The Most Beautiful Woman in Florence: A Story of Botticelli

In the tradition of Tracy ChevalierÆs Girl with a Pearl Earring, Palombo has married fine art with romantic historical fiction in this lush and sensual interpretation of Medici Florence, artist Sandro Botticelli, and the muse that inspired them all. - Booklist A girl as beautiful as Simonetta Cattaneo never wants for marriage proposals in 15th Century Italy, but she jumps at the chance to marry Marco Vespucci. Marco is young, handsome and well-educated. Not to mention he is one of the powerful Medici familyÆs favored circle. Even before her marriage with Marco is set, Simonetta is swept up into Lorenzo and Giuliano deÆ MediciÆs glittering circle of politicians, poets, artists, and philosophers. The men of Florenceùmost notably the rakish Giuliano deÆ Mediciùbecome enthralled with her beauty. That she is educated and an ardent reader of poetry makes her more desirable and fashionable still. But it is her acquaintance with a young painter, Sandro Botticelli, which strikes her heart most. Botticelli immediately invites Simonetta, newly proclaimed the most beautiful woman in Florence, to pose for him. As Simonetta learns to navigate her marriage, her place in Florentine society, and the politics of beauty and desire, she and Botticelli develop a passionate intimacy, one that leads to her immortalization in his masterpiece, The Birth of Venus. Alyssa PalomboÆs The Most Beautiful Woman in Florence vividly captures the dangerous allure of the artist and muse bond with candor and unforgettable passion.

• | Author: Alyssa Palombo
• | Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
• | Publication Date: Apr 25, 2017
• | Number of Pages: 320 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Paperback/Fiction
• | ISBN-10: 125007150X
• | ISBN-13: 9781250071507