Comments (16)

The Birth of Venus

Love and Death in Florence
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Jun 19, 2023carolwu96 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
When young Alessandra marries learned Cristoforo, she imagines intellectual exchanges before bed, mastership over her household, and the freedom of a matron in Renaissance Florence. ⁣ ⁣ Instead, she finds both her public and personal lives…
Mar 28, 2019
The Birth of Venus by Sarah Dunant is a fascinating novel that takes place in 1492 when the main character, Alessandra Cecchi, was 14 years old. Alessandra had a love for art and philosophy, but as the youngest daughter of a wealthy cloth…
Jan 15, 2018Einer2 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A very enjoyable book. I love historical fiction especially set in cities I've visited. The prologue gave it an interesting twist without being a total spoiler and made many aspects of the tail understandable during the read. Will…
Jul 20, 2017QueenSheba_0 rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
I loved the setting (Renaissance Florence) and it's a page turner. But aspects of the story are hard to buy, particularly the love story at the novel's center.
Nov 15, 2015raar rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
I liked it. I read this book because I was going to Florence and wanted to read some novels that were set in the location. This book gave me a sense of what Florence was like 15th century and added some context to my visit.
Mar 05, 2015Pisinga rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Florence, Italy, XV century. Art, faith in God, the influence of the church on the daily life, love ... The book is beautiful, is written in such a way that it can be put in the shelf of classical literature. I have not read such works for…
Jan 05, 2015WVMLStaffPicks rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Set in fourteenth-century Florence, this beautifully written coming of age story is a tale of art and love, betrayal, power and religion. It brings alive the city's history at its most dramatic period through the passionate voice of young…
Feb 07, 2014VRMurphy rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
A good story, well told; not great literature, but several notches above chicklit. Dunant uses the trope of the ahead-of-her-time, headstrong young woman with a (mostly) supportive family, to lead us through the Bonfire of the Vanities…
Aug 07, 2013lozza1401 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
One of the first books I have truly enjoyed in a long time. A story of an unconventional girl in Renaissance Florence.
Jun 17, 2013WVMLBookClubTitles rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Set in the Italian Renaissance, this novel brings alive the history of Florence during its most dramatic period. A compulsively absorbing story of love, art, religion and power, told through the passionate voice of a sixteen-year-old…
Aug 23, 2011
Series?
Mar 22, 2011emerge rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Like nothing else I've ever read. Highly recommend!
Sep 05, 2010indielibrarian rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
**spoiler alert** Whoever wrote the description on the inside flap doesn't seem to have read the book. It made it sound much more interesting than it was, and is incorrect as to the actual events in the novel. The historical detail was…
May 14, 2010blolo rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
this book was good but the ending made it seem a bit crazy, and some important bits of the novel were treated with too much haste - i think it would have been a better book if it was a bit longer, and hence a bit more "epic" or something.…
Dec 23, 2009Shoiley rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
A delight!
Aug 03, 2009nipper rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
good.....like the italian history parts of course