Raphael, Painter in Rome: A Novel

Raphael, Painter in Rome: A Novel
ISBN-10
1950691314
ISBN-13
9781950691319
Category
Fiction
Pages
296
Language
English
Published
2020-04-07
Publisher
Simon and Schuster
Author
Stephanie Storey

Description

Two of the Renaissance’s most famous artists battle to be the best in Rome in this gripping historical novel by the author of Oil and Marble. Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling is one of the most iconic masterpieces of the Renaissance. Here, in Raphael, Painter in Rome, Storey tells of its creation as never before: through the eyes of Michelangelo’s fiercest rival—the young, beautiful, brilliant painter of perfection, Raphael. Orphaned at age eleven, Raphael is determined to keep the deathbed promise he made to his father: become the greatest artist in history. But to be the best, he must beat the best, the legendary sculptor of the David, Michelangelo Buonarroti. When Pope Julius II calls both artists down to Rome, they are pitted against each other: Michelangelo painting the Sistine Ceiling, while Raphael decorates the pope’s private apartments. As Raphael strives toward perfection in paint, he battles internal demons: his desperate ambition, crippling fear of imperfection, and unshakable loneliness. Along the way, he conspires with cardinals, scrambles through the ruins of ancient Rome, and falls in love with a baker’s-daughter-turned-prostitute who becomes his muse. With its gorgeous writing, rich settings, endearing characters, and riveting plot, Raphael, Painter in Rome brings to vivid life these two Renaissance masters going head-to-head in the deadly halls of the Vatican. “As the plot thickens, intrigue and political machinations simmer, and the result is a rich and delicious portrayal of art and its creators and the forces that drive and often work against them. More than twenty-five years of research in Italian Renaissance art deepens the story and renders it full of fascinating detail about people and process, while Storey’s painterly prose is also sure to delight art lovers and fans of historical fiction.” —Booklist “A warm, witty, mesmerizing portrait of the Renaissance’s most famous painters: the charming Raphael and the irascible Michelangelo, dueling for the title of greatest artist in Rome. . . . A feast for the senses, every brushstroke a delight.” —Kate Quinn, New York Times–bestselling author of The Diamond Eye “Storey takes one of the most towering figures of the Renaissance and seats him across a tavern table from the reader. Raphael’s voice is as vibrant and colorful as one of his paintings.” —Alyssa Palombo, author of The Borgia Confessions

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