Leonardo's Swans
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Narrated by:
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Kathe Mazur
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By:
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Karen Essex
About this listen
Leonardo's Swans is the story of the powerful Este sisters, Beatrice, Duchess of Milan, and Isabella, Marchesa of Mantua, as they compete for the affections of Italy's most influential prince, the Duke of Milan, and for the larger prize, to be immortalized in oil by his court painter and engineer, Leonardo da Vinci. Sexy, inspiring, and intelligent, her story of love, intrigue, and art is truly unforgettable.
©2006 Karen Essex (P)2006 Books on TapeListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
"Powerful historical fiction." (Booklist)
"The stories of Isabella and Beatrice d'Este along with the occasional investigations of Leonardo's artworks, methods, and personality are always engrossing." (Publishers Weekly)
“Two very different sisters, two very different husbands, and one of the greatest geniuses of all times, Leonardo da Vinci. In this sizzling historical novel set in fifteenth-century Italy, Essex combines art, political intrigue, family feuds and sex to create a page-turner that also probes the experience of being painted and whether it can offer immortality.” (USA Today)
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Den of Vipers
- By: K.A. Knight
- Narrated by: Cornell Collins, Hollie Jackson
- Length: 19 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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Ryder, Garrett, Kenzo, and Diesel - The Vipers. Their deals are as sordid as their business, and their reputation is enough to bring a grown man to his knees, forcing him to beg for mercy. They are not people you mess with, yet my dad did. The old man ran up a debt with them and then sold me to cover his losses. Yes, sold me. They own me now. I’m theirs in every sense of the word. But I’ve never been meek and compliant.
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Shrek
- By Shemika Holmes on 02-25-21
By: K.A. Knight
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Merry Ever After
- Under the Mistletoe Collection
- By: Tessa Bailey
- Narrated by: Summer Morton, Connor Crais
- Length: 1 hr and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Evie Crowe is starting over in a strange town with her newborn, and men are the furthest thing from her mind. If only the quiet, hulking farmer, Luke Ward, would stop coming into the thrift shop and piquing her reluctant interest. Evie wants to stay single all the way—she can’t trust anything more than friends-with-holiday-benefits. But Luke is in it for the long haul. He’s fixed on making this a Christmas Evie will remember forever. If she gives him a chance.
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An ode to his monster Yule log.
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 11-13-24
By: Tessa Bailey
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Drop Dead
- By: Lily Chu
- Narrated by: Phillipa Soo, John Cho
- Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins
- Original Recording
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Obituary writer Nadine Barbault doesn’t mind being called “Lady Death”. It suits the ice queen persona she’s cultivated to survive the fast-paced Toronto Herald. So when Nadine learns that famous (and reclusive) author Dot Voline has died, she doesn’t hesitate to run the obituary…only to discover that Dot is very much alive. Nadine’s screw-up has brought Wesley Chen of the rival Spear no end of joy—she’s been a thorn in his extremely ambitious side for years. But the renewed interest in Dot also surfaced chatter about a mysterious past scandal.
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Clean and sweet
- By Momma Nae on 08-02-24
By: Lily Chu
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Holiday Hideaway
- A Short Story
- By: Mary Kay Andrews
- Narrated by: Eva Kaminsky
- Length: 1 hr and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Tilly Farriday isn’t feeling very jolly this season. Recently divorced and broke, she’s squatting in one of her rental agency’s properties until her new home is ready. The sprinkles on top of the burnt Christmas cookie that is her life? The new owner shows up early, forcing Tilly to hide in the attic to save her job…and what remains of her dignity.
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I ain’t afraid of no ghosts
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 10-31-24
By: Mary Kay Andrews
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Nocticadia
- By: Keri Lake
- Narrated by: Aaron Shedlock, Stella Hunter
- Length: 18 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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After watching my mother succumb to a mysterious illness, I promised myself two things. I'd find the cure for what ravaged her and leave the godforsaken city where she abandoned me. Four years later, I received an acceptance letter from Dracadia University, one of the oldest most prestigious schools in the country. Nestled on a secluded island off the coast of Maine, it's rumored to be haunted by the souls of the mental patients exiled there centuries before, those whose bones are said to make up the island's white sandy shores. And restless ghosts aren't even its most daunting peculiarity.
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Good but a slight miss
- By Destinyreadsbooks on 01-17-24
By: Keri Lake
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Mr. and Mrs. Christmas
- By: Michelle Stimpson
- Narrated by: Marcella Cox, Ian Hackney
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Original Recording
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There's no place like home for the holidays ... especially for Lesley Carver. Life in the big city just wasn't her jam and now she's back in Hickory Falls, working at the family diner and helping her mom after she took a tumble. Lesley longs to build a life here, working at the cafe, selling her handmade ornaments and ... er, apparently reviving her high school crush on her best friend’s older brother. Only one problem, her mom wants her to leave Hickory Falls far behind.
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Loved the book!
- By Amazon Customer on 11-15-24
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All by My Elf
- Under the Mistletoe Collection
- By: Olivia Dade
- Narrated by: Andi Arndt
- Length: 1 hr and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Nina and William are underpaid adjunct professors at the same university, where winter break is no break at all: ’tis the season to make extra money. When their holiday side hustle has them stranded by a blinding blizzard in the middle of nowhere, there’s nothing to do but cuddle up for warmth and play a game of Never Have I Ever to pass the time. But in the game of love, secrets never stay secret for long…
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A cool, considerate romance
- By 🔥 Phx17 🔥 on 11-13-24
By: Olivia Dade
What listeners say about Leonardo's Swans
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
- Book Nerd
- 06-02-07
Leonardo's Swans
Loved this audiobook. Held my interest throughout. what a wonderful way to acquaint myself with Italian renaissance history.
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- THE TURTLE
- 05-16-15
Slow but interesting
Lots of history and back story on paintings we all know-
Not a fast moving book, but interesting all in all-
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Overall
- Michael Allen
- 10-27-07
Good, but not Captivating
This is a novel in which all the main characters are actual historical figures. The story itself is quite good - but almost completely due to the subject matter. The time around the turn of the 16th century in Italy is rich in events, political intrigue and fascinating characters. So I almost hate to say that I wasn't captivated by this audiobook.
The story is told from the viewpoints of sisters Isabella & Beatrice d'Este - two of the most influential women of the Italian Renaissance. It focuses on their relationships with their politically powerful husbands, with each other, and (marginally) with Leonardo da Vinci.
Perhaps if I had read, rather than listened to, this book, I might have had a much different opinion. It's possible that the narrator - even though she seemed to be a good reader - lacked that certain spark that makes for a great audiobook. The characters all seemed to run together & at times, I'm afraid I lost track of which sister was "speaking."
On the plus side, this book made me want to know more about each character & their actual histories. So my overall experience with this book was a positive one.
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6 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Teresa
- 07-19-07
Narrator Inappropriate
This is the first book from Audible in the 3 years I have been a member that I stopped listening because of the narrator. I gave the book 3 stars because I really don't know if it's any good. This is the same narrator that read The Nannie Diaries, which I liked and felt she did a good job. But she is just too American and contemporary sounding to read a historical novel for my taste. Her voice was extremely distracting to me - and I gave it a fair shot but decided to listen to something more exciting. Just listen before you buy.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Anita
- 03-02-10
OK, not great
This was an entertaining book, but wasn't great.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Noula
- 08-27-20
Incredible Writing!
Wow! This isn't your usual Historical Romance novel. Like all others I assumed that this would be another intense, serious, Historical Romance with the main lovers budding heads then falling in love towards the end. Although this plot is focused on every character the slight judgment of others with their actions and hilarious side comments. Karen Essex grabs hold of the reader with incredible vocabulary there is no words repeated. The chapters are an hour long each but there is so much being said that you don't want to stop listening. I give this book 5 stars and I am looking forward to reading her other novels after this one. I am very selective over Historical Romances and Karen Essex is now one of my favorites!
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Overall
- Singin' Again
- 04-17-07
Very Interesting Perspective
I love historical fiction and this book is a fine example. It was well written, very well researched, and well read by the narrator. This was a period in European history about which I knew little and I learned a great deal while being highly entertained by the events in the lives of the characters which were loosely based on historical figures. This is a very pallatable way to get your history lesson. Having been to Vinci and seen Leonardo's house and models of his inventions, I could easily climb into this story and felt I had a better insight into this man's amazing genius.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Peter
- 10-10-11
Compelling historical novel
Creative, evocative insight into Leonardo and the turbulent times of the late 1400s in what was to become Italy, told through the eyes of women of the ruling families.
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- Margaret
- 06-30-14
Good Enough for Vacation
A pretty good historical novel about two aristocratic sisters during the Italian Renaissance. I found all of the characters rather one-dimensional, but the descriptions of life during wartime for the Borgia-Pope era ruling class was pretty and evocative.
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Overall
- Dave
- 02-19-06
Historical fun
A wonderful and moving portriat of 2 sisters who married into two of Italy's most powerful families in the 15th century, and through gazing at them one also gets a likeness of "The Maestro", Leornardo himself.
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