Burton Book Review - Leafing through history: Donna Russo Morin

Showing posts with label Donna Russo Morin. Show all posts

Feb 27, 2010

The Sunday Salon~ Have you entered yet?

BurtonReview Saturday, February 27, 2010

Have you seen the Round Tablers on Facebook yet? We finally thought of creating a Facebook Fan Page for the Historical Fiction Bloggers Round Table!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Historical-Fiction-Bloggers-Round-Table/327277469175
That is our fan page, and I would love it if you would become a fan!!
We have added the event for The Secret of The Glass here http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=377779101112&index=1 and let's see you there!!

(And of course don't forget the fan page for The Burton Review or my personal profile!)

Visit the main page!

Visit the Main webpage for the Historical Fiction Bloggers Round Table Calendar of Events

As usual, we are featuring reviews and creative posts, as well as giveaways celebrating the new release of The Secret of the Glass!

My review was here, you can sign up right now at the main page to enter for your chance to win a copy of The Secret of the Glass by Donna Russo Morin. I have my copy of my ARC up for grabs along with a bookmark I made for my followers, ending March 6th. My creative post discusses the tough decision of Marriage vs. Cloister, and I would appreciate you chiming in with that discussion!

Do you remember my meeting ROSES author, Leila Meacham? I ran a giveaway for FIVE lucky commenters for a brand new copy of the book. 79 commenters! I think that is a record number of comments here. Some didn't fully grasp the instructions but for those that did, I entered your names into Random.Org and here are the Results! Beth Gordon, Suzanne, Emma, Rebecca Graham and

Jenny Girl!

I wish you all could have been winners, but at least there were FIVE this time! Congrats to these winners, everyone has responded and thanks for that, I've already submitted your addresses! Thanks for entering. I really enjoyed hearing who your choices were for authors you would like to meet.

OK Onwards to my reading endeavors for the week. I LOVED ELLEN HORAN's 31 Bond Street.. SO MUCHH!!!! My review posts on March 3rd... along with a GIVEAWAY!

I will also post the review for Susan Higginbotham's The Stolen Crown on 3/1/2010, and participate in the Blogsplash for Fiona Robyn. Speaking of Susan, she has the funniest post about the facebook adventures of the medieval characters she writes about, see the post here.

I am around halfway through Elizabeth Chadwick's newest novel, The Scarlet Lion, which will be our next event at the Historical Fiction Bloggers Round Table. I am so glad that I managed to squeeze in The Greatest Knight; I would not recommend reading The Scarlet Lion without reading the first book.

After this read, I have 400 books to read. Maybe 500. I will choose from the large review pile and hope that it doesn't topple over on top of me as I reach into it. I am glad that the round tablers have agreed to take the summer off so I can catch up on my personal reads! It's been a busy year already, my brain is sizzling and about to short out.

And on a really fun note, I love hockey. Seeing the Dallas Stars play on March 4.. go STARS! Looking forward to ~~leaving the kids behind~~ watching the Stars.

And as for Sunday's Olympic GOLD medal game vs. Canada (I love you, Lucy) GO USA!
And then after the game which I know is going to be fantastic, I will be watching Rupert Penry-Jones, who I fell in lovw with while watching Persuasion last week on Masterpiece Classics..now we have him on at 9pm EST in The 39 Steps. (One 90-minute episode)

"Secret agent Richard Hannay battles German spies on the eve of World War I in a riveting and romantic new version of the thriller by John Buchan. Rupert-Penry Jones (Persuasion) stars as Hannay."

This guy was to die for in Persuasion. And with that fabulous tousled-hair-with-smoldering-eyes look.. I shall leave off.... (fans herself).

Feb 26, 2010

Giveaway:HF Bloggers Round Table: The Secret of the Glass Event: Marriage or Cloister?

BurtonReview Friday, February 26, 2010

Welcome to the continuation of the Round Table Week promoting The Secret of the Glass. Read my review of The Secret of The Glass here.

ENTER TO WIN THIS PENDANT AT THE MAIN HFBRT SITE!

You have two chances to win Donna Russo Morin’s newest historical novel, The Secret of the Glass.
The Round Table is giving away 1 paperback copy to a lucky participant who comments at the main site at http://historicalfictionroundtable.com/?p=175. A separate giveaway is running for the beautiful glass pendant featured above, click the picture to reach that contest form.

You can also qualify for the book giveaway of the ARC of The Secret of the Glass by following the instructions at the end of this post.

Marriage or Cloister? Which would you choose?

For devotes, the alternative to marriage was clear. The woman who did not marry had no respectable option but to embrace the religious life. "Maritus aut murus" - a husband or a cloister - these were her only choices. By custom and by law she was considered too weak to live otherwise. "The common expression which tells parents to give their daughter 'either a husband or a cloister' seems to be based on hidden law by which woman is born to spend her life under the control and the guidance of others." ~ The Devotes: Women and Church in Seventeenth-Century France By Elizabeth Rapley

Although focusing on France, the above quote holds true for Venice in the time of Donna Russo Morin's newest novel, The Secret of the Glass. The additional hindrance adding to the sad reality of the above quote was the fact that Italy had an impossible dowry system for many of the families. The fifteenth century saw a huge inflation to a required dowry in order to secure a suitable mate for a dreaded daughter. Many women were forced into convents due to the lack of a dowry, which was set at an extremely high amount. What was originally supposed to be treated as an inheritance for the bride to retain at the end of said marriage, became something that was inevitably lost to the future husband. Families struggled to obtain these large sums that the high dowries dictated as it was a harsh reality that had to be adhered to if hopes of a good lineage was to be obtained for anyone in the family. More than likely, the rest of the daughters were to be cloistered in a convent, some of which in those days were reputed to be no better than a brothel.

Nun in cloister

In reading Sarah Dunant's novel, Sacred Hearts in 2009 (my review), this issue regarding a young woman's future was also considered a main theme. This story had focused on the women who were indeed compelled to choose God as their only mate as they were forced into a strict convent. In Dunat's novel it also was apparent that the family who had enough money could at least choose a better convent as opposed to one not so popular. Some convents had access to funds from wealthier patrician families offering better foods, books, music or perhaps customs were not so strict as others. Interestingly enough, "nun" and the religious form of "sister" have distinct meanings in the Catholic Church, in most cases determined by the vows they take, solemn vows vs. simple vows, and the amount of good works devoted to the poor that are expected. To become a nun and live in a Catholic convent, the main requirement that is different that others is that one must eventually take the solemn vows and and recite the Liturgy of the Hours or other prayers within the convent community. A humble and honorable vocation indeed, and is to be admired and revered.

In The Secret of the Glass, the daughters are faced with the reality that when the elder sister marries, there will be no dowry money left to 'purchase marriages' for those daughters that remain.The main significance that the imposed dowry system imparts is the fact that women were essentially treated as a piece of property, to be bought and sold according to social status. In Dante's Paradiso, he observed the contrasts between his time and that of the times of his great-great-grandfathers. The great-great-grandfather had not yet seen the high inflation of the dowry, and therefore was not privy to that sinking feeling of despair when a daughter was born. Yet, if you were of a wealthy, noble patrician family, more than one daughter could be provided for with the dowry system which would maintain the family's higher social status. Through wills the wealthy would bequeath money to specific convents, or to a female family member for contributions to their dowry.

What is most mind-boggling is the reason why the dowries inflated so much, as there is no clear and specific reason for this. There were a myriad of forces at work from governmental loans and debts that were high, small costs of living and materials increases, and the inevitable supply and demand of the market with which to secure a future within a patrician family. In regards specifically to Venice, there seems to have been a favorable environment to increase and enourage the high dowries within the ruling class, with a widening circle of dowry contributors to promote lineage. In Rome and Venice, when a father died, the sons were to take care of the daughters and the dowry; if there were no sons, the dowry responsibilites went back up the line through the male ascendants of the deceased father. When there are absolutely no male family members to be found, it is possible that the maternal side of the family would be responsible to help provide a dowry for the daughter.

Imagine yourself.. a second sister.. there is no money left over to buy you a suitable marriage. Before you are born, this fate has been set for you. When the time comes for you to grow up, you are sent to a convent to live out the rest of your days, regardless of what the extent of your devotion to God is. You have no hope for children of your own, to know the carnal knowledge of a man, never to have a home to call your own, no items of worth, not many secret treasures, no books other than the bible, seeing your family only sparingly... Such is the predicament for Sophia's sisters in Morin's The Secret of the Glass, unless Sophia figures out a way to change the sands of time.

In celebration of the Historical Fiction Bloggers Round Table event, I am offering up to one lucky USA winner my gently read advanced reader's copy of The Secret of the Glass, as well as a handmade bookmark featuring some glass beads (made by me so don't laugh openly), but you must answer this question:

What do you think you would prefer, if you were a young woman and perhaps in Sophia's shoes, who is betrothed to a man who she detests? Could you choose to become cloistered as a nun for the rest of your life almost in a state of poverty and neglect (depending on the convent)? Or would you prefer to at least have some material comforts in life and choose to marry someone who is horrid to you and treats you as a piece of furniture?

1 entry: Please provide your email address in your comment. (mandatory answer to question!!)
For extra +1 entry, follow this blog.
For extra +2 entries, put this graphic linking to this post in your blog's sidebar:

Contest ends March 6, 2010.

Open to USA addresses only.
GOOD LUCK!

Don't forget to visit the HF Bloggers Round Table main site for a complete listing of events, from reviews, giveaways to more creative posts!
New posts for today include Book Review by Susie at All Things Royal and a new set of interview questions with the author Donna Russo Morin also at the main site. There is also a look at The Courtier's Secret, Donna Russo Morin's previous novel set in the time of Louis XIV.

Feb 23, 2010

HF Bloggers Round Table Book Review: The Secret of the Glass by Donna Russo Morin

BurtonReview Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Available TODAY!

The Secret of the Glass by Donna Russo Morin
Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Kensington; Original edition (February 23, 2010)
ISBN-13: 978-0758226921
Review copy provided by the publisher
The Burton Review Rating: 3 stars

"At the dawn of the 17th Century, the glassmakers of Murano are revered as master artisans, enjoying privileges far beyond their station, but they are forced to live in virtual imprisonment, contained by the greedy Venetian government who fears other countries will learn the intricacies of the craft…and reap the rewards.
Sophia Fiolario, the comely daughter of a glass making maestro, has no desire for marriage, finding her serenity in the love of her family and the beauty of the glass. She learns of its secrets at her father’s side, where a woman is forbidden to be. The life Sophia loves is threatened by the poor health of her father and the determined attentions of a nobleman who could and would never love her but seeks to possess her wealth and the privilege it affords. Thrust into the opulent world of the Venetian court, Sophia becomes embroiled in the scheming machinations of the courtiers’ lives. The beauty of Venice, the magnificence of the Doge’s Palace, are rivaled only by the intrigue and danger that festers behind their splendid facades. As she searches for an escape, she finds the arms of another, a man whose own desperate situation is yet another obstacle in their path. Amidst political and religious intrigue, the scientific furor ignited by Galileo, and even murder, Sophia must do anything to protect herself, her family…and the secret of the glass."

Donna Russo Morin tackles seventeenth century Venice in her newest novel, The Secret of the Glass. She writes of many underlying themes while she tells the story of Sophia, a girl who is doomed to marry a nobleman against her wishes. She is the eldest child of a glassmaking family, and as such, she is the only daughter that is allowed to marry, bringing with her the inheritance of the lucrative glass factory that has been in heritage for years. The remaining daughters will be forced to enter a convent once Sophia's sickly father dies. The story centers around this possibility, and the fact that Sophia wants nothing to do with her betrothed, Pasquale. Worse yet, her father who suffers from dementia has alluded to the fact that Pasquale's family has something damning to hide, but Sophia cannot approach her father with further questions. She instead decides to follow her betrothed to see if she can find out something about him, as he is not very talkative when they are together.

The Secret of The Glass carries with it the intrigue of the glassmaking process, and gives details about it as Sophia herself creates the pieces. That is a subject that would be damaging to the family if anyone found out the fact that it has been Sophia making the glass for so long, since it is against the law for women to do so. When Sophia is presented with the possibility of losing the ability to make the glass due to her betrothal, she decides to try and devise a way out. Along the way, she meets the dashing fellow, Teodoro, someone who is not allowed to marry, and they are instantly attracted to each other.

MIEL, Jan (b. 1599, Beveren-Was, d. 1663, Torino)
Carnival Time in Rome: 1653

Beginning with the tradition of carnival time, the author slowly meanders her way through this story, presenting details of Venice that are intended to bring Venice to life. Although I am normally very appreciative of historical detail, I was turned off by the many Italian words that were inserted. I had no inkling of what many of these words meant, and that really distracted my attention span, which in turn failed to pull me into the story. I would assume that those readers who love Venice and its allure may truly be entertained by the endless snippets of detail that the novel imparts. For this reader though, I felt the reading was sluggish for me, and that it was hard to become emotionally attached to Sophia or any of her supporting characters. Her characters were interesting enough, and I was surprised by one character's actions at the end of the novel, so much so that it was too out of character. With a story that focused mainly on the political atmosphere at the time, which was the most intriguing, it seemed that more things were happening around Sophia but not directly to her, which makes the events and plot seem a bit more simple while describing the book. I am particularly interested to see how others will review this book, especially by those who really adore Italy. Perhaps this one was too far out of my comfort zone of England-related reads for me to appreciate at this time.

That being said, I was particulary intrigued by the scenes that included Galileo, as it is told in the novel Sophia made the lenses for his first telescope, which was the central instrument for the Scientific Revolution of the seventeenth century. This in turn affected the political, social and religious controversy of the times, which was one of the themes incorporated into this novel. Those who believed in theories of the astronomer Copernicus were branded as heretics, and those who supported Galileo were therefore tottering on that same edge of heresy. Another interesting theme was the Pope versus the doge, with an important case of clerics which occurred in 1605 and who should have the authority to govern disputes. I was also touched by one theme of the high dowry and forced marriage situations at that time. I will have another post coming up this week that explores this, and I would love to hear your thoughts on it.

Donna Russo Morin's previous novel, The Courtier's Secret, came out in February of 2009 averaging 4 stars on Amazon reviews, and coming March 2011 is To Serve A King.

As part of the Historical Fiction Bloggers Round Table Tour, we offer you some more Venetian inspired treats, from more reviews to giveaways to Glass Pendants!

Review at historical-fiction.com
Review at The Maiden's Court
Creative posts at All Things Royal, Historically Obsessed, and Enchanted by Josephine.
Interview Questions with Author at HFBRT
More to be posted during the week, visit the main site for a complete calendar of events.
Posted now is the new Murano Glass Pendant Giveaway!
Come back in a few days to win my ARC of The Secret of The Glass, when I post my creative post.