I was hoping to read a gay soap opera, but the book turned out to be serious and rather dry.
I guess historicals aren't my thing.
But the writing is pretty high quality if punchy cliff hangers and minimalistic writing is your thing.

I had high hopes for "The Medici Boy", which some might dismiss as another tip of the hat to the success of "The Girl With The Pearl Earring". And at first, I was down for it. The plotting is strong, the protagonist easy to empathize with, and yet, he is not the inspiration for Donatello's "David". That honor is left to one who is being geared up as a major antagonist in the piece. The moment when I realized I couldn't read this book any longer, was when I came to a brutal scene graphically depicting the burning of a sodomite and child molester. It brought up so many conflicting emotions, was so distasteful and dark... It feels like massive foreshadowing, and not particularly subtle foreshadowing at that. I feel a dread for these characters and am not going to read through the countless pages to get to the carnage which is sure to come.

Drag...drag...

Every now and then I pick up a book and it captures me within just a few pages - The Medici Boy was one of those books. I started during a short afternoon break at work - a mistake since I really just wanted to sit in the sun and read once I started. The Medici Boy is historical fiction set in Renaissance Florence in the studio of the sculptor, Donatello. The book captures the essence of the Renaissance as I imagine it in my head - the writing of place is very vivid filled with all the beauty and brutality of the age.

Our hero, Luca, is devoted to Donatello and spends his time helping to keep the artist's business affairs in order. His journey to Florence is a long and strange one and that's fitting for Luca is a complex and stranger character conflicted in almost all ways about his life. Luca's past comes to haunt the book in the presence of Agnolo, a beautiful model and prostitute who disrupts the studio at every turn. Well-written and interesting, The Medici Boy is a good read, although I wish Donatello had a stronger presence in the book. The portrait of him in Vasari's The Lives of the Artists is still the one that resonates with me, but that didn't stop me from tearing through this book.

This is a work of historical fiction not actually about the Medici family (though Cosimo de’ Medici is there) but about Donatello and his apprentices- I believe all are fictional. The premise itself is interesting- The great love of Donatello’s life that inspired some of his greatest works and also ruined his life. It was entertaining enough that I read it in about two days while walking around Florence and sitting on trains. Unfortunately though, a lot of it fell flat for me. In my opinion, the most interesting character was by far the narrator, Luca, with his passionate and confusing love for Donatello, but often the narrators thoughts and actions were ignored in favor of historical narrative or talking about Agnolo (who I found very boring.) Also, the climax was not really much of a climax at all, as we knew the entire time it would happen and there was no exciting twist or anything to heighten the emotion. Regardless, it was an interesting book and fun to read while actually in Florence looking at the real art mentioned in the novel.

I received a copy of The Medici Boy e-book from the publisher in order to review.

When I first began reading this book, I had a little trouble getting into it. The language is a little formal to imitate a period voice. By the time I reached the second chapter, however, I was completely enthralled by the story. Fair warning: this is NOT a story for people with delicate sensibilities as this tale can be a little graphic due to sex being a central element.

The Medici Boy is about Luca, the illegitimate son of an Italian merchant and the merchant's slave. After being raised in what today would be a sort of foster home, Luca went through several unsuccessful apprenticeships, including a disastrous turn as a monk.

He finally finds himself in the botegga of Donatello, the great sculptor. While lacking great artistic talent, Luca becomes invaluable as Donatello's bookkeeper. Early in Luca's employ at the bottega, his "stepbrother" Agnolo appears in order to beg for money. This begins the central plotline of the story: Donatello's obsessive need for Agnolo and Luca's equally obsessive jealousy of that need.

I quickly became enthralled by this book. The characters were engaging while not always being admirable. I loved the descriptions of creating sculptures. I had a little trouble believing Luca would not have suspected the "big reveal" sooner, though. All in all, a very good book and I would love to read more by Mr. L'Heureux.

I struggled with this one. It's hard to read a book when you don't care for any of the characters. Disturbing without the payoff of good character or story development.

It just wasn't for me. It did seem researched and nicely written though.

*Seriously* overwritten. I wasn't enjoying myself as I trudged through the last hundred pages. I'm as affected and verbose as they come, but even *I* know when to dim down a notch. I don't think the recently departed Author L'Heureux and I will be deepening our acquaintance.

This is a work of historical fiction not actually about the Medici family (though Cosimo de’ Medici is there) but about Donatello and his apprentices- I believe all are fictional. The premise itself is interesting- The great love of Donatello’s life that inspired some of his greatest works and also ruined his life. It was entertaining enough that I read it in about two days while walking around Florence and sitting on trains. Unfortunately though, a lot of it fell flat for me. In my opinion, the most interesting character was by far the narrator, Luca, with his passionate and confusing love for Donatello, but often the narrators thoughts and actions were ignored in favor of historical narrative or talking about Agnolo (who I found very boring.) Also, the climax was not really much of a climax at all, as we knew the entire time it would happen and there was no exciting twist or anything to heighten the emotion. Regardless, it was an interesting book and fun to read while actually in Florence looking at the real art mentioned in the novel.