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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
This Ring is leaden,
By
This review is from: The Ruby Ring: A Novel (Paperback)
The current vogue in historical fiction has led to an influx of novels such as The Ruby Ring. Their authors take truly fascinating and moving artifacts and stories (in this case, the apparent affair between Renaissance artist Raphael and baker's daughter Margherita Luti) and then use them as the basis for a novel. In some cases (such as Philippa Gregory's various novels about English history and Emma Donoghue's Slammerkin and Life Mask) the results are fascinating and inspired. In other cases, such as The Ruby Ring, the results are dishwater-dull recoutings of what might have happened if everyone in history acted like they were in a romance novel. I will discuss the plot of this novel, so don't read further if for some reason you fear having this book spoiled for you.
One sure sign you're reading a stinker is if the heroine is immediately presented as a paragon of wit, beauty, bravery and intelligence even though she is a mere girl of humble means. Often a parent (usually the father, in this case the mother) has impressed upon our lass that she is very special and cut out for great things. And typically she has some kind of unusual eye color, for some reason, though in this case there's an actual painting so the author must lump it with the classic brown hue. In any case, here's how this love story of the ages goes. Raphael needs a new model, he seems Margharita, he immediately falls in love, after some ridiculous dillydallying on her part when offered what must have been the equivalent of 10K, easy, to pose for Raphael (I believe to show her feisty independence, even though her family is impoverished, so her hesitation seems to make no sense), she poses, they hit it, they fall in love. From this point henceforth, which occurs early on, the vast majority of dialog between the two consists of "I love you, bella." "I love you, mi amor." (Sex ensues.) This does not vary over the course of the rest of the book. There are other characters, of course, particuarly a cardinal obsessed about having Raphael marry his daughter (who is ugly and weird, unlike super!pretty!and smart! and just as noble as the nobility! Margharita.) Most of them are pretty interchangeable. Often they admire Margharita and think she is wonderful, unless one of them wants to marry/do Margharita or Raphael (handy!) There is also much coverage of the politics of art and artists, none of which will be particularly interesting to most people who has read anything about Renaissance Italy before. It seemed to me that the author was powering through those parts so she could get to the next "mi amor" scene. The writing is dull too. The author has a tendency to inform the reader of things that one could clearly pick up from context. "Oh, Raphael, you signed the nudie painting of me!" "Yes, mi amor, I am signing it because I am proud that I painted you in the altogether and you are my lady!" "Oh, my dearest love, but you rarely sign paintings!" "Oh yes, but as you can see, I did in this instance! Now let us off to the bedchamber!" Bleah.
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
OK but not as good as the Illuminator,
By Monysmom "monysmom" (New Hampshire) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Ruby Ring: A Novel (Paperback)
The most interesting part of the book (which I really WANTED to love) was the politics of artistry among the artists, their staff, the church and the nobles. The love story is less interesting. Raphael, never before in love, falls for Margherita, a baker's daughter on sight - drawn by her spirit and independence. Onoce they become involved though, the most she does is hang out in places/with things he buys her, making love to him and swooning "Amore Mio, Rafaello" and becomes much less interesting, so you wonder what the heck is this love story of the century really all about?
Read the Illuminator instead - much more interesting from start to finish
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
True to the Psychology,
By A Storyteller Artist "tell stories" (Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Ruby Ring: A Novel (Paperback)
For all you art history "Nerds":
I was surprised and pleased to discover this true love story become a book. As an Italian Renaissance and Raphael "fanatic" I have been researching Raphael and his lady Margherita Luti for years now. Naturally I would be picky about how these individuals would be portrayed, so imagine my pleasant surprise when I saw that Haeger had come to much of the same psychological reasoning that I had come to. Haeger's portrayal of Margherita was very similar to how imagined her to be! Part of this is thanks to Raphael's amazing ability to convey the true character and dignity of his subjects. The other thanks is to Haeger, who uses her psychological smarts to get into the meat of her characters, and the book did a lovely job oh what thoughts Raphael (and Margherita) might have had. Sure-it's got all the flourishes of a romance novel but I didn't let that get in the way of a great story! For those of you who want to research this story, I can say-do it! Haeger flips around the dates and adds her own spin for fiction's sake but the facts are true. People did marry for connections and not love, and it is true that Raphael was engaged to Maria da Bibbiena (but we don't know much about her except she died a virgin)-but it does seem that he was very reluctant to marry since he kept putting it off for years. Curiously, he wrote to an uncle that he was holding out for a bride with a lot of money and very high social standing (something most artists did not do) so whether he was greedy, or just using it as a creative way to avoid marriage, who knows! In his later years Raphael farmed out his minor commissions to his gigantic workshop. Margherita was important, but Raphael didn't forget his work due to her. He was extremely busy and got more choosy-note the Transfiguration. It is true that Raphael used Margherita as his primary model, from his Vatacan Stanze frescoes on. The best testament however is the painting "La Fornarina" (1518/20) herself-there's something very intimate and arresting about her and her gaze, which to me indicates she was on very intimate terms with Raphael, and he valued her as more than a sexual object. Art history resources: I recommend "Raphael-Grace and Beauty" by the Musee Luxembourg press and Vasari's Lives of the Artists. Grace and Beauty offers rich critical insights into Raphael's character and his fascination with women. Raphael is a complex guy who deserves an intelligent historical romance. It isn't this-but it works well. Haeger glosses over "grit" issues like Raphael's lonliness and struggles with intimacy and Renaissance social realities and Raphael's art itself-but oh well...that's another book. (Haeger may have beat me to it, but where there is a need...)
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