Madame Serpent by Jean PlaidyGenre: Historical FictionWhen I started this book, I really didn’t know anything about Catherine de’ Medici and had only previously read 1 book by Plaidy. I picked up this book thinking that it would have more about Italy in it, seeing as she is a Medici, mistake! It’s about France!I found myself immediately sucked into the world of Catherine, Alessandro, and Ippolito (her relatives). Not too much time was spent on her life in Italy, which I would have liked to have seen a little more of, but what was included was great. Plaidy chooses the details that she includes carefully. The upbringing and emotional stress that Catherine had at the hands of her Aunt and the Pope really molded her into what she would become later in her life.The bulk of the book takes place in the French Court. Catherine at first is the wife of the Dauphin, who eventually becomes King. Here at the French Court, Catherine faces more emotional stress from her husband, Henry II, and his mistress, Diane de Poitiers. She is only Dauphiness, and later Queen, by title, facing humiliation everywhere she turns. But Catherine finds strength and a way to survive this torture. She saves up every slight against her to use for revenge later. Despite everything that I have read about Catherine from outside resources, this book has made me feel for her. I don’t think that she was an evil woman. She was a woman who was hurt, over and over again. I can totally sympathize with her want to seek revenge on those who hurt her. She had no one to turn to and could truly only rely on herself. I am not condoning her actions, but I can understand her motives.I really did enjoy this book. I found myself being unable to wait until the next time that I would be able to pick up the book and read. There were 2 minor things that I did not like about this book. The first thing is the 3rd person omniscient point of view. One sentence you will be in the head of Diane and then the next sentence you will be in the head of Catherine. I personally prefer a little more distinction between my narrators. The other thing that I had a problem with was the lack of dates throughout the book. There was almost no sense on time – you could jump 10 years between chapters. I had to use my knowledge of the time period and other royal houses to piece together what decade or period of time I was in. It made things a little awkward from time to time.4 out of 5 stars – an enjoyable read and can’t wait to read the next 2 in the series.
The story of King Henry 2 of France- 1547- who was the son of Frances 1st of France- a very strong figure who was a lover of many women. His son, Henry 2 was married to Catherine de Medici from Rome and a member of the Medici family of tradesmen with Lorenzo Medici of Florence- lover of art and very powerful. Henry, as a youth was enamored by a women 20 years older than him, Diane de Poitiers, who after he became king was his lover and controlled everything he did. she was very mean to Henry's wife, Catherine de Medici and when Henry died, Catherine de Medici took revenge on her. Diane de Poitiers was given the chateau of Chenecheau by Henry- the most beautiful chateau of the Loire ( we have been there). Catherine was thought to have paid someone to poison Henry's older brother, who was the Dauphine of France and would become king before Henry. He was playing tennis and became over heated and drank 2 cups of water given him by his cup bearer and he died with symptoms of poison. Henry 2 did not love Catherine but she loved him and she was jealous of his attentions to Diane. Catherine even had a hole dug in the floor of her floor so she could watch Diane and Henry making love below her. She wanted to poison Diane but realized she would be blamed for it. After Henry 2nd's death, his son Frances 2nd came to rule. He was married to Mary Queen of Scotts when he was 15 and she was 14. He was very much in love with Mary and would do anything she said. Mary was related to Diane of Poitiers and her uncles the Guises and they ruled Frances 2nd. the next book I am going to read is "The Italian Woman" by Jean Plaidy which goes into the influence Catherine de Medici had on her son Frances 2 and his 2 brothers who became kings of France after his death. My favorite historical fiction is these books by Jean Plaidy- there are almost 100 of them and I have read them all and keep rereading them. This is a wonderful way to learn about the history of France, England, and Spain. They are numbered in the front and should be read in order with William the conquerer - William 1st of England being the first book to read. They are more than marvelous.
What do You think about Madame Serpent (2015)?
Okay, I know this book isn't exactly serious literature. It's probably not fair to be nitpicky about historical accuracy. But Italy was not a country in the 1500s. Not politically, not linguistically, and definitely not like this:"Oh, our poor country, Sebastiano! Our poor suffering country! I know how you feel. You and I would die for our country." (pg. 118)"Yes, Sebastiano," she said, "for the sake of your country you would gladly die a thousand deaths. . .your name would be remembered throughout Italy forever, with honor, my dear Count, with reverence. . .One day, Sebastiano, you will be called upon to do great deeds for our country." (pg. 118)I'm not sure what geographic entity Catherine is referring to. Does she mean Florence? The Papal States? All of the incessantly warring city-states on the peninsula?Oh well, it's not important. Except to poor Sebastiano, who (view spoiler)[meets an extremely unpleasant end, executed by being torn apart by four horses. It might have mattered to him to know his nationalism was misplaced. (hide spoiler)]
—Sarah (Presto agitato)
This is the first book in Jean Plaidy's trilogy about Catherine de Medici. I didn't think this was one of Plaidy's best books. It was written in 1952, so it's one of her earlier books, but I've read other early books by her that I liked a lot more than this one. This book was pretty repetitive once Catherine married Henry of France - she loved him, he loved his mistress, she wanted to kill the mistress but had to bite her tongue and put up with the mistress. This same theme kept repeating itself throughout the book and not much seemed to happen. I'm hoping the next two books will be a little more exciting.
—Sara W
All I knew of Catherine de Medici before reading this fictionalised account of her life was that she was a “bad” woman. I expected to dislike her character throughout this book, but despite a few “evil intentions”, I found myself on her side and making excuses for her whenever she went too far with anything.This novel covers her time from the age of six through to thirty-nine. I had previously read an account of her after this period in a non-fiction work, namely a biography on Henry IV of France. In the bio she struck me as a nasty piece of work, whereas in this fiction-based-on-fact tale, she comes across as a more sympathetic character.The author shows Catherine as an unloved person who’s treated badly or neglected by those who should care for her right from childhood. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her, despite her occasional venomous deed or devious plan.She also comes across as slightly barmy, which again evoked my sympathy, not mockery. She wastes much of her life by waiting for opportunities rather than accepting things as they are and looking for fulfilment elsewhere – I can’t be too specific here in case I gave anything away to anyone considering reading this book.The plot is simple with little in the way of variation because of Catherine’s one-track way of thinking. This may be why many reviewers have given the novel average or poor ratings. It’s very much a character-driven tale, so if you don’t have patience for Catherine, chances are you won’t care for the story.I always prefer books that are more focused on character interaction rather than complex plots full of twists and turn. I also prefer lots of dialogue and minimal descriptive passages. These are the reasons why this tome has appealed to me so much. I was engaged from the opening chapter and never grew bored.A superb read.
—Phil Syphe
