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Publisher's Weekly
Surpassing her most recent effort, The Italian Garden , Lennox here offers a captivating, multifaceted saga, set in the 16th century and sparked by a strong, ''modern'' heroine. Through the machinations of an illegitimate cousin, pampered nine-year-old Serafina Capriani is taken from her father, a Marseilles merchant, and sold into slavery on the Barbary Coast. Saved from death by a loving master, Serafina grows to womanhood vowing to regain her rightful place and to destroy her cousin Angelo at his own game. Dashing pilot Thomas Marlowe, cast unwillingly into Serafina's life, grows to love her and supports her ambitions, hoping that she will return his affections. Lennox employs fewer period details than usual, engaging her readers with the engrossing personalities of her players and a spare, elegant prose style that enhances dramatic tension. Compelling secondary characters add dimension while strengthening the intricate, carefully constructed plot. This novel is certain to gratify readers of historical romance--and is worthy of a wider audience as well.
Library Journal
The only daughter of a prosperous 16th-century silk merchant, Serafina Guardi is ten years old when she is seized by corsairs while en route from France to her marriage in Italy. Sold to a kind master in North Africa, Serafina takes the identity of his daughter when he discovers that someone from the house of Guardi paid to have her killed. Years later, her master hires shipwrecked English pilot Thomas Marlowe to sail her home to France and reclaim her inheritance. While Serafina's business sense and desire for revenge drive her to rebuild her family's silk trade, Thomas has a vision of the perfect ship for exploring unknown seas. Each recognizing the determination of the other, they form an alliance to achieve their goals. The entralling, tightly constructed story is peopled with fascinating characters, such as Serafina's illegitimate cousin, who claimed her inheritance, the worldly courtesan Constanza and her innocent daughter; and the sailor Jules Crau, reduced to begging for food for his tiny daughter. Thoroughly enjoyable historical fiction.-- Kimberly Martin, Washington Univ. Law Lib., St. Louis
Genre: Historical
Surpassing her most recent effort, The Italian Garden , Lennox here offers a captivating, multifaceted saga, set in the 16th century and sparked by a strong, ''modern'' heroine. Through the machinations of an illegitimate cousin, pampered nine-year-old Serafina Capriani is taken from her father, a Marseilles merchant, and sold into slavery on the Barbary Coast. Saved from death by a loving master, Serafina grows to womanhood vowing to regain her rightful place and to destroy her cousin Angelo at his own game. Dashing pilot Thomas Marlowe, cast unwillingly into Serafina's life, grows to love her and supports her ambitions, hoping that she will return his affections. Lennox employs fewer period details than usual, engaging her readers with the engrossing personalities of her players and a spare, elegant prose style that enhances dramatic tension. Compelling secondary characters add dimension while strengthening the intricate, carefully constructed plot. This novel is certain to gratify readers of historical romance--and is worthy of a wider audience as well.
Library Journal
The only daughter of a prosperous 16th-century silk merchant, Serafina Guardi is ten years old when she is seized by corsairs while en route from France to her marriage in Italy. Sold to a kind master in North Africa, Serafina takes the identity of his daughter when he discovers that someone from the house of Guardi paid to have her killed. Years later, her master hires shipwrecked English pilot Thomas Marlowe to sail her home to France and reclaim her inheritance. While Serafina's business sense and desire for revenge drive her to rebuild her family's silk trade, Thomas has a vision of the perfect ship for exploring unknown seas. Each recognizing the determination of the other, they form an alliance to achieve their goals. The entralling, tightly constructed story is peopled with fascinating characters, such as Serafina's illegitimate cousin, who claimed her inheritance, the worldly courtesan Constanza and her innocent daughter; and the sailor Jules Crau, reduced to begging for food for his tiny daughter. Thoroughly enjoyable historical fiction.-- Kimberly Martin, Washington Univ. Law Lib., St. Louis
Genre: Historical
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