Blog Tour Review and GIVEAWAY: The Maiden of Florence – Katherine Mezzacappa
I picked up the blog tour of The Maiden of Florence as I love the historical setting and implied feminist perspective in the narrative. In that respect, the book has lived up to expectation!
As always, thank you to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources and to author Katherine Mezzacappa for organising this latest tour.
Before we get to my thoughts on the book, here are the details!
The Maiden of Florence – Katherine Mezzacappa
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 336
Audience: Adult
Publisher: Fairlight Books
Publication Date: 18 Apr 2024
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟
Goodreads – The Maiden of Florence
‘My defloration was talked about in all the courts of Europe. The Prince boasted of his prowess, even as preparations were being made for his wedding, as boldly as if he had ridden across that causeway with bloodstained sheet tied to his lance.’
1584, Italy: Twenty-year-old Giulia expects she will live and die incarcerated as a silk weaver within the walls of her Florentine orphanage, where she has never so much as glimpsed her own face. This all changes with the visit of the Medici family’s most trusted advisor, promising her a generous dowry and a husband if she agrees to a small sacrifice that will bring honour and glory to her native city.
Vincenzo Gonzaga, libertine heir to the dukedom of Mantua, wants to marry the Grand-Duke of Tuscany’s eldest daughter, but the rumours around his unconsummated first marriage must be silenced first. Eager for a dynastic alliance that will be a bulwark against the threat of Protestant heresy beyond the Alps, the Pope and his cardinals turn a blind eye to a mortal sin.
A powerful #MeToo story of the Renaissance, based on true events.
Purchase Link – Amazon UK Amazon US
My Thoughts
Plot
We start with a young girl called Guilia, who is cloistered with other orphans for most of her young life. Suddenly she is taken away from that life, lied to and thrust into the political machinations of some of the most powerful men in Italy.
Politics is obviously a key driver in the plot, but far from overwhelming. The perspective is far more personal rather than looking at the broad view. I have enjoyed reading the perspective as is, but I would also have been happy to get a little more detail on the political landscape of the time given the influence on the plot. I know the influence of the Medici’s from history and other sources, but exploration of them is, in my opinion, pretty light touch in this book.
Setting
One of the main reasons I wanted to pick up The Maiden of Florence was because of the setting. I have read a limited number of books in this setting previously, but not many. I’m always looking to push my boundaries and try new things!
It’s interesting to explore the setting from the perspectives we see in this book. First we pick up the story from Guilia’s perspective. Having lived a sheltered life throughout childhood, her emergence into the world gives us an awestruck and naïve take on the setting. It gives readers who are unfamiliar with the setting a perspective they can relate to and learn along the way with.
Later there is a second perspective, and from them we get some context of the backdrop and circumstances that have led to events so far. Whilst the majority of the book is from Guilia’s viewpoint, this second perspective is valuable in its contribution to the overall story!
Characters
the Maiden of Florence is very much a character driven tale. Guilia, and her life in the hands of more powerful men are the feature. With very little autonomy over her life, she is a victim of society.
Guilia is a complex character in that she goes through so much throughout this narrative. She is taken advantaged of, treated life cattle. She experiences joy and loss and heartache. We are with her for every step of the ride, and it is an emotional one!
Make no mistake, this is Guilia’s story. Although there are plenty of supporting and very influential characters in the book, Guilia is the focus. At the same time, it is also very much a story highlighting the rights (or lack of) for women in this time.
Narrative Style
As the book changed perspective a few times, I found it helpful that the book is split into sections to make this clear. The chapters are also relatively short, making this very readable even for short periods of time. That said, I sat and read this book for hours at a time, so it’s binge-worthy too!
The way in which Guilia’s tale is told makes it approachable for all readers. I went into it with some knowledge of the main players and setting. It’s not necessary however. Even if you went in blind, events and the narrative are easy to follow.
Summary
If you are looking for an introduction to historical fiction as a genre, or even just a new time period, The Maiden of Florence is a great place to start!
It’s a compelling character driven story that emphasises how treatment of women at the time cast its shadow on society, as well as the women themselves.
Author Bio
Katherine Mezzacappa is an Irish writer of mainly historical fiction, currently living in Italy. She has published several novels under pen names with publishers Bonnier Zaffre and eXtasy. She works as a manuscript assessor for The Literary Consultancy. Katherine reviews for Historical Novel Society’s quarterly journal and is one of the organisers of the Society’s 2022 UK conference. In her spare time she volunteers with a used book charity of which she is a founder member.
Social Media Links –
Twitter: https://twitter.com/katmezzacappa
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katherinemezzacappafiction/
https://katherinemezzacappa.ie/
Giveaway!
Giveaway to Win a vintage postcard, early 1900s, of the babies from the façade of the Innocenti orphanage. (Open INT)
*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33c69494586/
M.J. Porter is the author of many historical novels set predominantly in Seventh to Eleventh-Century England, and in Viking Age Denmark. They were raised in the shadow of a building that they believed housed the bones of long-dead Kings of Mercia – so their writing destiny was set. The first novel in their new Anglo-Saxon series for Boldwood Son of Mercia was published in February 2022.
Karl Drinkwater is an author with a silly name and a thousand-mile stare. He writes dystopian space opera, dark suspense and diverse social fiction. If you want compelling stories and characters worth caring about, then you’re in the right place. Welcome!
Genre: Fantasy
Genre: Historical Fiction 
about the extraordinary life of Harald Hardrada being published with Boldwood books starting with ‘Warrior Prince’. When he isn’t writing or doing his full-time engineering job, James is happiest being an amateur bladesmith, forging knives in the shed he built in his garden.
