Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Madonna of the Seven Hills | 1958 | Victoria Holt | Buy |
| 2 | Light on Lucrezia | 1958 | Victoria Holt | Buy |
Victoria Holt’s Lucrezia Borgia duology reexamines one of the Renaissance’s most infamous figures. Madonna of the Seven Hills and Light on Lucrezia (both 1958) follow Lucrezia from her childhood in the powerful Borgia family through the political marriages and scandals that surrounded her adult life.
Holt’s portrayal tends toward a more sympathetic reading of Lucrezia than the popular image of a poisoner and schemer. The books set her personal story against the backdrop of Renaissance Italian politics, where the Borgia name carried both power and danger in equal measure.