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Title: Madonna of the Seven Hills

Author: Jean Plaidy

Narrator: Jilly Bond

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-01-16

Publisher: Isis Publishing Ltd

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Fiction, Historical

Publisher's Summary:

In a castle in the mountains outside Rome, Lucrezia Borgia is born into history's most notorious family. Her father, who is to become Pope Alexander VI, receives his first daughter warmly, and her brothers, Cesare and Giovanni, are devoted to her.

As Lucrezia matures into a beautiful young woman, her brothers are ever more protective and become fierce rivals for her attention. Amid glorious celebrations, their father becomes Pope, and shortly after Lucrezia is married - but as Borgias, the lives of the Pope's children are destined to be marred by scandal and tragedy, and it's a fate that Lucrezia cannot hope to escape....

Members Reviews:

Charming and Pleasant

Poor Lucrezia! Born into such a strong male-domineering Borgia family, she didn't stand a chance. To add insult to injury, she was saddled with the undeserved label of an incestuous poisoner. Before we discuss this book, "Madonna of the Seven Hills", it is helpful to know in advance that it is only the first book of a two books series about Lucrezia.

The author wisely warned us altri tempi, altri costumi: different times, different customs. Renaissance Vatican was notorious for being corrupt. Shortly after Alexander VI and Julius II, Leo X famously proclaimed upon being elected Pope in 1513, "God has given us the papacy. Let us enjoy it." It is a miracle that the Church survived.

All stories about the Borgia family must center around Rodrigo, Pope Alexander VI. As Cesare said, "All blessings flowed from him." As it was a very close-knit family, all their stories were interlinked. You can't talk about one without talking about the rest of them. So, even though this story is supposed to be about Lucrezia, it is really about the entire Borgia family. I am glad the author chose to stick closely to the already juicy history and resisted the temptation to show off her creativity by reinventing a new saga.

Rodrigo was a shrewd politician. He rose to the papacy by careful plotting and long term planning. As a Spaniard in a sea of Italians, he could trust only his family. Fortunately, being a priest and having children were not mutually exclusive at the time, and nepotism was the norm in any circle. He forced his oldest son Cesare to join the Church because he knew that's the source of real power (that's why every powerful family had a son in the Church) and appointed his middle son Giovanni to lead the papal army because even power needs military support. His daughter Lucrezia and youngest son Goffredo were pawns for political alliances to be married off as needs arose. Unfortunately, brilliant fathers always beget foolish sons. Giovanni got himself murdered after he humiliated himself at his one and only battle and Cesare left a promising career in the Church to become a mere condottieri. Sure enough, after Alexander died, without a powerful patron in the Church, the Borgia family fortune soon came crashing down.

As hygiene and food safety were unknown but sickness was rampant, poison was the generally accepted cause for any unexpected death, that's why anyone who's anyone always had a taster. A dagger in a dark alley was the easiest way to dispose of an enemy, that's why you had an entourage and bodyguards following you wherever you went. Bribery was how you do business and simony was the most convenient charge leveled at your enemies. Only a handful of popes were not tainted by it.