I have taken some liberties with the facts in order to serve the story. Giulia’s marriage to Orsino occurred somewhat earlier, at the respective ages of fifteen and sixteen; I moved the occasion up to coincide with the papal election. I altered traveling plans so that Cesare could be present for Carmelina’s aphrodisiac banquet, so the Pope could stand witness at his son Joffre’s wedding in Naples, and so Orsino Orsini could visit Giulia at Capodimonte rather than merely writing her letters. Several unconfirmed portraits of Giulia exist, including the Portrait of a Young Woman with Unicorn by Raphael which hangs today in Rome’s Galleria Borghese (the blond beauty in the picture not only sports a huge teardrop pearl necklace but has a baby goat in her lap painted as a miniature unicorn). Raphael’s unfinished Transfiguration, currently hanging in the Vatican Museum, also supposedly features Giulia as the kneeling blond figure, in the same scene described in Pesaro’s beauty contest. Both paintings, however, would have been painted much later, since Raphael was still very young during the events of this book.

The adventures of the Borgia family have only begun with the French invasion. Giulia and her friends will face many dangers to come, as the saga continues.

Characters List

CHARACTERS

*denotes historical figures

THE BORGIA FAMILY

*RODRIGO BORGIA, Cardinal of Valencia, later Pope Alexander VI

*CESARE BORGIA, his eldest son, Bishop of Pamplona, later Archbishop of Valencia and Cardinal Borgia

*JUAN BORGIA, his second son, Duke of Gandia

*LUCREZIA BORGIA, his daughter, later Countess of Pesaro

*JOFFRE BORGIA, his youngest son, later Prince of Squillace

*VANNOZZA DEI CATTANEI, Rodrigo’s former mistress, mother of his children

*ADRIANA DA MILA, a cousin

*ORSINO ORSINI, her son

THE FARNESE FAMILY

*GIULIA FARNESE

*LAURA, her daughter

*ALESSANDRO FARNESE, called SANDRO, Giulia’s brother; later Cardinal Farnese

*ANGELO FARNESE, Giulia’s brother

*BARTOLOMEO FARNESE, Giulia’s brother

*GEROLAMA FARNESE, Giulia’s sister

*PUCCIO PUCCI, Gerolama’s husband

IN ROME:

MARCO SANTINI, maestro di cucina for Adriana da Mila

CARMELINA MANGANO, his cousin from Venice

*PANTISILEA, PIA, TADDEA: household maidservants

LEONELLO, cardsharp and bodyguard

*MICHELOTTO CORELLA, Cesare Borgia’s private assassin

*BARTOLOMEO, kitchen apprentice

PIERO, OTTAVIANO, GIULIANO, UGO, TOMMASO, BRUNO: other kitchen apprentices

*JOHANN BURCHARD, papal master of ceremonies

*MAESTRO PINTURICCHIO, an artist

*CATERINA GONZAGA, Countess of Montevegio

*COUNT OTTAVIANO DA MONTEVEGIO, her husband

ANNA, a tavern maid

SANTA MARTA, a holy relic

IN ITALY:

*GIOVANNI SFORZA, Count of Pesaro

PAOLO MANGANO, Carmelina’s father, maestro di cucina in Venice

IN SPAIN:

*KING FERDINAND and *Queen Isabella

*MARIA ENRIQUES, a royal cousin, later Duchess of Gandia

IN NAPLES:

*ALFONSO II, King of Naples

*SANCHA OF ARAGON, his illegitimate daughter, later Princess of Squillace

IN FLORENCE:

*FRA GIROLAMO SAVONAROLA, Dominican friar

IN FRANCE:

*CHARLES VIII OF FRANCE, claimant to the throne of Naples

*GENERAL YVES D’ALLEGRE, leader of the French armies

Readers Guide

READERS GUIDE

The SERPENT and the PEARL

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS