Catherine de Medici: A Biography - Tapa dura

'This intelligent and well-researched biography of her is a worthy testament to Catherine's formidable strength. CATHERINE DE MEDICI reveals Frieda, a first-time biographer, to be a writer of tremendous talent and skill (Amanda Foreman THE OBSERVER)

'Leonie Frieda has handled the history of this complex period with skill. Without skimping on the drama and debauchery of the court of the Valois, she has defended, but not whitewashed, Catherine and produced a fascinating picture of a remarkable woman. (Sarah Bradford THE EVENING STANDARD)

it is narrative history at its best, both scholarly and as captivating as a thriller. She has brought a largely forgotten heroine-villainess and a whole sumptuously vicious era to life again. She is equally at home in the luxurious debauchery of the royal court as she is in the blood-reeking gutters of Paris: this is The Godfather meets Elizabeth. (Simon Sebag Montefiore THE MAIL ON SUNDAY)

'As Leonie Frieda shows in this absorbing biography, Catherine was a well-intentioned woman who resorted to extreme measures only under pressure. With its engaging style and deft handling of complex events, this accomplished account of Catherine¿s career is an engrossing tale, compellingly narrated.¿ (Anne Somerset THE SPECTATOR)

¿As Leonie Frieda relates in this well-researched and immensely readable first biography, from her turbulent home in Florence Catherine found herself presiding over perhaps the nastiest period in all French history. Frieda is much to be praised for painting a wonderfully rich canvas.¿ (Alistair Horne THE TIMES)

¿Frieda succeeds in making her subject interesting and coherent, and shows her operating in a political context that left no room for squeamishness or scruple.¿ (Charles Nicholl THE SUNDAY TIMES)

'Capably she re-creates the rivalries within the royal family and the marital and dynastic negotiaitons on which the fate of kingdoms hung. She conveys, too, vividly at times, the outsize style of Renaissance rule.' (Blair Worden SUNDAY TELEGRAPH)

¿Mrs Frieda¿s book is a well-written and colourful journey through 16th century France, entertaining to read as well as frequently illuminating.¿ (Simon Heffer COUNTRY LIFE)

A real historical treat. (SAINSBURY'S MAGAZINE)

¿This admirable new biography ... Leonie Frieda gives a vivid picture ... Leonie Frieda does this remarkable woman full justice. Refusing to play judge, she reveals her to us through the best of means, which is narrative. The skill with which Frieda finds her way through the maze of this confusing period is exemplary. You read on eagerly. An enthralling book.¿ (Allan Massie LITERARY REVIEW)