title: The Deadly Sisterhood: A Story of Women, Power, and Intrigue in the Italian Renaissance, 1427-1527
author:  Leonie Frieda 
description: &#8220;&#8230;scholarly yet very human story of some talented women who held surprising sway in the incredible clutter of city-states that composed Renaissance Italy&#8230;Richly researched and deeply complex - at times sufficient to bemuse as much as inform.&#8221; (Kirkus Reviews)<br /><br />&#8220;An alluring and worthy study of the powerful matriarchs at the helm of Italy&#8217;s great Renaissance-era dynasties&#8221; (Publishers Weekly)<br /><br />&#8220;Leonie Frieda presents Renaissance history in a fresh, new light&#8230;recounting the exploits of eight women whose actions and experiences often rocked the Italian Renaissance world.&#8221; (Booklist)<br /><br />&#8220;&#8230;fast-paced, vivid book&#8230;Frieda&#8217;s lively, intimate descriptions are exciting and informative. Any reader interested in the Renaissance will find something to enjoy here&#8230;&#8221; (Library Journal)<br /><br />&#8220;A fresh look at eight fascinating women and their far-reaching impact&#8230;Their stories take readers through the lifespan of the Renaissance from an eye-opening new perspective in the compulsively readable, intellectually rigorous account of an extraordinary century.&#8221; (Examiner.com)<br /><br />&#8220;Spirited&#8230;action-packed&#8230;full of bright, brash women&#8230;the contessas of Venice, Naples, Florence and Rome were more than happy to liquidate their rivals, command armies and do whatever it took to keep power firmly in their silk-gloved grasp.&#8221; (Daily Mail (London))<br /><br />&#8220;A torrent of poisoned daggers, ruthless politics and sexual intrigue&#8230;An interesting introduction to the turbulent back story to all those serenely smiling portraits&#8221; (Sunday Times (London))<br /><br />&#8220;A wide-ranging historical narrative about the women and power struggles that dominated Italy in the late 15th and early 16th centuries&#8221; (The Spectator)<br /><br />&#8220;Leonie Frieda has created a web of Renaissance women bound together by blood, politics, and a gift for ruling on a level before their time.&#8221; (Daily Beast)<br /><br />&#8220;A more inclusive history that points to the talents and strengths of women...Riveting.&#8221; (Providence Journal)
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  #### _[Praise for Leonie Frieda](toc_r1.html#pr1)_
  
  
  ‘Leonie Frieda’s enjoyable and skilfully written biography … Catherine’s
  supreme command of the arts of political display is adroitly brought out’
  Blair Worden, _Sunday Telegraph_
  
  
  ‘A stunning biography, which brings to vivid life a heroic woman and the
  tumultuous, cruel and gaudy times in which she lived. An outstanding first
  book by a newcomer to the ranks of English historians’ Paul Johnson
  
  
  ‘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, _Evening Standard_
  
  
  ‘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 Fre