilous gambit that will require all her wits, cunning, and guile. Escaping her marriage offers the chance of happiness with a passionate prince of Naples, yet as scandalous accusations of murder and incest build against her, menacing those she loves, Lucrezia must risk everything to overcome the lethal fate imposed upon her by her Borgia blood.

Beautifully wrought, rich with fascinating historical detail, The Vatican Princess is the first novel to describe Lucrezia’s coming-of-age in her own voice—a dramatic, vivid tale set in an era of savagery and unparalleled splendor, where enemies and allies can be one and the same, and where loyalty to family can ultimately be a curse.

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | INDIEBOUND

Praise
“Assiduously researched and expertly crafted . . . . This unholy plunge into Rome’s darkest dynasty is wholly engrossing.” – Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author

“A spider web of Renaissance intrigue with a legendary cast . . . Impressive research, a lush background, and deft characterization make for a fascinating read.” – Margaret George, New York Times bestselling author

“Elegantly written and deeply researched . . . Renaissance Italy is vividly brought to life. I’m captivated by this knowledgeable author’s take on the controversial Borgias.” – Alison Weir, NYT bestselling author

About the Author
C.W. GORTNER holds an MFA in Writing with an emphasis in Renaissance Studies from the New College of California, as well as an AA from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Francisco.

After an eleven year-long career in fashion, during which he worked as a vintage retail buyer, freelance publicist, and fashion show coordinator, C.W. devoted the next twelve years to the public health sector. In 2012, he became a full-time writer following the international success of his novels.

In his extensive travels to research his books, he has danced a galliard at Hampton Court, learned about organic gardening at Chenoceaux, and spent a chilly night in a ruined Spanish castle. His books have garnered widespread acclaim and been translated into twenty-one languages to date, with over 400,000 copies sold. A sought-after public speaker. C.W. has given keynote addresses at writer conferences in the US and abroad. He is also a dedicated advocate for animal rights, in particular companion animal rescue to reduce shelter overcrowding.

Half-Spanish by birth and raised in southern Spain, C.W. now lives in Northern California with his partner and two very spoiled rescue cats.

For more information visit C.W. Gortner’s website and blog. You can also find him on Facebook, Twittter, Goodreads,Pinterest, and YouTube. Sign up for C.W. Gortner’s Newsletter for updates.

Book Blast Schedule

Tuesday, February 9
Unshelfish
Drey’s Library
The Maiden’s Court
CelticLady’s Reviews

Wednesday, February 10
The Lit Bitch
The Never-Ending Book
A Dream within a Dream
What Is That Book About

Thursday, February 11
Laura’s Interests
The Reader’s Hollow
Flashlight Commentary

Friday, February 12
Let Them Read Books
To Read, Or Not to Read

Saturday, February 13
So Many Books, So Little Time
Eclectic Ramblings of Author Heather Osborne

Sunday, February 14
100 Pages a Day
With Her Nose Stuck In A Book

Monday, February 15
A Book Geek
A Bookish Affair
Puddletown Reviews

Tuesday, February 16
Just One More Chapter
Historical Fiction Obsession
Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More

Wednesday, February 17
Impressions In Ink
A Literary Vacation
The Country Bookworm

Thursday, February 18
The True Book Addict
Ageless Pages Reviews

Friday, February 19
Passages to the Past
Kristin Un-Ravelle’d
Book Lovers Paradise

Saturday, February 20
Beth’s Book Nook Blog
One Book Shy of a Full Shelf

Sunday, February 21
Carpe Librum (Seize The Book)
Seize the Words: Books in Review

Monday, February 22
Broken Teepee
Book Drunkard
The Reading Queen

Tuesday, February 23
Teatime and Books
View from the Birdhouse
Historical Fiction Connection

Giveaway
To win a Borgia-Inspired Velvet Bag & Beaded Bracelet from C.W. Gortner please enter the giveaway via the GLEAM form below.

Rules
– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on February 23rd. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open to US residents only.
– Only one entry per household.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion
– Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.

The Vatican Princess Book Blast

David Blixt's The Prince's Doom - Guest Post

Verona Revisited

In writing The Prince’s Doom, the highlight was my return to Verona last year. The trip was arranged for the release of the Italian edition of The Master Of Verona, the first book in the series, and marked my fourth time in the city in the last 20 years. The first and third times I was there for pure tourism, staying for less than a day. But the second time was a heavy research trip, as was this latest one.

I could go on and on about having access I’d never been granted before (I got to sit in Cangrande’s chair!). I could talk about the places I’d never heard of, that became huge pieces of the novel (Santa Maria in Stelle!). But there was one event that bookended the two research trips perfectly. So it starts, as all my good stories do, with my wife.

My wife and I eloped in 2002, taking all the money we would have spent on a big wedding and spending it on the honeymoon instead. Which meant we were in Europe for over three months, exploring, making friends, and doing research. Eight days of that time was spent in Verona, as guests of the city. I had made a friend in the Ministry of Culture, and among the many wonderful people she connected me with, one was the descendent of Dante, still living on the vineyard bought in 1353 by Dante’s son Pietro (who just happened to be the lead character of the novel I was writing).

That first visit was memorable, to say the least, and my wife wrote an account of it here. (Do read it, it’s hilarious) (http://themasterofverona.typepad.com/the_master_of_verona/2012/06/guest-post-jan-blixt-and-coffee-with-the-count.html). He showed us the marriage carriage that was used when the family linked itself to the Serego clan, another famous Veronese family. We saw the family crest inlaid in the floor and over the mantle, beside framed photos of the Count's daughters. 

This is one of the things I like best about Verona. Everything is still in use. From the Arena, where they hold operas and concerts, to Cangrande's palace, which is not only the city hall but also houses the apartment of the chief of police, to a lovely condo Jan and I toured, with famous 19th century paintings the size of half a basketball court on the walls. They maintain the old, but with the new. Nothing is kept out of use, but rather worked seamlessly into daily life. 

So that was then. This time, 12 years later, it was filmmaker Anna Lerario, a new friend, who put me back in contact with the Count. We called ahead, and then Anna drove us out to the Count's abode in the country. Valpolicella is much more built up than I remember, and indeed when we spoke, the Count lamented the overdevelopment that's been happening. He's very much a Lord Grantham type, but instead of clinging to tradition, his vineyard has partnered with MASI wines, gaining him a huge distribution for his products. He sees the building that's been happening as speculative, and ruining the land upon which they make their living. 

Ever an elegant man, we sat down with him in the dining area of La Foresteria. I presented him with copies of all the Verona books - I'd sent one when MoV was first published, but it felt wonderful to hand him a copy in Italian as well. Then he, Jan, Anna, and I sat and talked.

The very best part was just letting the conversation wander. Before, I had only been interested in the 14th century history of the land. This time I looked around at the large courtyard, at the looming shadow of Monte Baldo to the north, and said, "How on earth did the villa survive the Second World War?"

The Count looked at me in surprise. "Did I never tell you this story?" And he proceeded to relate how his father had saved the villa in 1945. 

During the war, the Nazis used the villa as an outpost, first for troops, then as a munitions depot. The whole area sits at the foot of the Brenner Pass, the route the retreating Nazis would have to take. On April 22nd 1945 the order came to all Nazis still in Italy - retreat, and leave nothing for the Allies to use. For the Nazis stationed at La Foresteria, this meant blowing up all of the munitions - and the villa and village along with them. 

That night, the Count's father invited the Nazi commander to a farewell dinner, and produced his best bottles of the wine grown on the land. He then proceeded to get the man drunk, talking all the time about this history of the villa, of the people in the village. He then offered the commander a way to obey his orders without blowing up anything. What if they transported all the munitions to the river and disposed of them there? The ordinance would be useless, and no one would be hurt. 

The Nazi commander agreed in theory, but could not spare the men to do the work, not when they would be pulling back the next day. So late in the night the Count's father roused the whole village. Under the watchful eyes of a few Nazi soldiers, the villagers carried the explosives to the river and threw them in. By dawn of April 23rd, the munitons were all ruined and gone. The villagers were just beginning to relax when they heard a massive explosion from across the valley. Another village had not been so fortunate - the Nazi commander there had obeyed his orders to the letter. 

The Nazis pulled out, and April 24th was V-I Day - Victory in Italy. 

It did not escape me, of course, that the action of the story took place in the small hours of April 23rd. My wedding anniversary. Also Shakespeare's birthday. Serendipity seems to follow Shakespeare, Verona, and me. 

After telling us that story, the Count arranged for Jan and I to have dinner in a nearby restaurant (we later discovered he’d had them open just for us). Before we parted for the evening, I asked a favor. I had a photo of the Count and me standing beside his villa from 2002. Could we repeat the photograph? He agreed, and promised to meet me there in another dozen years.

It is wonderful to think that the ancestor of this charming, graceful, and warm man is the same person I’ve been striving to bring to life in the pages of four novels. Of all the characters I’ve ever written, Pietro Alaghieri is the one I admire most. I can’t help but wonder how much of that is due to having spent time in the presence of his heir, on land Pietro himself owned. Even 750 years after his death, Pietro remains vibrant and alive to me. I hope to you as well.

Publication Date: December 23, 2014
Sordelet Ink
Paperback; 722p
ISBN: 0615894437
Series: Book Four, Star Cross'd Series
Genre: Historical Fiction



READ AN EXCERPT.

The long-awaited explosive fourth novel in the Star-Cross'd series! Verona has won its war with Padua, but lost its war with the stars. The young prodigy Cesco now turns his troubled brilliance to darker purposes, embracing a riotous life and challenging not only the lord of Verona and the Church, but the stars themselves. Trying desperately to salvage what's left of his spirit, for once Pietro Alaghieri welcomes the plots and intrigues of the Veronese court, hoping they will shake the young man out of his torpor. But when the first body falls, it becomes clear that this new game is deadly, one that will doom them all.

Praise for David Blixt

'For anyone who has yet to read David's novels, you are about to hit the literary lottery. Yes, he's that good.' --Sharon Kay Penman, The Sunne In Splendour

'David Blixt is a master of historical fiction. Dramatic, vivid, superbly researched, this series captures Renaissance Italy in all its heady glamour and lethal intrigue.' --C.W. Gortner, The Tudor Conspiracy

'This is one of the most exciting, and satisfying, reads that I have immersed myself in for a long time. David Blixt is a gem of a writer.' --Helen Hollick, The Pendragon Chronicles

The Star Cross'd Series

Based on the plays of William Shakespeare, the poetry of Dante, and the history of Italy, the Star-Cross'd Series is a tale of wars won, friendships lost, and conspiracies both mortal and stellar, an epic journey into the birth of the Renaissance that recalls the best of Bernard Cornwell and Dorothy Dunnett.

Titles in the Star Cross'd Series

Book One: Master of Verona
Book Two: Voice of the Falconer
Book Three: Fortune's Fool
Book Four: The Prince's Doom

Buy the Book

Amazon

About the Author

Author and playwright David Blixt's work is consistently described as "intricate," "taut," and "breathtaking." A writer of Historical Fiction, his novels span the early Roman Empire (the COLOSSUS series, his play EVE OF IDES) to early Renaissance Italy (the STAR-CROSS'D series, including THE MASTER OF VERONA, VOICE OF THE FALCONER, FORTUNE'S FOOL, and THE PRINCE’S DOOM) up through the Elizabethan era (his delightful espionage comedy HER MAJESTY'S WILL, starring Will Shakespeare and Kit Marlowe as inept spies). His novels combine a love of the theatre with a deep respect for the quirks and passions of history. As the Historical Novel Society said, "Be prepared to burn the midnight oil. It's well worth it." Living in Chicago with his wife and two children, David describes himself as "actor, author, father, husband. In reverse order."

For more information please visit David Blixt's website and blog. You can also find him on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

The Prince's Doom Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, March 16
Review at Book Nerd
Spotlight at What Is That Book About

Wednesday, March 18
Review, Guest Post, & Giveaway at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book
Spotlight at CelticLady's Reviews

Thursday, March 19
Excerpt at Becky on Books

Friday, March 20
Excerpt at The Never-Ending Book

Saturday, March 21
Spotlight & Giveaway at So Many Precious Books, So Little Time

Monday, March 23
Review at Griperang's Bookmarks

Tuesday, March 24
Guest Post & Giveaway at Griperang's Bookmarks

Wednesday, March 25
Review at Svetlana's Reads and Views
Spotlight & Giveaway at Let Them Read Books

Friday, March 27
Spotlight at Flashlight Commentary

Monday, March 30
Excerpt at Buried Under Books

Tuesday, March 31
Spotlight at A Book Geek

Wednesday, April 1
Excerpt & Giveaway at Peeking Between the Pages

Thursday, April 2
Review at Quirky Book Reviews
Guest Post at Books and Benches

Friday, April 3
Spotlight at A Literary Vacation
Guest Post & Giveaway at Historical Fiction Connection

Laura Morelli's The Gondola Maker - Spotlight and {Giveaway}

About the book
"The heir to a gondola empire rejects his birthright but comes full circle in this fascinating glimpse into late-Renaissance Venice by art historian–turned-novelist Morelli."
- Kirkus Reviews

From the author of Made in Italy comes a tale of artisanal tradition and family bonds set in one of the world's most magnificent settings: Renaissance Venice.

When Luca Vianello, the heir to a renowned gondola-making enterprise, experiences an unexpected tragedy in the boatyard, he believes that his destiny lies elsewhere. Soon he finds himself drawn to restore an antique gondola with the dream of taking a girl for a ride. Lovers of historical fiction will appreciate the authentic details of gondola craftsmanship, along with an intimate first-person narrative set against the richly textured backdrop of 16th-century Venice.

Where to buy the book:
Amazon
Barnes & Nobles
Book Depository
Indigo Chapters

Praise for The Gondola Maker

"I'm a big fan of Venice, so I appreciate Laura Morelli's special knowledge of the city, the period, and the process of gondola-making. An especially compelling story."
--Frances Mayes, author, Under the Tuscan Sun

"Laura Morelli has done her research, or perhaps she was an Italian carpenter in another life. One can literally smell and feel the grain of finely turned wood in her hands."
--Pamela Sheldon Johns, author, Italian Food Artisans

"While a wealth of period lore and beautifully rendered setting—the city’s unique sounds, smells, and heritage—dominate her novel, Morelli creates poignantly convincing characters in this handsome coming-of-age novel about adoration, pain, and destiny."
- Publishers Weekly

About the author

Laura Morelli earned a Ph.D. in art history from Yale University, where she was a Bass Writing Fellow and an Andrew W. Mellon Doctoral Fellow. She has taught college art history in the U.S. and at Trinity College in Rome. She is the creator of the authentic guidebook series that includes Made in Italy, Made in France, and Made in the Southwest, published by Rizzoli. Laura is a frequent contributor to National Geographic Traveler and other national magazines and newspapers. A native of coastal Georgia, she is married and is busy raising four children. The Gondola Maker is her first work of fiction.

Connect with Laura here: www.lauramorelli.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauramorelliphd
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lauramorelliphd
about.me/lauramorelliphd

Follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter form below to enter for a chance to win a paperback or eBook copy of The Gondola Maker by Laura Morelli! (Open Internationally)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Voice Of The Falconer by David Blixt

From the author, Voice Of The Falconer by David Blixt:
I get a lot of compliments for my battle scenes. Which is lovely, as they’re some of the most fun and challenging for me to write.


I come from the theatre, and among the hats I wear in my professional life is Fight Director. I’m trained in different styles of swordplay, and I’ve traveled all over the world to learn from the best in the field. So when it comes time to write an skirmish, a duel, or a battle, I find myself standing in my office, sword in hand, working the movements one after another. I pick up a spear. Then an axe. I actually own a halberd, a gift from a cast of a Richard III I once directed, and that came into play up on my roof. I always find myself choreographing the fights as I would for a stage show, but on a much larger canvas.

The art of stage combat is looking incredibly violent while being incredibly safe. I try to bring some of that to my novels, varying the type of fighting, the kind of weapons, the intent of the combatants. Sometimes the fighting is light-hearted, sometimes desperate and sudden. But there’s a secret to making a good fight on stage, and I’ve found it works perfectly well in my writing as well.


But first, the technical elements. The page allows me to do two things. First, I can broaden the scope of the fighting, doing a great deal on horseback, which I have only had one abortive attempt at in theatre (seriously, don’t ask). Second, I can slow the action down. Part of the trouble in stage violence is that if it goes by too quickly the audience isn’t sure what happened. If it happens too slow, they don’t believe it. A very tricky balance to maintain. Pacing is as important in a novel as it is onstage, but the written word does afford me a little more latitude.

In fact, one big influence in how I “stage” my written fight scenes is, of all people, Tom Clancy. The pacing in his early novels is fantastic. I love the way he intercuts scenes, building tension and rhythm for Jack Ryan’s adventures, cutting away at the most dramatic moments. Having stolen this technique, I’m told it makes my novels cinematic, which I choose to take as a compliment.

Something else I’ve noticed I do is wound my characters far more than I ever intend at the outset. In the Star-Cross’d series, Pietro was never meant to be crippled by a blow to the leg so early. It just happened, and I have to admit it’s made all his subsequent fighting much more interesting. I’ve always been a fan of the James Bond and Sharpe books where the hero has to spend a month in the hospital after saving the day. Violence has to have stakes. We can’t just create a red shirt to kill him off. People we care about have to die, or at least be hurt, to make us feel the importance. There have to be consequences.

The hardest part for me is balancing what I need to know to write a fight with what the reader needs to read it – which is often much less. I write out the whole of the physical fight scene, then begin paring away excess detail, revealing the core.
Which brings us to the secret of a good fight scene. One thing I’ve learned in theatre is that a good fight is not about cool moves. It’s not about blood, or violence. It’s about story. The fight itself has to tell a story. A fight is like any conflict – it’s a tale of desire and denial.
Desire: I want your life.
Denial: You can’t have it.
It’s almost romantic, and combatants have just as much intimacy as lovers. One funny story is that a rather famous theatre with rather famous actors had to hire a Fight Director friend of mine, not for a fight scene, but for a love scene. The actors just couldn’t stage the lovemaking right – kept stepping on toes and banging teeth. So they hired a Fight Director to stage the lovemaking.

Likewise, I’ve found that writing a love scene is very much like writing a duel – everyone has a motive, everyone has a goal. The writer cannot be too graphic without losing the audience, but too vague and it becomes a wash.

Sex and violence - two sides of the same coin. Both are all about desire.




Voice Of The Falconer by David Blixt, sequel to Master of Verona
Read now via Amazon


Italy, 1325. It's eight years after the tumultuous events of THE MASTER OF VERONA. Pietro Alaghieri has been living as an exile in Ravenna, enduring the loss of his famous father while secretly raising the bastard heir to Verona's prince, Cangrande della Scala.


But when word reaches him of Cangrande’s death, Pietro must race back to Verona to prevent young Cesco's rivals from usurping his rightful place. As stake is the tentative peace of Italy, not to mention their lives. But young Cesco is determined not to be anyone’s pawn. Willful and brilliant, he defies even the stars. And far behind the scenes is a mastermind pulling the strings, a master falconer who stands to lose – or gain – the most.


Born from Shakespeare's Italian plays, this sweeping epic introduces Romeo, Juliet, Tybalt, the Nurse, as well as revisiting Montague and Capulet, Petruchio and Kate, and the money-lending Shylock. From Ravenna to Verona, Mantua, and Venice, this novel explores the danger, deceit, and deviltry of early Renaissance Italy, and the terrible choices one must make just to stay alive.


- Shakespearean actor David Blixt traces the genesis of the famous feud between the Montagues and Capulets in this sharp, arresting novel that is completely impossible to put down. - Michelle Moran, NEFERTITI and MADAME TUSSAUD



- Be prepared to burn the midnight oil. It's well worth it. - Historical Novel Society


Read David Blixt's other posts on HF-Connection
Author sites - http://www.davidblixt.com/  http://www.themasterofverona.com/

The Master of Verona by David Blixt

A few words from the author, David Blixt:

This was not the novel I set out to write. I had a small novel in mind – short, bittersweet. Two friends fall out over a girl. Happens all the time.

Except these friends were named Capulet and Montague.


Y’see, the cause of the feud in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is never explained. Nor does it have to be. But after doing the play for the umpteenth time, I’ve noticed a few odd quirks that point towards a rift based on Lady Montague. I’ve explored that elsewhere, so I won’t belabor it. Suffice to say, I had two friends, I had the girl, and I had a rough idea of the timeframe. Simple.

Only that wasn’t the story the characters wanted me to write. Sure, it’s in there. But it’s only a fraction, a sliver of the whole.

It started because I didn’t want to take sides. I wanted to write about these two friends and the woman they love from a neutral party. Because I didn’t want to put the audience on the side of either Capulet or Montague. So I started researching the period. Dante was in Verona. Along with his son, Pietro. Hmm.


So I chose Dante’s son as my window into the story. And then Dante, his son, and his patron took over my story. The little love triangle took the backseat to a much grander epic, inspired in equal parts by history and Shakespeare. The result was not at all what I had in mind. The ending surprised even me. And I’m dying to know what happens next…





The Master of Verona

David Blixt bursts onto the historical fiction scene with this masterful tale of adventure, love, and intrigue. This is high adventure at its best, an epic novel filled with the breathtaking feats and evanescent beauty of the early Renaissance. -- C.W. Gortner, THE LAST QUEEN and THE CONFESSIONS OF CATHERINE DE MEDICI


Romeo & Juliet is the greatest love story ever told.



Every story has a beginning.



A sweeping novel of Renaissance Italy, THE MASTER OF VERONA follows Pietro Alaghieri, eldest son of the poet Dante, as he’s caught up by the charisma and genius of Verona’s ruler, Cangrande della Scala. Pietro risks battles, duels, and murder to impress his new lord. At the heart of the story is an infernal plot against Cangrande’s bastard heir, and the rivalry of two friends over the affections of a girl. That rivalry will sever a friendship, divide a city, and initiate a feud that will someday produce the star-cross’d lovers.



Based on the plays of William Shakespeare, the poetry of Dante, and the history of Italy, THE MASTER OF VERONA is a novel of brutal warfare, lost friendship, and dire conspiracy, combining to create an epic journey into the birth of the Renaissance that recalls the best of Bernard Cornwell and Dorothy Dunnett.


Author sites - http://www.davidblixt.com/ and http://www.themasterofverona.com/
 
Download now for $2.99, free for Amazon Prime Members Also available in Hardcover and Paperback


Giveaway! Scimitar by Robin Raybould

THE STORY

The date is 1439 and Eduardo Ferrucci, a young Italian working in a bookshop in Florence, is unwittingly trapped in a conspiracy by agents of foreign powers. He is banished to Constantinople by the Florentine authorities and forced to spy on the Greeks. The Turkish forces have surrounded the city and are on the verge of invading Europe. SCIMITAR follows the life and loves of Ferrucci in the dangerous world during the last days of the Eastern Roman Empire, his eventual betrayal, his part in the great siege of the city by the Turks in 1453, his subsequent role as ambassador for the Turkish Sultan back in Florence and his final revenge on those who had betrayed him many years earlier. But Ferrucci’s first love was always books and during his exile in Constantinople he makes time to search for the remains of a secret text, part of which he had found in a Greek codex in Florence. Finally, after many years, he discovers and deciphers the whole text and is able to locate documents which have a decisive influence on the history of Renaissance culture. This edition includes an introduction by the translator describing the discovery of the original manuscript of this story as well as a transcription of one of the documents found by Ferrucci.

REVIEWS

"Robin Raybould has a certain unmatched dedication to historical accuracy."Scimitar" is a fine addition to general fiction and is very highly recommended." (Midwest Book Reviews)

"Compelling...fascinating and awe-inspiring...I suspect this was Raybould's ultimate aim-to inspire his readers into reveling in antique literature and philosophy, and expanding their minds exponentially.  If so, he has achieved his aim." (The Compulsive Reader)

SCIMITAR

Release: Available on Amazon and Kindle April 1^st 2011

Author: Robin Raybould

Category: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Tetrabiblion Books/CreateSpace

40 East 94^th St., Suite 16B, New York, NY 10128

212 410 6154

Pages: 372; paperback; no illustrations

Website: www.scimitarthebook.com

ISBN: 978-0-61-543316-5

Amazon Price: $18.95 Kindle Price: $6.99

For further information contact Robin Raybould at rraybould@camrax.com or at Camrax Inc: 212 410 6154.  Visit www.scimitarthebook.com and jump on the carousel!

Robin was kind enough to offer one copy of his book for giveaway!


To enter for the book giveaway, please leave a comment with your email address, and be sure to remember to follow HF-Connection! Open to followers in US/Canada. Ends September 20, 2011.


Good luck!