Do you know that her liaisons with the Medici family at the height of the Italian Renaissance caused such a sensation that the intrigue endures today? That Lorenzo de’ Medici wrote love poems to her? That Botticelli asked to be buried at her feet? After years of research, poet and author Fay Picardi carefully unveils the captivating narrative portrait of this fascinating woman and adds enough detail that the reader feels as if he or she is inhabiting Florence during the period of Lorenzo de’ Medici.

Have you ever wondered about who Botticelli chose to depict in his immortal painting Birth of Venus? Was she a real person, his model or his mistress? Most people recognize her image, but few can name her. His bravery marks him out as an asset to the Allies, and soon he is being sent deep undercover and further into danger than ever before.Īs war rages, the Durante family will love and lose, but will they survive the war…? Simonetta by Fay Picardi Then Davide, a young man who is hiding the truth about who he is, arrives, and Diana starts to find her heart going where her head knows it must not.īack home in Britain as war breaks out, Alessandra’s son Robert, signs up to be a pilot, determined to play his part in freeing Italy from the grip of Fascism. Under the threat of war, Alessandra’s house becomes first a home and then a shelter to all those who need it.

Longing for a new start, she moves from her home in London to Italy with her daughter Diana and sets about rebuilding her life. Alessandra Durante is grieving the loss of her husband when she discovers she has inherited her ancestral family seat, Villa Durante, deep in the Tuscan Hills. Its diverse natural landscape encompasses the rugged Apennine Mountains, the island of Elba’s beaches on the Tyrrhenian Sea and Chianti’s olive groves and vineyardsĪ liar is not believed when he tells the truth – Tuscan saying An Italian Affair by Caroline Montague Its capital, Florence, is home to some of the world’s most recognisable Renaissance art and architecture, including Michelangelo’s ‘David’ statue, Botticelli’s works in the Uffizi Gallery and the Duomo basilica. Ten Great books set in Tuscany. Tuscany is a region in central Italy.

Tuscany is the latest destination for us to visit in our Great Books series.

The Medici Boy by John L'Heureux