Royal Updates

Hitting the shelves in January 2010, my second "Royal" work of historical nonfiction for NAL will indeed be titled...

NOTORIOUS ROYAL MARRIAGES: A Juicy Journey Through Nine Centuries of Dynasty, Destiny, and Desire.

Marie Antoinette

Louis XVI

They didn't go for the Rembrandt cover I suggested. However, I've seen the cover art they chose, though, and think it's "grabby" and fun. Since it may not be finalized I won't post it yet. It's a watercolor, and judging from the clothing worn by the man and woman, it's clearly from the 1780s or 1790s. So much for the "nine centuries" of the subtitle, but I guess they had to pick one of them!

And it's true, NOTORIOUS ROYAL MARRIAGES does cover some of the great unions of the 18th century: the puerile Peter III and the powerful Catherine the Great; Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI;

Catherine the Great

Tsar Peter III

George IV, when still Prince of Wales; a miniature painted by George Cosway, c. 1792


the two marriages of the future George IV of England--his illicit one in 1785 with the Catholic widow Maria Fitzherbert

Maria Fitzherbert

and his 1795 marriage to his first cousin, the dumpy and odiferous Caroline of Brunswick.

Caroline of Brunswick

as well as Napoleon Bonaparte and his first wife, Josephine Beauharnais.

Napoleon

Josephine

So we do spend a lot of time in the 18th century.

I'm really looking forward to the January 2010 release of NOTORIOUS ROYAL MARRIAGES. If you have any questions, I'd love to hear them!