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The Malice of Fortune Audiobook
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(3.01) - 605 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Against a teeming canvas of Borgia politics, Niccolò Machiavelli and Leonardo da Vinci come together to unmask an enigmatic serial killer, as we learn the secret history behind one of the most controversial works in the western canon, The Prince... When Pope Alexander dispatches a Vatican courtesan, Damiata, to the remote fortress city of Imola to learn the truth behind the murder of Juan, his most beloved illegitimate son, she cannot fail, for the scheming Borgia pope holds her own young son hostage. Once there, Damiata becomes a pawn in the political intrigues of the pope’s surviving son, the charismatic Duke Valentino, whose own life is threatened by the condottieri, a powerful cabal of mercenary warlords. Damiata suspects that the killer she seeks is one of the brutal condottierri, and as the murders multiply, her quest grows more urgent. She enlists the help of an obscure Florentine diplomat, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Valentino’s eccentric military engineer, Leonardo da Vinci, who together must struggle to decipher the killer’s taunting riddles: Leonardo with his groundbreaking “science of observation” and Machiavelli with his new “science of men.” Traveling across an Italy torn apart by war, they will enter a labyrinth of ancient superstition and erotic obsession to discover at its center a new face of evil—and a truth that will shake the foundations of western civilization.
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"This is an interesting historical novel set in the turbulent Italian Renaissance era. The author's use of historical persons reflect his knowledge of these people. Details of Italian life about 1500 are accurate and impressive. Some people resent the use of an historical person in a novel, but this book does not pretend to be a factual account. Instead, Michael Ennis, the author, uses Machiavelli, Da Vinci, and Pope Alexander VI to further his own ideas. The book is divided into 4 sections with 3 different narrators so that the reader may view & understand the action through the eyes of different characters. The list of major characters at the beginning is helpful. One of the prevailing ideas in the Italian Renaissance was the persistence of the ancient Roman idea that Fortune (Fate) controlled a person's life/destiny. Even at the time of such great religious art, Fortune was still thought of as so powerful that human plans were at its mercy. The title of the book reflects this."
— Marcia (5 out of 5 stars)
Awards
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Selected for the September 2012 Indie Next List
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A New York Times bestseller
The Malice of Fortune Listener Reviews
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" not as good as I had hoped "
— Steve, 2/20/2014 -
" well .... meh ... ok book , not great ... just ok "
— Heather, 2/11/2014 -
" A fascinating, well-researched character-driven historical novel. I was taken aback by having Machiavelli as the narrator. But it worked beautifully. "
— Sally, 1/26/2014 -
" I thought that this book was good as a piece of historical fiction but less satisfying as a murder mystery. Machiavelli, the Borgia's, Leonardo da Vinci and a courtesan who resembles Lucrezia Borgia and gave birth to the Pope's grandson are fascinating characters. The history of Italy during their lives is also fascinating. Even in a time of so much death, a serial killer dismembering women and hiding their body parts throughout the countryside should be chilling, but in the end it was not. "
— Jenny, 1/15/2014 -
" An interesting look at religion, power, and mental illness during world history. "
— Kristine, 1/8/2014 -
" Good story. Struggled with the Italian words and the math. Handled the history pretty well, but guess I am just not much of an intellectual! ;) "
— Pat, 1/4/2014 -
" I read this title enroute to Florence to visit my son who is studying there. I was in the mood for just this kind of story. The seemingly endless hours in the plane were made much easy to stand because of an interesting historical and literary mystery. I liked it. "
— Alej, 12/15/2013 -
" I had to push my way through this book for quite some time BUT I'm happy I did. It's a book I will remember for a very long time. Well worth the read. "
— Sue, 12/14/2013 -
" The story never did catch my interest and I love art history from this time period. After 75 pages I took the book back to the library. "
— Ellen, 12/12/2013 -
" Loved his book Byzantium. This one was very good but a little to intense for me and would probably read again so I could get a better handle to the story. Although it was good and my interest to the middle ages/Rennaissnace era has increased three fold because of this book. "
— Jesús, 11/27/2013 -
" A great period mystery that keeps you reading. "
— Julie, 10/14/2013 -
" I gave up about half way through. Just didn't find it very compelling and I so thought I would. "
— John, 9/10/2013 -
" It is a fascinating story in Italy around 1502. It features Machiavelli and Leonardo da Vinci. A bit gruesome in a few places. I loved it's historical education. "
— Amy, 6/8/2013 -
" I really enjoyed this book. I'm glad I didn't live 600 years ago, or did I? Michael Ennis has written such a fascinating story that I will read his other books. "
— Robert, 3/17/2013
About Michael Ennis
Michael Ennis taught art history at the University of Texas, developed museum programs as a Rockefeller Foundation Fellow, and worked as an independent curator and consultant. He is the author of the historical novels The Duchess of Milan and Byzantium. He has written for Esquire and Architectural Digest, and is a regular contributor to Texas Monthly. He lives in Dallas with his television producer wife and their daughter.
About the Narrators
John Lee is the winner of numerous Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration. He has twice won acclaim as AudioFile’s Best Voice in Fiction & Classics. He also narrates video games, does voice-over work, and writes plays. He is an accomplished stage actor and has written and coproduced the feature films Breathing Hard and Forfeit. He played Alydon in the 1963–64 Doctor Who serial The Daleks.
John Lee is the winner of numerous Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration. His has twice won acclaim as AudioFile‘s Best Voice in Fiction & Classics. He also narrates video games, does voice-over work, and writes plays. He is an accomplished stage actor and has written and co-produced the feature films Breathing Hard and Forfeit. He played Alydon in the 1963–64 Doctor Who serial The Daleks.
John Lee is the winner of numerous Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration. He has twice won acclaim as AudioFile’s Best Voice in Fiction & Classics. He also narrates video games, does voice-over work, and writes plays. He is an accomplished stage actor and has written and coproduced the feature films Breathing Hard and Forfeit. He played Alydon in the 1963–64 Doctor Who serial The Daleks.
Fred Sanders, an actor and Earphones Award–winning narrator, has received critics’ praise for his audio narrations that range from nonfiction, memoir, and fiction to mystery and suspense. He been seen on Broadway in The Buddy Holly Story, in national tours for Driving Miss Daisy and Big River, and on such television shows as Seinfeld, The West Wing, Will and Grace, Numb3rs,Titus, and Malcolm in the Middle. His films include Sea of Love, The Shadow, and the Oscar-nominated short Culture. He is a native New Yorker and Yale graduate.