Anastasia And Her Sisters by Carolyn Meyer

Anastasia and Her Sisters tells the tragic story of the Romanovs, the last reigning monarchs of Russia at the turn of the 20th century. The focus is on the four daughters known as the Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasia who went by the acronym of OTMA and is told by primarily by Anastasia but also through the diary entries of her older sister,  Olga.

The story begins in April, 1918 with the family under house arrest. Seventeen year old Anastasia Nikolaevna Romanova watches as her father, Tsar Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias, her mother, Empress Alexandra and her sister the Grand Duchess Marie leave in a caravan of peasant carts. Her father is to be put on trial in Moscow by the provisional government.  Accompanying them are Dr. Botkin and some servants. Anastasia along with her thirteen year old brother Alexei, and her sisters Olga and Tatiana remain in Tobolsk waiting, fearful of the outcome. Olga and Tatiana are the older sisters, while Marie and Anastasia are the two younger ones. The sisters hope that they will be rescued, even after the family was refused asylum in England. They have no idea what the future holds for them, but they hold out hope that they will be rescued.

Anastasia and her sisters learn that the Tsar and Empress have been taken to Ekaterinburg instead. A letter from Mama tells her that they need to sew their jewels into their clothing, although that is not exactly what she tells them to do. As a young girl on the verge of womanhood, Anastasia reminisces about the ball for Olga's sixteenth birthday. During that ball, Olga danced with Lieutenant Sablin but had eyes only for Lieutenant Voronov. It is these memories that lead to Anastasia narrating the events that lead up to the terrible day in 1918.

This leads into Part I OTMA: The Grand Duchesses 1911. In autumn of 1911, at their palace in Livadia, on the Black Sea Anastasia and her family spend their time hiking along mountain paths, playing tennis and touring in their papa's motorcars. In December they travel by train north to Alexander Palace in Tsarskoe Selo only a half hour away from St. Petersburg. There are always two trains, one a dummy train so that should a revolutionary or anarchist attempt to assassinate the tsar, they will not know which train to bomb. Anastasia discovers that her sister Olga is infatuated with Lieutenant Pavel Alexeyevich Voronov one of the officers assigned to the Tsar's yacht, the Standart. Besides noticing her sister's glances at Lieutenant Voronov she decides to read her sister's private diary.

At Tsarskoe Selo the royal family follows its routine of rising early and having lessons with their tutors of whom there are many. For example, Charles Sydney Gibbes teaches them English, Monsieur Pierre Gilliard teaches French, Pyotr Vasilyevich Petrov teaches them geography. Also at the palace  is the royal physician, Dr. Botkin and his children, Gleb and Tatiana. Anastasia's only brother, the heir to the throne, Alexei, is a hemophiliac, a condition inherited from his great-grandmother, Queen Victoria of England. This fact is a closely guarded secret. Alexei is watched by two sailors, Andrei Derevenko and Klementy Nagorny who try to prevent him from injuring himself and who often carry the young tsarevich around. Father Grigory Rasputin who dresses like a peasant and smells bad, frequently comes to see Alexei and he seems better after his visits. Father Grigory's apparent ability to heal Alexei has resulted in a close relationship with the family, especially the empress. Anastasia's Aunt Olga Alexandrovna, Papa's youngest sister visits Tsarskoe Selo very Saturday during the winter, taking the girls skating and tobogganing. On Sundays they usually visit Anichkov Palace to have lunch with their grandmother, Dowager Empress Marie whom Anastasia and her sisters and brother called Grandmere Marie. They would sometimes go to Aunt Olga's palace on Sergievskaya Street which she shared with her husband Duke Peter (Petya) Alexandrovich of Oldenburg, meeting cousins and other relatives, to dance and play games. Their life is filled with routine and ease.

Tsarevich Egg given by Tsar Nikolai to the Empress, 1912

In the spring of 1912, the Romanov's return to Livadia where they are invited to parties on estates, go sailing and have picnics. After celebrating Easter at Livadia, Olga begins to develop a deeper attraction to Pavel Voronov. Count Smolsky tells Tsar Nikolai that unrest continues to develop across Russia, with workers walking off their jobs. Aunt Olga indicates that she has heard the peasants too are restless, but Anastasia's papa, brushes off their concerns,  believes that everything will be fine. Later on during the summer they meet Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany, who is called Cousin Willy because he is a cousin to both Anastasia's mother and father. Anastasia and her sisters are not fond of him. During the spring, Alexei somehow injuries himself and begins bleeding. This episode is so serious that Dr. Botkin believes Alexei may die and convinces the tsar to inform the people that their beloved Tsarevich is very ill. Father Grigory telegrams the Empress to tell her that he will recover which he does. Olga celebrates her seventeenth birthday at the royal lodge in Spala in what was once part of Poland, with the help of many of the locals who come to dance and play music. From Olga's diary, Anastasia learns that their father asked Olga if she would consider marrying Dmitri Pavlovich.

In the winter and spring of 1913, Russia prepares to celebrate the 300th anniversary of Romanov rule with church services, ceremonies, dinners and receptions. On the third night, Olga and Tatiana are invited to a grand ball held in honour of the Tsar and Empress. Disappointed she and Marie cannot attend, Anastasia waits to hear about it later from her sisters. Meanwhile Olga's relationship with Voronov continues into the summer when they have their first kiss. But by the winter of 1914, Voronov is engaged to be married to Olga Kleinmichel and Olga is devastated. The spring of 1914 Olga is asked by the tsar to consider marrying Prince Carol of Romania, something that does not appeal to her. Anastasia watches as Olga continues to struggle with the loss of Voronov.

In the summer of 1914, Tatiana turns seventeen, Marie is fifteen and Anastasia is thirteen. The summer is spent painting and relaxing at their dacha in Peterhof and then embarking on their summer cruise in the Baltic Sea. But an event far away, in Sarajevo, Serbia is to cause repercussions around the world. The assassination in Sarajevo of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary and his wife by a Serbian lead the tsar to realize that this may very well lead to war. Russia was on Serbia's side while Austria and Germany were allies meaning that if Austria declared war on Serbia, Russia would have to enter the war.  At first Anastasia and her sisters are deeply concerned. Little do they know that their lives are about to change forever with the start of a world war later in 1914. And the instigator of it all will be their much disliked Cousin Willy who will declare war on his own cousin, Tsar Nicholas II.

Discussion

In Part 1, OTMA, Meyer sets the stage for the story, which is essentially about the events leading up to the mass murder of the entire Romanov family in 1918 by the Bolshevik secret police, the Cheka. This is done by describing the life as a young Grand Duchess through the eyes of Anastasia (Nastya) Nikolaevna Romanova as she grows up from an eleven year old girl to a young woman of seventeen. Detailed descriptions of holidays, birthdays and family relationships are presented, giving the reader an excellent idea of what it was like to be a member of the Russian royal family at the turn of the century. In many respects the young duchesses are like any other girls in this era; sharing secrets with sisters, learning about puberty, experiencing a deeper relationship with parents or other relatives (in Anastasia's case, her Aunt Olga), feeling pressured to follow social conventions such as marrying a man of equal social standing, disliking school lessons and becoming curious about boys, love and marriage. But in other ways, their lives were very different, filled with luxuries most young girls could never imagine, trips on the Baltic, wearing gorgeous gowns, attending balls and dancing with dashing military men, and living in beautiful ornate palaces. The focus is mostly family intrigue and on the relationships between the various cousins as well as Grand Duchess Olga's blossoming love affair with Lieutenant Voronov who is quickly married off to prevent the socially unacceptable attachment from developing any further.

Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna 1914

Since the narrative is Anastasia's, there are only fleeting mentions hints that all is not well in Russia. Anastasia mentions about the gruesome murder of her great grandfather Alexander, how her father is warned not to ride ahead of the Cossacks into Moscow on the anniversary of the crowning of the first tsar. Their lives as aristocrats are insular as they are generally unaware of the true state of life in Russia and how the people really feel about the tsar and his family.

In Part II War 1914 focuses on Russia at war and the involvement of the royal family in the war effort. Anastasia points out how conflicted her mother, the empress must feel. "Her mother was English, but her father was German! She was born in Germany! Her brother, Uncle Ernie, lives in Germany. She might still be there if she hadn't fallen in love with Papa and come to Russia to marry him. She had to learn to speak Russian, and she even gave up her religion for ours. Mama is as Russian as anybody and she must hate it that Cousin Willy is doing this wicked, awful thing."

The royal family were not mere spectators but participated fully in the war effort. The Empress Alexandra turned numerous palaces of the tsar and of wealthy Russians into medical units to care for the wounded soldiers. She also organized special trains to bring the wounded men to these hospitals and smaller facilities called lazarets. The Empress and her older daughters, Olga and Tatiana, were trained by the Red Cross to work as nurses, becoming sisters of mercy. They spent many days caring for the wounded and dying. Anastasia points out in her narrative, her "Mama assisted at as many as three surgeries, one right after the other, each lasting a couple hours." Both Tatiana and Olga recount the horrors of men terribly wounded and of others dying.

As in other European countries, the Russian people were intially excited about going to war and also held the belief that it would be a short war. The attitude of the Russians towards the Germans is summed up by Gleb Botkin who tells Anastasia, "The Germans don't know how to fight!" Gleb assured my brother. "They only know how to make sausages! All we have to do to win is to throw our caps at them." Anastasia's Aunt Olga remarks about the patriotism of the people. "I've witnessed the most extraordinary sights over the past week: the thrilling sight of men going to war. Every day from early morning until after sunset, hundreds and hundreds of men marching down Nevsky Prospect to the Warsaw Station to board a train for the front. People walk beside them, cheering them on. They're fighting for Holy Russia and for the tsar, Nicky!"

Tsar Nicholas too becomes involved in the war, traveling to Stavka, the army headquarters near Bialowieza. As in other countries, the Romanov's soon realize that the war will not be over by Christmas 1914. As the war drags into 1916, Anastasia indicates that Russia is suffering from strikes, food shortages and trouble from the revolutionaries. However, these troubles seem distant as she doesn't not provide many details nor indicate to the reader how she feels about these troubles.  recounts that Empress Alexandra spends more and more time with Father Grigory who has become an advisor to the tsarina, while Nicholas II remains at Mogilev as commander-in-chief.

Rasputin, advisor to the Empress

It is through Olga's diary entries that there is a hint of the true situation brewing at home. Olga reveals that the empresses seems blind to how people view her relationship with Father Grigory who is hated by the people and although she wants to warn her mother, Olga and Tatiana believe it is futile. The warning is left to the Empress's sister, Ella who tells Alexandra that Emperor Nicholas needs to be leading the country and not the army as he is not a military man. Aunt Ella also attempts to warn the Empress about Father Grigory. But these warnings are strongly resisted by Empress Alexandra.

Part III Revolution 1917 begins with the OTMA becoming sick with the measles and the abdication of Tsar Nicholas and the establishment of a provisional government. This section focuses on the increasingly precarious situation of the Romanov royal family. They are placed under house arrest in Tsarskoe Selo. Anastasia and her family are led to believe that there is a British ship on its way to take them to England. Their situation grows more difficult when soldiers arrive to guard them. They are insolent and treat the former Tsar with disrespect. Food shortages continue and Monsieur Faberge who has created many beautiful eggs for Nicholas as gifts to the Tsarina at Easter over the years, has fled the country.

Part IV Exile, 1917 tells about the blossoming friendship between Anastasia and Dr. Botkin's son, Gleb while traveling by ship to their place of exile in Tobolsk. They know nothing about what is happening in the war. By the winter of 1918, it's obvious that their situation is desperate and Olga refuses to allow their parents to treat them as children anymore. The new government has ordered the Tsar to Moscow where he is to be put on trial. The Tsar, his valet Trupp, the Empress, her maid Anna Demidova, Marie, and Dr. Botkin will all travel to Moscow.

Part V Fate, 1918 focuses on the Romanov's last few months, essentially picking up the story that was started in the short chapter prior to Part I. Marie, Anastasia, Alexei are reunited with Papa, Mama, Olga and Tatiana in Ekaterinburg and taken to live at Ipatiev House which has been renamed the sinister House of Special Purpose. Their guards are no longer respectful Russians but coarse Bolsheviks who are cruel. Anastasia turns seventeen and is no longer the happy, carefree girl she was before the war. "When I'm frightened -- that's most of the time now -- I retreat to happy memories and try not to think."

Anastasia and Her Sisters is perhaps Meyer's best piece of historical fiction, filled with exceptional detail about the Romanov's everyday life in Russia before the war and their complicated family relationships and connections with the other royal families of Europe and England. The characters of the Tsar Nikolai and Empress Alexandra as well as Olga, Tatiana and Anastasia are well portrayed. However, the reality of life in Russia for the vast majority of Russians is only hinted at. Instead, the Tsar is shown as a sort of benevolent ruler who cares deeply for his people and who believes fully that he has been called by God to rule. With the story told from Anastasia's point of view, this makes perfect sense. As a young girl she would completely believe in the way of life she her family had and they way her father ruled Russia. In the latter part of the novel,  Meyer maintains Anastasia and her family's ignorance of the terrible end planned for them.

The subject matter of this novel is incredibly interesting and the detail Meyer provides her readers may encourage them to do even more research into the Russian royal family. The book is detail driven and therefore is slow through the middle of Part I which is the largest section of the novel. Perhaps the inclusion of photographs of Anastasia and her sisters and brother and maybe their various palaces might have helped the narrative along. Meyers includes a simplified family tree of the Romanovs and a detailed Epilogue at the back of the novel explaining what happened to the Romanov's as well as many of their relatives, maids and tutors.

Those readers who are interested in a more detailed book on the Romanovs are encouraged to read The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming which explores the story of the Romanovs and what led to their murders.

Image credits:

Tsarsevich egg: 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tsarevich_%28Faberg%C3%A9_egg%29_and_surprise.jpg

Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Duchess_Anastasia_Nikolaevna_of_Russia#/media/File:Grand_Duchess_Anastasia_Nikolaevna_Crisco_edit_letters_removed.jpg

Rasputin: https://www.thoughtco.com/grigory-rasputin-3573786
 
Book Details:

Anastasia And Her Sisters by Carolyn Meyer
Toronto: A Paul Wiseman Book        2015
308 pp.

Beauty's Daughter by Carolyn Meyer

Beauty's Daughter tackles the story of the Hermione, daughter of Helen of Troy and King Menelaus of Sparta. The novel which is narrated by Hermione, is her story but it also involves the prominent role her mother played. 

The story opens when Hermione is eleven years old, relating her early life and her family history. Hermione's grandmother, Helen's mother Leda, was married to Tyndareus, King of Sparta. The great god Zeus appeared to Leda in the form of a giant swan and seduced her, causing her to give birth to a giant blue egg. Helen hatched from the egg and was accepted by Tyndareus into a family that included twin brothers, Castor and Pollux and a sister, Clytemnestra.  

Helen was extremely beautiful. When she was eleven years old, she was kidnapped by Theseus, the son of Poseidon and taken to his mother Queen Aethra who lived in a small village. Theseus left her and went off on his own adventures and eventually Helen was rescued by her brothers, the Discouri. When Helen was older, she married Menelaus, whose brother was Agamemnon, king of Mycenae.

Agamemnon was married to Helen's sister, Clytemnestra, whose husband, Tantalus he killed in battle. At this time Helen was considered the most beautiful woman in the world. Her father chose Menelaus and at the recommendation of Odysseus, had every suitor swear to defend him. Hermione and her little brother Pleisthenes were born. Hermione developed a close relationship with her father, learning about the gods who seemed to control their lives;  Zeus and Apollo his son, Artemis, Apollos' twin and Athena who sprang from the brow of Zeus.

When Hermione is eleven-years-old, her uncle and aunt, Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, and her cousins, Orestes, Iphigenia, Electra and Chrysothemis come to visit Sparta. At the end of the summer, as her cousins are preparing to leave, the Spartans learned that Paris, son of Priam, king of Troy will visit soon. King Priam has nineteen children, including Paris and his eldest brother, Hector. He also has numerous children by concubines and servants. Troy is an important city in the trade for silks and spices from the Orient.

On hearing of Prince Paris' visit, Helen decides to refurbish the palace with new couches, beds and fleeces. The handsome Paris arrives and immediately Hermione realizes that Paris and her mother Helen are attracted to one another. However, her father, Menelaus seems oblivious. When Menelaus leaves for Crete, Helen and Paris steal away and leave for Troy. Hermione discovers her mother's absence during the night but cannot wake anyone in the house. As she searches the house, she discovers that her Pleisthenes has left with them and they have taken all her father's treasure from the store house.

Hermione meets Zethus, Prince Paris's servant, who tells her that he saw Aphrodite, the goddess of love,  case a spell over everyone, as Paris is her favourite. Hermione tells Zethus that when her father comes home to discover his wife and son and his treasure gone, he will enlist the help of Helen's former suitors to help him recover her. This will likely mean war with Troy. And that's what happens as the story goes.

When Menelaus arrives home to learn Helen is gone, he travels to Mycenae, to meet with King Agamemnon and Queen Clytemnestra. Hermione will stay with her aunt while Menelaus gathers together the men who took the oath to aid him and travels to Troy to retrieve Helen. Menelaus and Agamemnon decide they will send an embassy to Troy to ask for Helen's return and when King Priam refuses, they make war on Troy.  They also decide to consult the oracle at Delphi. Eventually King Menelaus is able to assemble a thousand ships at Aulis, all painted black with huge eyes on the bows. Determined to travel to Troy, Hermione sneaks aboard the women's ship only to learn that it filled with prostitutes for the warriors. Hermione is protected by an older woman and eventually reveals herself to her father on the beach at Troy.

For ten years Hermione stays with the Greeks as they fight the Trojans. Hermione relates many of the events that are part of the Illiad; the fight between Kind Menelaus and Prince Paris, the death of Patroclus, the victory of Achilles over Hector and of course the building of the wooden horse with the Greeks hiding inside.  During this time Hermione and her cousin, Orestes, who has been involved in the Trojan war, become close friends and then lovers. With the war over, Hermione and Orestes decide they will marry. However, fate intervenes and Hermione learns that her father has already promised her to Pyrrhus, the violent and cruel son of Achilles.

Hermione has seen how the Pyrrhus enslaved Andromache, Hector's widow and killed her son, Astyanax and she wants no part of the marriage. Besides, her grandfather, Tyndareus betrothed her to Orestes when they were both children. However, when she tries to seek out Orestes to tell him what her parents have done, she learns that he has sailed with Agamemnon back to Greece. Hermione is forced to marry the brutal Pyrrhus and sets sail with him to Iolkos, the main port in Phthia. After burning all his fleet, Pyrrhus sets out to Pharsalos, the capital of the Myrmidons.

Although Hermione tells herself that she must forget Orestes, she finds it difficult to settle into life with Pyrrhus. When Zethus visit brings news of the terrible events in Mycenae involving Orestes and his family, Hermione makes the decision to leave and search for the man she loves.

Discussion

Beauty's Daughter succeeds in telling the remarkable story of  Helen and Menelaus of Sparta and the war that ensued after Helen was taken to Troy whether by force or by choice, by Paris. This then sets the stage for Hermione's own story which takes place after the Trojan War. The story of Helen of Troy and the Trojan War is known because it is was passed on orally and eventually written down in what has come to be known as the Epic Cycle. The Epic Cycle includes the Cypria, the Aethopis, the Little Illiad, the IIiupersis, the Nostoi and the Telegony.  Homer's epic poem, The Illiad, (sometimes included by scholars along with the Odyssey) covers only a small part of the war. Very little is known about Hermione, except that she married Pyrrhus and that she eventually fled his home after attempting to have his concubine murdered by her father. Hermione eventually marries Orestes. It is this part of Hermione's story that Meyer fleshes out.

The storytelling in Beauty's Daughter is well done and is appealing even to those for whom the story of Helen and Paris and the Trojan War is well known. Beauty's Daughter is definitely an engaging read simply because the story encompasses so many literary themes such as love, betrayal, war, and the differing roles of men and women in the Mycenaean Bronze Age. And mixed into this story are the many gods who can't seem to keep out of human affairs.

Where Beauty's Daughter falters somewhat is in the development of characters. Because there's so much "story" to tell, and because the events are told only through the eyes of Hermione, as this is her story, the other characters are not so fully portrayed.  Meyer does develop Hermione better than most of the other characters, focusing on Hermione's struggle to find her place within the Greek encampment, her longing for her mother Helen, whom Hermione feels has abandoned her, and her love affair with Orestes. Hermione is portrayed as a kindly Hermione tending to women who have been captured as spoils of war and heroes who fall in battle. The reader never really comes to know Orestes, who seems to be an important part of Hermione's life for those ten years of war at Troy, during the time the two friends grow into adulthood and love.  Even after he commits his terrible crimes, Meyer does not flesh out Orestes much except to tell us that he is being driven mad by the Furies. The same might be said of the character, Pyrrhus as it is uncertain what drives him to be so cruel to Andromache or so disinterested in Hermione.

Despite this, Beauty's Daughter is an enjoyable read and a good introduction to this wonderful Greek epic. Meyer has done her research and portrays Greek social and religious customs with great realism. It is interesting to see how Hermione and her fellow Greeks viewed their fate as whatever the gods determined, sometimes relieving them of any responsibility for their actions. To aid her young readers, Meyer has included a detailed map of Greece and Troy and a list of the many characters in this saga.

Book Details:
Beauty's Daughter by Carolyn Meyer
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt     2013
337 pp.

The Duchessina by Carolyn Meyer

This wonderfully written historical novel tells the story of Catherine de' Medici, the last surviving member of the Medici family directly descended from Lorenzo Il Magnifico Medici, who was Catherine's great-grandfather.

The opening chapter provides young readers with the background information about Catherine's life before the age of four, which is when Meyer picks up the story. 

Caterina Maria Romula di Lorenzo de ' Medici was given the  diminutive,  "Duchessina" or Little Duchess since her christening. Caterina was born on April 13, 1519 and was baptized three days later in the Medici family church of San Lorenzo. Just weeks after her birth, her mother passed away from childbed fever and her father died after a lengthy illness. 

She lived in the enormous Palazzo Medici with its large inner courtyard and marble statues. The main floor of the palace contained the large apartment of Cardinal Guilio de'Medici where he received visitors. Caterina spent her early childhood days with her nurse, Elisabetta whom she called Betta. 

Caterina received frequent visits from her father's sister, her Aunt Clarissa who told her about her great-grandfather, Lorenzo de'Medici, known as Il Magnifico and whose son became Pope Leo. She also reveals that when Caterina as a baby was sick with a fever, she was taken to Pope Leo who had her stay in Rome in the care of his sister, Lucrezia Salviata. At this time Pope Leo gave Caterina the title of Duchess of Urbino resulting in her nickname, "la duchessina". After the death of Pope Leo, Caterina returned to Florence with her Cardinal Giulio. He would meet with Caterina and her nurse, Betta monthly to be inspected. 

At the age of four Caterina discovered her older cousins, fourteen-year-old Ippolito and eleven-year-old Alessandro who lived in an apartment on the top floor.  Ippolito was handsome and kindly, while Alessandro was cruel and loved to taunt Catherine. Her Aunt Clarissa revealed that Alessandro was the son of a cardinal and his mother was a Moorish slave, while Ippolito was the son of Pope Leo's younger brother, Guiliano. Both boys were bastards (that is illegitimate). Shortly after Caterina's fourth birthday, the successor to Pope Leo mysteriously died, possibly by poisoning and Cardinal Guilio raced to Rome. He became Pope Clement VII and placed Caterina in the care of Cardinal Passerini. Life for Caterina changed dramatically. She was given a grander apartment, beautiful gowns and more servants. Betta revealed that this was to make her a good marriage prospect.

Caterina's Aunt Clarissa reveals that with the death of both her parents, Caterina inherited not just the de'Medici fortune but also her mother, Madeleine de la Tour d'Auvergne's fortune as well. She was the cousin of the French king, Francois who had tried unsuccessfully to bring Caterina to France. At age five, Caterina was tutored by Fra Matteo. Caterina loved to visit her Aunt Clarissa and her husband Filippo and their four sons, Piero, Leone, Lorenzo, and Roberto, who were Caterina's real cousins. Cardinal Passerini used the visits as a reward but Caterina quickly learned to deceive "and admit to nothing."  meets Michelangelo Buonarotti one day in that chapel. One day when she was almost six years old, Caterina was taunted by Alessandro who told her she looks like a frog. From this experience Caterina began to understand that she must be clever to get what she wanted.

When Catherine was almost eight years old, her world changed again. the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles who was in conflict with Pope Clement, ordered troops to sack Rome as a punishment for the pope's support of the French king, Francois I. The year that Caterina was born, 1519, Charles V, king of Spain became the Holy Roman Emperor. King Francois of France made ware against Charles V and was taken prisoner, releasing him in exchange for Francois's two sons. Because Pope Clement was an ally of Francois, the pope, the Medici family and all of Florence were at risk.  The Holy Roman Emperor Charles ordered troops to sack Rome as a punishment for the pope's support of the French king. Soldiers pillaged, burned, murdered and raped throughout Rome, and Pope Clement VII was forced to flee to safety.

Ippolito and Alessandro are taken by Cardinal Passerini to his palazzo in Cortona. To escape a mob outside the Medici palazzo, Clarissa and Caterina, disguised in a boy's tunic attempted to flee to Poggio a Caiano, the Medici villa in the country. However, they are discovered Clarissa is told that the new governors of Florence want Caterina as a hostage. Caterina and Clarissa are forced to return to Florence where Catherine is placed in the Santa Lucia convent in the Via San Gallo for her own protection. 

Life at Santa Lucia was difficult for Caterina. She wore a rough linen tunic, slept in a bed with a straw mattress and was tormented by one of the nuns, Suor Immacolata who tells Caterina that her father ruined her and many other servant girls and that he died of the "French disease". Between prayers in the chapel, Caterina was made to work in the laundry. She was able to befriend one young nun, Suor Caterina. Eventually Caterina was visited by an ambassador from France, representing King Francois, who revealed that although he could not free her, he could request that she be taken to a more suitable place. The ambassador revealed that Florence continued to be in turmoil and the Medici were hated. 

Caterina was taken to Santa-Maria Annunziata delle Murate which she was familiar with and which the abbess, Suor Margherita was her godmother. There conditions were much better; a small room with a thick mattress and warm blankets, a brazier and a lay sister Maddelena who was her maid servant. Gradually Caterina recovered her health with the care of the nuns. At the convent Caterina is tutored in the virtues. She had already learned to read Latin from Fra Matteo before Cardinal Passerini had stopped the lessons. Caterina was sent to the scriptorium to learn from Suor Battista to be a copyist.Shortly after her ninth birthday, Caterina's Aunt Clarissa died in giving birth to a daughter, Caterina who also died. 

In exchange for being made Holy Roman Emperor, King Charles of Spain allowed the Pope Clement to return to Rome. The previous year when Rome was sacked, Florence declared itself a republic. However, Pope Clement refused to recognize this and made Alessandro de'Medici ruler of Florence for life. To force the Signoria and the people of Florence to accept this, King Charles laid seige to the city. During the seige, Caterina became ill but recovered, many of the nuns succumbed to the plague and her beloved Suor Battista died. 

Caterina was sent back to the Santa Lucia convent. To protect herself, she cut off her hair and dressed in the habit of a novice and was led to Santa Lucia by Silvestro Aldobrandini of the Signoria's Council of Ten, in the hopes of keeping her safe. Eventually Florence capitulated after sixteen thousand of its citizens died from plague and starvation and the surrounding farms and estates had been destroyed. When Caterina learned that the all the members of the Council of Ten were to be executed she wrote a letter to Pope Clement begging for clemency for Aldobrandini. Caterina was forced to move to Rome by Pope Clement but agreed to spare the life of Aldobrandini and exile him. She travelled to Rome accompanied by her maid, Betta and Cardinal Giovanni Salviati and was placed into the home of Lucrezia de'Medici Salviati, Caterina's great-aunt. Living in the palazzo was Lucrezia's elderly husband Jacopo Salviati, her son Cardinal Giovanni and his assistants, her widowed daughter Maria, and her younger daughter Francesca.

In Rome, Caterina quickly discovered that both Ippolito and Alessandro also live at the palazzo and that it was Pope Leo's intention that Ippolito rule over Florence. She was tutored in Latin, Greek, and astrology in preparation for her marriage some day to a nobleman. In the first months of 1531, Caterina and Ippolito spent time in the library getting to know one another. Ippolito revealed that Alessandro is the bastard son of Pope Clement VII. Sadly, Caterina and Ippolito's meetings were discovered by Alessandro. As a result of this discovery, Pope Clement made Ippolito a cardinal, destroying Caterina's hope that one day she could marry him.

Now separated forever from the man she loves, Caterina found herself being tutored by the French Ambassador, Monsieur Philippe. During this time, Caterina also learned that she was to be wed to Henri, Duke of Orleans, and the second son of King Francois of France. In the meantime she is to be under the guardianship of Alessandro in Florence.  Caterina wondered, what her future holds, living in a strange country, far away from her beloved Florence? And will her husband be a kind and loving man? 

Discussion

In The Duchessina, Carolyn Meyer has crafted another rich historical novel that captures the essence of life during the Italian Renaissance, along with all the political maneuvering between the Catholic church and kings and nobility of the period. Readers get a brief history of the Medici's but it is helpful to understand more about this famous family. Lorenzo Medici brought fame, prestige and power to the republic of Florence through his immense patronage of the arts. However, it was his grandfather, Cosimo who began this patronage, spending his vast fortune on both the arts and the government in Florence. Lorenzo continued the patronage.  Some of the famous artists who were supported by the Medici included , Piero, Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli, and Michelangelo Buonarotti.

The Medici's had long been involved in banking but by the 15th century (1400's) the Medici bank had became the largest bank in Europe. It is also likely the Medici's were the wealthiest family in Europe during this time and with this wealth came great political power. They were the de facto rulers of Florence often exerting power through the city's politicians and through arranged marriages with other important families. But the Medici banking business soon became entangled in the running of the government. Bank failures and other mismanagement resulted in the Medici decline in power in the later 1400's. The Medici family, once beloved by the people of Florence, were despised and hated now by the people who wanted a ruler other than a Medici. It is this time period that Catherine di Medici was born into. 

Caterina was born on April 13, 1591 to Lorenzo de'Medici and a French noblewoman, Madeleine de la Tour d'Auvergne, Countess of Boulogne. With the death of her parents, King Francis 1 of France wanted Caterina raised in the French court. Pope Leo X, who was Lorenzo's uncle, refused as he intended for her to marry her cousin, Ippolito de'Medici.  Caterina was cared for by her aunt, Clarice de'Medici. After the death of Pope Adrian VI and the election of Pope Clement VII in 1523, Caterina was taken to live at the Palazzo Medici Riccardi. The new pope's intent was to secure a politically advantageous marriage for Caterina. 

In 1527 the people of Florence revolted against the rule of the Medici and Caterina was taken hostage, shunted from convent to convent. In order for Pope Clement to retake Florence for the Medici, he was forced to crown Charles of Austria as the Holy Roman Emperor. In exchange, Charles troops laid siege to Florence in 1529 leading to the city to surrender in 1530. 

Caterina was taken to Rome to be under the patronage of Pope Clement VII who set about to find a suitable marriage for her. She was married to Henri, Duke of Orleans on October 28, 1533 at Eglise  Ferreol les Augustin in Marseille. She was fourteen-years-old and came with a huge dowry paid for by the pope. However, when Pope Paul III was elected, he refused to continue paying the dowry and this affected Caterina's standing in the French court. The first ten years of their marriage saw no children but Caterina eventually had ten children. 

The Duchessina tells Caterina's story from infancy through the siege of Florence, her marriage to Henri and his death in 1559. The focus in her adult years is on her relationship with her husband Henri who did not love her, and her struggles to produce an heir for the French crown. 

Meyer incorporates many historical details about life in the 1500's into her story. Caterina describes how the season of Advent in the Catholic church was celebrated. "...Advent, the month-long penitential season just before Christmas when the altars were hung with violet silk and everyone abstained from eating meat, eggs, milk, and cheese on certain days." 

The novel describes life in a convent in detail:  "The professed nuns ate first. When they'd finished, the young girls and a few elderly widows and few elderly widows who made their home here entered for the second sitting. The novices and lay sisters ate last. The polished wooden benches and tables smelled of beeswax, and beautiful paintings of the Holy Virgin and the Christ Child hung on the whitewashed walls." The duties of the nuns are also described. In the kitchen, "... the sisters made sweets of honey and nuts and dried fruits, and there was a room where they filled pomander balls with dried rose petals and spices." There was a weaving room where looms were used to make "...fine linen for altar cloths and damask tablecloths. Nuns stitched dainty sleeping shifts and undergarments of embroidered silk, trousseaux for wealthy girls about to be married. They spun fine gold thread for costly embroidery and worked delicate lace for vestments and altar hangings." There was also a scriptorium where "...in a series of small cubicles on the upper floor, a dozen nuns sat at slanted desks and copied manuscripts, missals and graduals and prayer books intended for private devotion."

She also effectively portrays the role of wealthy women in society during this time through the character of Caterina. As with many wealthy girls and women in the Italian Renaissance, Caterina found her life very restricted. She had few choices, although her life was much better than women who were not of the nobility. As a child limited to the palazzo, she learned "...to be content within my small, restricted world: my sumptuous suite of rooms, with occasional escapes to the courtyard, the kitchen, the garden, and the chapel." Caterina notes that the beautiful paintings on the plaster walls of the chapel contain no girls or women, only "...priests, churchmen, shepherds, citizens, slaves."  

Because she was so wealthy and related to Pope Clement, Caterina was used as a political pawn and had no choice in marriage. As with many wealthy women of this period, they were given in marriage to strengthen political and family ties. She could only hope that her future husband would care for her and that she would grow to love him. 

Caterina de Medici was a strong, resilient woman, who suffered through the loss of all those close to her, who had little choice in the path her life was to take but ,who was determined to make the best of every situation. Meyer succeeds in creating a great deal of empathy for the young Caterina as she struggles to cope with situations beyond her control throughout her youth and a disappointing marriage. There is even a tragic loss of love in the novel that adds a sense of misfortune to her life. The author is able to capture Catherine's human qualities of intelligence, independence and strength of character, and make them very real to her readers. Catherine eventually became Queen of France, and after the death of Henri II in 1559, she was deeply involved in the political life of France and Europe. She was the mother of ten children, three of whom became monarchs.

Duchessina: A Novel of Catherine de Medici is an excellent fifth book in Carolyn Meyer's acclaimed Young Royals series. There is some sexual content in the novel and therefore this book is for older teens. There is a Medici family tree at the front of the novel, that is helpful to understanding the relationship between various people in the Medici family and a good Historical Notes at the conclusion of the novel.

Book Details:
Duchessina: A Novel of Catherine de' Medici by Carolyn Meyer
Toronto: Harcourt Books       2007
261pp.

Victoria Rebels by Carolyn Meyer

Victoria Rebels is another fascinating novel for young teens, written by Carolyn Meyer. This historical fiction tells the story of Queen Victoria of England focuses on Victoria's life growing up, beginning when she was a young child from age seven until just after her marriage to Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld of Germany.

Young Victoria lived at Kensington Palace with her mother, Victoire, who raised her in a very strict manner. Victoria was strongly under the influence of Sir John Conroy, an ambitious adviser to the royal household, who hoped to eventually make himself Victoria's private secretary when she became queen. 

Every aspect of Victoria's life was rigidly controlled, from having her hand held when she walked down the stairs to sleeping in her mother's bedroom until she was eighteen! Her relationship with her mother was so poor, that when she became queen, Victoria banished her mother to a distant part of Buckingham Palace and instructed her that she was not to visit her unannounced.

Discussion

Victoria Rebels is another finely crafted historical novel from Carolyn Meyers. It is based on Queen Victoria's diaries, which were not private, but which Victoria was required to write and which were read by her mother. Meyer offers an engaging portrayal of Victoria as a young girl who eventually grows up, maturing into her reign to become the longest serving (and a most beloved) English monarch and to have an era named after her! It is interesting that Victoria did not want to marry (until she met Albert) and that she was not interested in having children. Whether her views on bearing children changed or she simply did her duty, Victoria and Albert had nine children!

Meyer's ability to portray Victoria with such realism, develops the reader's sympathy for a young woman who led such a rigid life. The novel is divided into three parts; Part I, The Princess, Part II, The Queen, and Part III, The Prince. Told in Victoria's voice, Meyer uses some of the same techniques known to be used by Victoria in her own diaries, such as capitalizing words and profuse use of underlining what she had written!

In Part I The Princess, it's easy to deeply sympathize with Victoria, who really never had a time to be a carefree child. She was groomed from the very beginning to be a queen by her ambitious mother Victoire and her mother's advisor, Sir John Conroy. Victoria was often caught in the power struggles between King William and her mother, Victoire, causing her great distress and fits of temper. She was forced by her mother to keep a diary of all her mistakes and wrongdoings, something that caused a great deal of frustration and anger for Victoria.

In Part II The Queen, Meyers portrays Victoria as petulant, willful, and prideful. It was hard to empathize with her as Victoria felt she was always in the right, stubbornly insisting upon her own way. She often was her own worst enemy. It is quite likely that growing up with so little control over even the smallest areas of her resulted in Victoria herself being very demanding.

Part III The Prince, relates the events surrounding her brief courtship with the handsome, tall Albert, and the early years of their marriage. Her stormy arguments with her beloved husband, Albert, continue to show Victoria's temper, but she also begins to recognize that the way she behaved when she was younger, was wrong. Yet this portrayal (which is historically accurate) makes Queen Victoria quite real to Meyer's readers.

Meyer has included many resources for her readers should they want to follow up on Queen Victoria and the era she lived, known as the Victorian age. There are also extensive notes at the back of the book on several of the main historical figures in the novel, providing background information.

I applaud Meyer has crafted an excellent historical fiction novel which stays true to the facts and often offers a balanced view of history. A great follow-up to Carolyn Meyer's novel is the movie, The Young Victoria which covers almost exactly the time period of Meyer's novel. Emily Blunt stars as young Victoria and Rupert Friend as Prince Albert. With the exception of the wounding of Prince Albert in the movie, it is historically accurate.

Book Details:
Victoria Rebels by Carolyn Meyer
Simon and Schuster: A Paula Wiseman Book     2013
265 pp.

The Wild Queen: The Days and Nights of Mary, Queen of Scots by Carolyn Meyer

The Wild Queen is the seventh book in the Young Royals series, written by Carolyn Meyer. This well  researched novel tells the story of Mary of Scotland, who was the rightful heir of both Scotland and England. Mary was born December 8, 1542, at Linlithgow Palace, in Scotland. Her father, King James V, died a few days later. Mary was his only legitimate heir to the Scottish throne. Mary was crowned Queen of Scotland when she was just nine months old, at Stirling Castle on September 9th, 1543. In an attempt to unite Scotland and England, Henry VIII, King of England successfully negotiated a treaty which the Scottish Parliament signed, dictating that Mary would marry Henry's son, Prince Edward when she turned ten.

Fearing for her daughter's safety, Mary's mother moved her to Stirling Castle which was well fortified and far north of the English-Scotland border. When Mary was four years old, King Henry VIII died. Her mother made the decision that she would marry the future king of France rather than England's Prince Edward and so she was sent to France to live at the French court and learn the language and customs of the French people. At this time France had been supporting and protecting Catholic Scotland. Eventually however, protestantism, imported from England, overtook Scotland. John Knox, a strict, dour Protestant preacher was the main force behind the stripping of  Scotland of its Catholic heritage and faith.

Accompanied by her Four Maries, Mary Fleming, Mary Seton, Mary Beaton, and Mary Livingston, the young Mary left her beloved Scotland on July 29, 1548. For the next thirteen years, Mary lived in France, traveling throughout the country as the French court moved from one palace to another. Throughout those years, Mary grew into a beautiful woman, over six feet tall and well spoken. She grew to love the French people but never forgot that she was in line for the Scottish throne.

Mary became the wife of the dauphin, Francois de Valois when she was fifteen years old. Their marriage was short-lived however, when Francois, always somewhat sickly, died from a massive infection on December 5, 1560. Mary was a widow after just two years of marriage. At this point in her life, just days shy of her eighteenth birthday,  Mary decided to return to her native Scotland in an attempt to regain the throne and rule Scotland as queen. Alone, without the support of a husband, or a father or father-in-law, Mary found herself caught in a difficult situation. She was a devote Catholic returning to a country no longer in the faith. She needed to find a strong Catholic prince to marry but there was no one in all of Christendom. Her enemies were many although at first she had a few staunch supporters. From this point on Meyers tells the tragic story of Mary, Queen of Scots as she struggles to rule Scotland, while fighting off traitors, dealing with a murderous and cowardly second husband, and protestant reformers such as John Knox who considered women not fit to reign.

Meyer's novel will appeal to those with a keen interest in history, especially royalty. Her account is remarkably unbiased and is a creative retelling of the life of Mary, Queen of Scots. The novel opens with Mary, facing her day of execution, Wednesday, February 8th, 1587 and then narrating her life's story as to how she came to be in prison, sometimes reflecting on how the choices she made led her to her fate.  The Wild Queen is quite readable, has several maps to help readers understand the setting and at 420 pages, rather lengthy. After all this, some readers may be interested in learning more about this remarkable Catholic woman, who was both courageous and sometimes remarkably naive.

For those who are interested in reading about Mary, Queen of Scots, I suggest Antonia Fraser's Mary Queen of Scots and also Warren Carroll's The Cleaving of Christendom. The latter book is Volume 4 in his History of Christendom series.

Book Details:
The Wild Queen: The Days and Nights of Mary, Queen  of Scots.
New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company         2012
420 pp.

Cleopatra Confesses

Cleopatra Confesses tells the story of Cleopatra VII, daughter of Ptolemy XII Auletes, in diary format with the Queen reminiscing as Octavian prepares to enter Alexandria - the seat of Egypt's Pharaohs.

Cleopatra's father was a descendant of Philip of Macedonia, Philip's son, Alexander the Great, liberated Egypt from Persian occupation. Alexander's half brother, Ptolemy became the first of a new line of pharaohs ruling Egypt. Cleopatra was the third eldest child of Ptolemy.

Cleopatra's story begins when she is ten-years- old. Her father is returning to Egypt after a voyage to Rome in an attempt to stave off Rome from annexing Egypt as a province. He temporarily accomplishes this by paying an exorbitant bribe to Rome in exchange for Julius Caesar living Egypt alone. It is this action that leaves Egypt with a crushing debt and Pharaoh Ptolemy no choice but to raise taxes. Soon civil unrest follows and Ptolemy XII is forced into exile in Rome. Although Cleopatra's sisters Tryphaena and Berenike are only a few years older, they have always assumed that they will one day rule Egypt. Unknown to her older sisters though, is that their father, Ptolemy, tells Cleopatra that it is she who will rule with him some day.

Once Ptolemy is in exile however, the vain and power-hungry Tryphaena and Berenike install themselves as Queen of Egypt. From this point on, murder, intrigue, and war plague the Egyptian court with disastrous results. We follow Cleopatra through many events which eventually result in her meeting Julius Caesar and becoming the last Pharaoh of Egypt.

Discussion

In Cleopatra Confesses, author Carolyn Meyer succeeds in presenting a realistic Cleopatra that makes her accessible and believable to the reader. This is accomplished through the use of first person narrative where the reader learns not only about historical events but also about how Cleopatra may have felt. Cleopatra is portrayed as intelligent and kind. She loves to learn from her tutor Demetrius and is adept at languages, speaking both Greek and Egyptian as well as knowing a little Latin. Cleopatra has a great love of her father and appears to be his favourite. She also is portrayed as having a great love of her country and her people and is eager to be the Queen of Egypt some day so that she can rule justly and restore Egypt's prosperity.

As might be expected, the author's focus in Cleopatra Confesses is on Cleopatra's childhood and teen years. It's quite apparent, Meyer has done considerable research. There is an extensive note on Cleopatra at the end of the book since Cleopatra Confesses only deals with Cleopatra's life up until she meets Julius Caesar and is installed as Pharaoh when she is twenty-two-years-old.

Cleopatra is a historical figure of great interest to everyone as she's been portrayed numerous times in films, most notably by Elizabeth Taylor. Meyer's book cover definitely capitalizes on the mystique surrounding Cleopatra. Cleopatra Confesses is highly recommended.

Book Details:
Cleopatra Confesses by Caroline Meyer
New York: Simon & Schuster: A Paula Wiseman Book 2011
278 pp.