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Bitter Greens

By Kate Forsyth
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Brief Description
A lovely stew of sex, fairytales and, well, sex really. The Age. An exquisite rendering of the story behind the Rapunzel fairy tale. Charlotte-Rose de la Force has been banished from the court of Versailles by the Sun King, Louis XIV, after a series of scandalous... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2800
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Bitter Greens

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

A lovely stew of sex, fairytales and, well, sex really. The Age.

An exquisite rendering of the story behind the Rapunzel fairy tale.

Charlotte-Rose de la Force has been banished from the court of Versailles by the Sun King, Louis XIV, after a series of scandalous love affairs. She is comforted by an old nun, Sœur Seraphina, who tells her the tale of a young girl who, a hundred years earlier, is sold by her parents for a handful of bitter greens.

After Margherita's father steals a handful of parsley, wintercress and rapunzel from the walled garden of the courtesan Selena Leonelli, he is threatened with having both hands cut off unless he and his wife give away their little girl.

Selena is the famous red-haired muse of the artist Tiziano, first painted by him in 1512 and still inspiring him at the time of his death, sixty-four years later. Called La Strega Bella, Selena is at the centre of Renaissance life in Venice, a world of beauty and danger, seduction and betrayal, love and superstition.

Locked away in a tower, growing to womanhood, Margherita sings in the hope that someone will hear her.

Three women, three lives, three stories, braided together to create a compelling tale of desire, obsession, black magic and the redemptive power of love.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781761355721

Publisher: Penguin Random House Australia

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 29 April 2025

Country: Australia

Imprint: Penguin Random House Australia

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 36.0mm

Width: 131.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 400g

Pages: 576

Collections

Fiction General Fiction Health & Wellness Historical Fiction Kate Forsyth Literary Fiction Penguin Books Self-Help & Personal Development

About the Author

Kate Forsyth is an award-winning author and oral storyteller who grew up on tales of Scottish history and folklore told by her grandmother and great-aunts. Her books include Psykhe, a feminist reimagining of the ancient Greek myth; Bitter Greens, a retelling of Rapunzel which won the American Library Association award for Best Historical Fiction; and The Witches of Eileanan, a dark romantic fantasy which was named one of the Best First Novels by Locus. Kate has a Doctorate of Creative Arts in fairy tale studies, and runs writing retreats and literary tours in Greece, the Cotswolds and Scotland. She has sold more than 1.5 million books in twenty languages.

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