The Marriage Portrait

The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

Maggie O’Farrell’s historical fiction novel is an excellent and immersive read that draws the reader in. Following hard on the heels of Hamnet, this novel also revels in brilliant sensory description and makes the reader feel as if we are ourselves in Italy.

O’Farrell’s descriptions of the young Lucrezia, the Duchess of Ferrara, as she grows from child to young woman, and upon her marriage to the sinister and changeable Alfonso, have readers guessing the outcome. The descriptions of the court, its singers, and, most of all, the artwork that Lucrezia works on and which provides so many symbols as to character, are believable and highly imaginable.

I really enjoyed this book. It was just what I needed to escape a rainy Melbourne day.

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Jenny