The Lady Queen: The Notorious Reign of Joanna I, Queen of Naples, Jerusalem, and Sicily - Hardcover

Goldstone, Nancy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0802716709 ISBN 13: 9780802716705

Publisher: Walker Books, 2009

Synopsis

The riveting history of a beautiful queen, a shocking murder, a papal trial―and a reign as triumphant as any in the Middle A ges.

On March 15, 1348, Joanna I , Queen of Naples, stood trial for her life before the Pope and his court in Avignon. She was twenty-two years old. Her cousin and husband, Prince Andrew of Hungary, had recently been murdered, and Joanna was the chief suspect. Determined to defend herself―Joanna won her acquittal against enormous odds. Returning to Naples, she ruled over one of Europe's most prestigious courts for more than thirty years―until she was herself murdered.

As courageous as Eleanor of Aquitaine, as astute and determined as Elizabeth I of England, Joanna was the only female monarch in her time to rule in her own name. She was notorious: The taint of her husband's death never quite left her. But she was also widely admired: Dedicated to the welfare of her subjects and realm, she reduced crime, built hospitals and churches, and encouraged the licensing of women physicians. While a procession of the most important artists and writers of her day found patronage at her glittering court, the turmoil of her times swirled around her: war, plague, intrigue, and the treachery that would, ultimately, bring her down.

As she did in her acclaimed Four Queens, Nancy Goldstone takes us back to the turbulent and colorful Middle Ages, and with skill and passion brings fully to life one of history's most remarkable women. Her research is impeccable, her eye for detail unerring, and in The Lady Queen she paints a captivating portrait of medieval royalty in all its incandescent complexity.

About this title

About the Author:

Nancy Goldstone is the author of Four Queens: The Provençal Sisters Who Ruled Europe and coauthor (with her husband Lawrence Goldstone) of five books, including Out of the Flames, The Friar and the Cipher, and Warmly Inscribed. She lives in Westport, Connecticut.

From AudioFile:

Joanna I was a medieval queen who was forced to deal with political intrigue within her family and her state from a young age. Even with its attention to historical detail, Goldstone's biography reads like a page-turner at times, and Josephine Bailey's narration captures the suspense while still giving the listener enough time to absorb the details. She nimbly handles the pronunciation of foreign names, and her range of expression is admirably suited to portraying various characters (young and old, male and female) as she reads excerpts from their writings. Indeed, Bailey's rich, low voice, English accent, and elegant delivery make her sound positively queenly. A.E.B. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine

About this edition

• Publisher: Walker Books
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0802716709
• ISBN 13: 9780802716705
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 384