“I am not a sentimental woman. Even during my youth I wasn’t given to melancholia or remorse. I rarely looked back, rarely paused to mark the passage of time. Some would say I do not know the meaning of regret. Indeed, if my enemies are to be believed, my unblinking eyes stare always forward, focused on the future, on the next war to fight, the next son to exalt, the next enemy to vanquish.”
The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner
In this imaginative tale, France’s famous queen Catherine de Medici, is portrayed as a woman who although many saw as a ruthless leader, only did what she had to do to save her country and her family. At the young age of 14, Catherine is aware of her duty and accepts her fate to leave Italy and go to France to marry Henry II.
Even if she still secretly entertained dreams of a love match with her husband those were quickly put to rest when she realized that Henry’s affections and his will were claimed by Diane de Poitiers, his mistress. Just as battles are brewing around the country with the rise of protestants, Catherine’s own battles in the court force her to make a pact with Diane so that she’ll be able to produce an heir.
Much to Catherine’s chagrin, it is Diane who assumes a lot of the care of her children. Catherine goes on to have several children. But it is when Henry II dies that suddenly Catherine’s battles take on a larger scope. Her one son who is next in line to the throne is only 10 years old and the religious rebellion is escalating more each day. No one trusts the queen and after several deceptions by those she thought she could confide in, she trusts no one either.
Catherine consults with Nostradamus in hopes of finding the answers as to what to do with her children and how to prepare them to rule. She herself had visions at an early age but found them confusing and didn’t understand how to interpret them but despite her assertion that what she wanted most for France was peace, she ruled at a time when there was a lot of strife in the country and it seems that even despite her best intentions countless lives were still lost.
While Catherine is the main figure in this novel, many other characters were also fascinating to read about. Henry’s mistress was an indomitable adversary, Catherine’s daughter Margot was bold and even Jeanne de Navarre who some believe was poisoned by Catherine, was resolute in her religious beliefs. All of these characters help to give us a picture of the many people Catherine had to deal with and somehow wield to her side, sometimes not very successfully.
As I turned the last page and closed the book, I quickly went to my computer to do a bit of internet searching to find out more about Catherine. I think that right there shows how well this novel worked. A well-told historical fiction tale will wrap you up and take you to another time but once done you crave more information. You want to know more details, more about the other characters and so on. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I am eager to see which Queen author Gortner will focus on next. At least I’m hoping it will be another Queen. I know I have a couple in mind I would love to read about.
I read this book as part of a Virtual Book Tour. You can see more participants here.
Source: Advance Reader’s Copy
That looks interesting, but the de Medicis always are, right?
I am still waiting for this one to come in at the library. I can’t wait to read it when I do get hold of it!
I would go to the internet after reading this too. I am really beginning to enjoy more of these historical novels and hope to read more soon. I haven’t read anything about Catherine De Medici, but i shall look out for this one.
I really enjoyed this novel as well. I think he’s working on Queen Isabella of Spain! I cannot wait to read more of his books.
Thanks for the fabulous review of Christopher’s latest. I just posted my review today, as well. I am giving away a copy of The Confessions of Catherine de Medici at The Book Connection if anyone is interested.
If you visit Christopher’s website at http://cwgortner.com/ readers can view an amazing video trailer for the book and also read an excerpt.
Thanks for hosting Christopher during his virtual book tour.
Cheryl
My favorite historical novels are those that inspire further research. I’ve read several novels in which Catherine was a minor character, but none in which she is the protagonist. None of the novels I’ve read have had shown her in a really positive light, but some have shown some sympathy. It will be fun to read something that features the woman herself and gain another perspective!
That IS definitely a good sign when you dig for more information. I do that with my true crime books. I think that shows the author has done their job!
Dana Huff – Indeed! I really want to read more about them. I pretty much only knew that she was big into astrology and that sort of thing but I was really blown away by Henry’s mistress. That lady had a lot of power!
Marg – I hope you can get it soon. I really enjoyed it and stayed up late a couple of nights to read just one more chapter 🙂
vivienne – I love historical novels but hadn’t read any this year yet so I’m glad to finally get to one and what a good one it turned out to be! Hope you’ll check it out.
Serena – Oooh!! Really? After I read The Last Queen I was hoping he’d go back and write about Isabella. Yay. I think she’ll make for a fascinating read.
Cheryl M. – My pleasure! I loved his first book and now I’m eagerly awaiting his next one. Thank you for making this happen!
jenclair – I agree. I always figure that historical novels won’t have the whole story and if they leave you wondering about things then that’s great. Good way to learn more about history. In this novel, Catherine definitely comes off a lot more sympathetically and as the peacekeeper.
Sandy – I hear you! I just love it when I finish a historical novel and feel not only that I was entertained but that I learned something.
I love historical fiction that makes you want to learn more about the subject or time period you’ve read about. That’s the mark of a good book! Glad you enjoyed it.
Thank you for this marvelous review, Bookgirl! I’m honored to be here as part of my virtual tour and am delighted you enjoyed Catherine de Medici’s story. I hope you readers will, too.
With my warm regards,
C.W. Gortner
Kathleen – I agree! I really enjoyed this one and it definitely kept me engaged.
C.W. Gortner – Thank you so much for stopping in and for your wonderful novel. It was such a treat to read it and I’ll be looking forward to your next book!