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toggle_fow's review
4.0
This book reeks of Renaissance Italy. After reading this, it's like I can taste the corruption and the slouchy hats and the extremely puffy sleeves and the dumb way they painted everybody from the Bible wearing modern clothing for some reason.
Given that Prince of Foxes has such a title and was recommended to me because I like Zorro, I was expecting some swashbuckling and mistaken identity shenanigans. While there certainly are mistaken identity shenanigans, they are not that kind, and this book reviles swashbuckling as a foolish, impractical, self-indulgent French practice. Instead, our main character practices the classic Italian combat sport of the time: Extreme Lying.
Orsini, our mostly-un-heroic hero, is a would-be Machiavelli, scheming and lying his way up the ranks of Cesare Borgia's war machine. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way he trips and falls into the realization that some things are more important than gaining ultimate power, and decides to apply his skill at intrigue to a good cause. There are:
The first half of this book deserved maybe three stars. It was a lot of Orsini wandering about the Italian countryside doing side quests, and didn't have much real suspense or heart. Orsini is a soldier, statesman, artisan, spy, etc., but it really seems like his pet assassin Mario Belli is the real MVP of the story. I'm pretty sure Orsini would have died at least five times and all his ambitions would have been so much forgotten dust if it weren't for Belli.
After they get done in Rome, though, everything cascades to a point where the intensity snuck up and surprised me. The moment where the villagers of Citta-del-Monte have to decide whether to surrender to Borgia or fight an unwinnable siege was an unexpected emotional crescendo. The siege itself was hype, and the aftermath was suitably dramatic and indirect. I went up to four stars because of how engrossed I was in the last act and the satisfying ending.
Given that Prince of Foxes has such a title and was recommended to me because I like Zorro, I was expecting some swashbuckling and mistaken identity shenanigans. While there certainly are mistaken identity shenanigans, they are not that kind, and this book reviles swashbuckling as a foolish, impractical, self-indulgent French practice. Instead, our main character practices the classic Italian combat sport of the time: Extreme Lying.
Orsini, our mostly-un-heroic hero, is a would-be Machiavelli, scheming and lying his way up the ranks of Cesare Borgia's war machine. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way he trips and falls into the realization that some things are more important than gaining ultimate power, and decides to apply his skill at intrigue to a good cause. There are:
• Copious amounts of plots within plots and plenty of buried secrets.
• People going about in masks for seemingly no reason because they are always 100% ineffective
• A dramatic and intense siege
• At least three attempted murders
• A somewhat weird but redemptive love story
• More corrupt clergymen than you could shake a stick at
• Quite a few evil Borgias and one dumb Borgia
• Miraculous revelations from God
• A dwarf and a Black boy who are both seemingly slaves (???) and also written about in language that is extremely uncomfortable given that this book was written in 1947 and NOT 1747
The first half of this book deserved maybe three stars. It was a lot of Orsini wandering about the Italian countryside doing side quests, and didn't have much real suspense or heart. Orsini is a soldier, statesman, artisan, spy, etc., but it really seems like his pet assassin Mario Belli is the real MVP of the story. I'm pretty sure Orsini would have died at least five times and all his ambitions would have been so much forgotten dust if it weren't for Belli.
After they get done in Rome, though, everything cascades to a point where the intensity snuck up and surprised me. The moment where the villagers of Citta-del-Monte have to decide whether to surrender to Borgia or fight an unwinnable siege was an unexpected emotional crescendo. The siege itself was hype, and the aftermath was suitably dramatic and indirect. I went up to four stars because of how engrossed I was in the last act and the satisfying ending.
houxli's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A fantastic adventure with one of the most solid anti-heroes I've ever encountered in the form of Mario Belli. Racism towards Andrea's servant is cringey but doesn't take up page space.
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