(Just a quick note about audiobooks - not really my thing. I quite like them for long car trips: especially Agatha Christie and the Red Dwarf series. When we went across Canada I listened to quite a few Vietnam war stories [husband's pick]. But for everyday, around the house kind of stuff? I'd much rather read, thank you very much. Also for commuting - I don't have an iPod or whatever so I can't really listen to stuff on the bus. Also, I'd rather be listening to stuff around me which I can do while I read, in case there's an emergency or I need to get out of there quickly. So it's very annoying that The Oracle Glass comes only in audiobook form at my local library and not in a paper copy. I'm not planning any long roadtrips soon, and I don't think my husband would enjoy it anyway. Maybe I should just suck it up and buy a copy myself!)
Anyway, on to the book I actually read: The Master of All Desires. The book has many different plots that are all entwined. The book is set in France in the 1550's: a bad time for Protestants and anyone who opposes the Queen, Catherine de Medici. At its heart, it's about a young French lady, Sibille. She is the daughter of a rather impoverished French noble family and is supposed to marry the wealthy next door neighbour. That is, until she shoots him. Accidentally, of course! She flees to the city to stay with her Aunt Pauline and try and free her father - who's been imprisoned as a suspected Protestant. Sibille's father hates her aunt and gives up Sibille to her. Sibille herself is an interesting character: she's been well-educated (for a woman of the time) and sees herself as delicate and poetical.
The book is also about Catherine de Medici, Queen Consort to King Henri II of France. Even though Catherine has given Henri many fine children, he is in love with his mistress, Diane de Poitiers - a woman twice the King's age! Henri ignores Catherine and Catherine schemes to get his love. As such, she employs many magicians and soothsayers: including the famous Nostradamus, who travels to Paris to meet with her. Catherine has heard about the mysterious head of Menander the Deathless. This is a cursed head that is supposed to grant the owner of it whatever the owner desires. However, the wisher should beware, as the wishes are not always granted in the most straightforward manner....
Through a twist of fate, Sibille becomes the possessor of the evil head and is thrust into the Queen's conspiracies, as well as learning a secret about her own past. She meets the acerbic Nostradamus, and has to try and navigate the deadly halls of Catherine's court.
The Master of All Desires is a smart and clever read. The character of Sibille is excellent: she is smart and witty, but tries to hide it under a poetical and soft nature. I liked how Merkle Riley switches between voices: we get Sibille in the first person, but we also get some third-person narration from Nostradamus, Queen Catherine, and Diane de Poitiers. In this way, the reader is informed and aware of all the conspiracies and plots swirling at court, but is engaged with Sibille and her journey to discover her true self.
I pointed out above that Merkle Riley includes spiritual themes in her books: how is that incorporated into The Master of All Desires? Why, by the angel/demon/mystical creature Anael, of course! He is the keeper of history, and has some excellent scenes with Nostradamus. I really enjoy this facet of Merkle Riley's books: she often incorporates angels and demons, and gives the usual historical fiction an extra dimension. I hope I've properly conveyed just how good these books are - they're not the usual types of "religious" fiction at all; the plots and characters just happen to contain angels and demons sometimes. The books are quite witty and smart and very entertaining to read.
I enjoy Merkle Riley's books very much. She didn't write very many, but they're all good. My favourites are: The Master of All Desires, The Serpent Garden and The Oracle Glass. Those three are her stand-alone books. Her other three books are a series about Margaret of Ashbury: A Vision of Light, In Pursuit of the Green Lion, The Water-Devil and also include the religious/spiritual element. Of these, I think I've only read one, and that out of order, so I should go back and read the Margaret of Ashbury series in the proper order as I would probably enjoy the books more. However, if you are just beginning with Merkle Riley, I recommend the stand-alone books first. In fact, I may have to add these titles to my own library - as soon as I get another bookshelf!
I have to admit that I read this a while ago, and was not all that impressed. Maybe it's because the House of Valois is for me like the Tudors for other history buffs, so I have a higher standard when it comes to fiction that concerns them. Catherine de Medici was a fascinating, complex character (who had to navigate some difficult political and private events, some more successfully than others), and I'm annoyed when she's portrayed as a one-dimensional stereotype. I hope some day that a fiction writer will do her story justice - the good and the bad - without unnecessary sensationalizing.
ReplyDeleteI thought that Catherine de Medici was treated quite sympathetically in this book. I really felt for her: you could tell she loved her husband and her children, and so everything she did was either to gain the love of her husband or to promote the interests of her children. She didn't turn terribly evil until the end of the book. I didn't find her one-dimensional at all. Of course, she's not as fully fleshed out as Sibille, but that's because Sibille is the main character.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I would read a fiction book about Catherine - what a fascinating character and life!
Jean Plaidy had a 3 novel series on Catherine, but I wouldn't say that it was phenomenal. It wasn't terrible either, though. Problem is, it's almost impossible to find nowadays. I think the library has phased out its copies. I guess Plaidy is considered a fairly old fashioned/out of style writer? I dunno, I found her novels to be light reads but not egregiously inaccurate ... pretty decent for historical fiction, LOL!
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