The Throne: The Machiavelli Trilogy, Book 1

by Franco Bernini, Oonagh Stransky (Translator)

Overview

This meticulously researched and brilliantly told historical novel, the first of the Machiavelli trilogy, recounts the enigmatic life of Niccolò Machiavelli, revealing the complex man behind the infamous political strategist.

October 1502. As Cesare Borgia sets out to invade the Florentine Republic, Niccolò Machiavelli is sent to spy on him and to glean details of his nefarious plan. But when Borgia asks Machiavelli to write his life story, their bond gains complexity and nuance: ultimately, they both aspire to everlasting fame and to achieve it, they need each other, for the one’s sword can only rule in eternity via the pen of the other.

Set against the backdrop of the Renaissance, rife with political intrigue and cultural flourishing, Bernini's richly imagined novel masterfully captures a society teetering on the brink of change and revolution, as one man takes his chance at greatness, navigating the treacherous corridors of power with guile and charisma/

The Throne is a captivating reflection on ambition, morality, and the pursuit of power and influence. As elucidating as Robert Caro’s The Power Broker, as gripping and stylish as Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall, and as atmospheric as Maggie O’Farrell’s The Marriage Portrait, The Throne reveals one of the most impactful and controversial minds in political history, and questions and asks to what lengths can one justifiably go to achieve greatness.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798889660156
Publisher:	Europa Editions, Incorporated
Publication date:	06/11/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	384
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Franco Bernini’s screenplay for The Grey Zone won the Grolla d’oro Prize for best screenplay. He teaches screenwriting at the Italian National Film School. He has written three novels and a collection of short stories. The Throne is his English-language debut.

Oonagh Stransky has been a translator of Italian literature for over 20 years. Some of the writers whose work she has brought into English include Domenico Starnone (The House on Via Gemito, Europa), Pier Paolo Pasolini, Carlo Lucarelli, Giuseppe Pontiggia, and Roberto Saviano. Stransky started studying Italian at Middlebury Language Schools in 1986, got her BA in Comparative Literature from Mills College and UC Berkeley in 1989, and her MA in Italian from Columbia University in 2002. She currently lives in Italy.

Editorial Reviews

★ “Prose meets power in a tale of Machiavelli and Borgia... An engrossing and humane novel.”—Kirkus Reviews (Starred)

“Captivating... Smartly voiced, briskly paced... The Throne  paints a Machiavelli credibly embedded in his vibrant, vicious times—but capable as well of the flinty thoughts and words that would outlive them.”—Boyd Tonkin, Wall Street Journal

“Engrossing... Set in an era whose notions of statecraft can seem even more rapacious than our own.”—Alida Becker, New York Times Book Review

“Well researched with wonderfully vivid details... The ultimate power, then, resides in words and those who know how to use them. Borgia and his armies fade away, but Machiavelli's books still belong on our shelves.”—New York Journal of Books

“Bernini’s engrossing historical novel follows Machiavelli’s trajectory through the corridors of power in 16th-century Italy... As the relationship between the biographer and his subject evolves, each man relies on the other to achieve his political ambitions, yet only one will succeed.”—Becky Meloan, Washington Post

“Machiavelli, as you’ve never read before.”—ELLE Magazine (Italy)

“A story about manipulation and palace intrigue...It’s also about the complicated relationship between a biographer and their subject, something kinda meta that historical fiction rarely delves into.”—Cosmopolitan

“If you loved Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall, dive into The Throne, an Italian historical novel with the same verve of a thriller while bringing the past to life.”—Parade Magazine

“The Throne plunges the reader into the folds of history, among love affairs and court intrigues, outlining the portrait of one of the most illustrious figures of the Renaissance.”—La bottega di Hamlin

From the Publisher

★ 2024-04-05
Prose meets power in a tale of Machiavelli and Borgia.

In 1502, the Republic of Florence is surrounded by enemies, particularly Cesare Borgia, who is the Duke of Valentinois and Romagna and son of the Pope. The Republic sends Niccolò Machiavelli as both envoy and spy to find out what Borgia, nicknamed Valentino, is up to. This is a most dangerous business, as rumors abound regarding the duke’s cruelty. He denies to Machiavelli that he had his own brother killed, for example, but doesn’t mind at all that people think so, as long as they fear him. “Fear is stronger than all cannons,” he says. And he even has his own private executioner. Valentino recognizes Machiavelli’s talent as a writer and proposes that the envoy write his story: “I will tell you all my secrets, and you will give them shape with words,” making sure to include “details, observations, insinuations, and malice.” Meanwhile, the duke has imprisoned and sexually abuses Dianora Mambelli, whose “beauty is her condemnation.” Machiavelli secretly meets with her and learns that she wants her captor dead. But if their growing friendship becomes more than platonic and Cesare finds out, their lives are imperiled. The novel paints Machiavelli in a sympathetic light: Yes, he is a skilled writer who puts the duke’s deeds into fine prose, exaggerations and all. But he is in a difficult position where he could be killed at any time. Late in the story, Cesare expresses satisfaction: “Now that I know you can write it the way that I want, I will let you live.” The eventual product of this whole messy business comes after the deaths of the main characters, and it lives on today as The Prince, as cynical a book about gaining and keeping raw power as any that exist. Although Machiavellian refers to scheming for power, the poor guy was only the messenger who was disgusted by his boss and at his mercy. There are quite a few brief passages in Italian, mainly snippets of poetry, with translations in the endnotes. Luckily, they aren’t critical to the story’s flow. Se leggi l’italiano è perfetto. But if you don’t read Italian, you won’t lose the thread by skipping over them and checking them out later.

An engrossing and humane novel.

Kirkus Reviews