I had a bit of trouble with the names and what side they were on, but that did not take away from the book. Great "ugly duckling" story. ( )

This book was about the youngest girl in a family of noble/merchant status in alignment with the pope and competing with another family - the Medici's for trade. Flora is a girl forgotten by her family and when she stops the assassination of the head of the Medici family, her family is torn apart and she is forced into a new life, one that may not be so bad after all. Overall, the book held a sweet romance, the adventures of a young girl, and some gorey violence that churned my stomach. The balance of it all made for a great YA novel. ( )

Flora is the youngest daughter of the Pazzi family and she'll be sent to the convent one day. She's not beautiful like her older sister and she prefers digging in her garden to attending noble dinner parties. When the war between the Pazzi family and the Medici family gets out of control, Flora will have to save her family... and herself... if she can.

I loved the spunky main character of this book. Flora is brave and honest and kind of sarcastic. Beaufrand paints a gorgeously detailed picture of Renaissance Italy and she includes all the gory bits. I had a bit of trouble keeping all the characters straight and figuring out who was on what side of the conflict. ( )

Lorenza, called Flora, is the youngest of the powerful Pazzi family. Ignored by a spiteful mother, Flora spends most of her time tending the garden and working with her grandmother in the kitchens. This is how Flora ends up meeting both soon-to-be-famous artist Sandro Botticelli and the young messenger Emilio who becomes her playmate and protector. For times are dangerous for rivals of the Medici - and none are greater rivals than the Pazzi.

(Side Note: Pazzi translated from Italian means 'the crazy ones' - a note to a foolhardy ancestor in the Crusades, but not inapplicable here either...)

Primavera is an intriguing look into the life of an aristocratic family with a tenuous hold on their power. Alliances and betrayals abound. Flora's unique position within the household as an aristocratic daughter, but the one nobody pays attention to, grants her a broader perspective. She sees the machinations of the aristocracy, the importance of accounting and banking, but also the poor who come to the door for doctoring, the guards. But despite having greater exposure to poverty than a typical aristocratic young lady, Flora is still realistically sheltered.

Sheltered that is until the Pazzi Rebellion shatters her world in a few short minutes and plunges her into adventure. This book has a smidgen of everything necessary to make a great story. There is fascinating historical detail, adventure, tragedy, art and even a smidgen of romance. I would caution, however, that I wouldn't recommend this for younger children (despite the cover that appears to market to them). The descriptions of torture and violence in Renaissance society are quite graphic - though the author never dwells on them gruesomely.

I had a few accuracy snags (cyanide smells of almonds, not arsenic; it's spelled Siena not Sienna), but despite these minor difficulties, I highly recommend this novel. ( )

Teen Historical Fiction set in Italy a girl must live with the choices she has made. ( )