The Creation of Eve

When Sofonisba Anguissola yields to long temptation and has a passionate encounter with an artist colleague, she has much to lose. For one thing, Rome in 1559 is hardly the place for a woman to risk her reputation. For another, as a painter, Sofi has dared sign her canvases “the virgin,” partly out of pride in her dedication to her craft, partly to protect herself as a woman in a male profession. No more. As she says in the first sentence of this remarkable, compelling novel, “In the time it takes to pluck a hen, I have ruined myself.”

However, as the daughter of a petty aristocrat, Sofi’s not without resources, and her talent has received notice. No less a figure than Michelangelo himself has tutored her—which is how she met show more Tiberio, her lover, also the maestro’s student—and though she must now hide herself, she’s got a place to go. On the strength of drawings she’s made, Sofi receives an invitation from the court of Felipe II of Spain to teach painting to his new bride, Elisabeth of Valois, and be her lady-in-waiting. In that capacity, Sofi attends the royal wedding at Guadalajara, after which her adventure begins.

Cullen has given her protagonist a delightful, alluring voice and superbly re-created time, place, and manners, an atmosphere sustained throughout. You expect the novel to focus on feminist issues, notably the double standard regarding honor and purity, which the narrative handles with skill, in multiple facets and circumstances. As king, Felipe may have his mistresses, but if Elisabeth, who’s only fourteen, so much as smiles at the noblemen who fawn on her, look out. As a foreigner herself and a strong woman, Sofi becomes the queen’s trusted confidante.

Look out, again. Raising a foreigner of comparatively low birth to such a position makes enemies, and those who have been displaced put Sofi on notice. But they’re not the greatest danger. Felipe’s sister Juana, a marvelously insidious character, would like nothing better than to destroy Elisabeth and sees the upstart artist as a pawn in that game.

Not only does Dona Juana question Sofi closely about Michelangelo, now under fire for his rumored homosexuality and his “degenerate” fresco in the Sistine Chapel, which the Church is considering painting over (!), the king’s sister makes sure that Spain’s inquisitor-general asks Sofi about these as well. Further, Dona Juana seems to know about Tiberio, from whom Sofi has waited, in vain, for a letter declaring his love and willingness to marry her.

I admire how Cullen weaves art, feminism, palace cabals, politics, and sex, moving confidently among historical figures. She casts Felipe II as a more rounded person than he’s often portrayed, capturing his stiffness while revealing his love for gardening and tenderness as a father. I’m also glad to know about Sofonisba Anguissola, having heard only of Artemisia Gentileschi as a female painter of the time, though the former came first by several decades.

I like Cullen’s rendering of the royals, but the real show-stopper is Catherine de Medici, Elisabeth’s mother, whom the Spanish queen visits once in France. You understand immediately why, as a child, Elisabeth preferred her father’s mistress, Diane de Poitiers, as a mother figure.

The way Sofi becomes privy to certain secrets sometimes stretches credulity, but not to the point of utter contrivance. The lone historical inaccuracy that sticks out concerns the potato’s presence in the royal gardens, which wouldn’t have happened then (if ever, in that era). More serious is Cullen’s assertion, in her afterword, that Felipe II is wrongly considered to embody the Inquisition, and that contemporary versions elsewhere (see, for example: Mary Tudor) killed more people.

That may or may not show Felipe in a more favorable light. But to suggest that the Spanish Inquisition has an exaggeratedly evil reputation because of contemporary chroniclers relegates a great crime to a body count. Fernando and Isabella’s expulsion of Jews and Moors in 1492 and the persecutions of converts afterward attempted to eradicate cultures that had enriched Spain. I think that outdoes Bloody Mary. show less

I loved this book. Usually I'm not a fan of books about royalty, All those royals were related to each other, so I guess it really doesn't make a lot of difference which one you're reading about, but this one is about Spain, Phillip II and Elisabeth, so maybe that made it go down easier. Catherine Medici with her spider web of schemes is in the background for most of it, and she is interesting, but if she were a man with such an unstoppable and Machiavellian lust for power, I don't think I'd find her enticing. What got me interested in the book is that the main character is Sofonisba Anguissola, the first famous woman renaissance painter, and art is a power that truly draws me to it. Alas, there's more romance than I'd like, but so much show more about art, society, disease, religion, the class system, imports from (our) new world, and daily life that I hadn't known before. (Oh, she ate a tomato. What happened to her?) Also, in describing the heat in Spain, she really gets heat right. Coming from the western US, I know how sticky and debilitating the summer can be, and evidently she does too. She absolutely gets it right. show less

This book left me breathless. If you read my blog very often, you know that I don't typically 'do' historical fiction. It's not to say that I don't like it, it's just that the historical fiction books don't grab my attention as quickly as a mystery or paranormal books so the wandering finger as I trace out the titles choosing my next read will skim right on over the big 600 page tomes that are the norm for HF.
I won this from LibraryThing Early Reviewer, my first book win from them, from the January choices. I thought the premise looked very interesting and I was glad to win the book and to be proved correct.
It's a fantastic story based on a true occurrence. I think the Renaissance period of art history is my favorite. Sofonisba show more Anguissola was an artist who studied with Michelangelo for a time, but a perceived scandal and romance with a fellow artist sent her running home and then to the Spanish court to teach the new Queen of Spain how to paint and draw. It was mostly as a diversion due to her youth as the King was busy ruling half of the world and had no time for his young bride from France.
Sofi becomes the Queen's best friend in Court which had its positive bend and negative. She was at the Queen's beck and call which kept Sofi busy and her heart and mind occupied from dwelling too much on her love, Tiberio. It also kept her too busy to study her other love, painting. She was a woman, so couldn't be thought of as a serious artist. Her paintings and portraits mostly went unsigned or signed by other (male) artists.
The kicker was the constant intrigue of the Spanish court. All of the backstabbing and catfighting, though couched in kid gloves, was never-ending. I'd have been exhausted each day and someone would have been bitch-slapped. I'd not have lasted long back in the day of the royal Courts I would imagine.
Lynn Cullen's written imagery was spectacular and put me right in the time and place of sixteenth-century Spain. My face squinched each time the condesa de Uruena stuck her pomander filled with civet to her nose. I could see the scenery of the Spanish countryside and hear the barking dogs or the clatter of the banquet hall.
Five Renaissance diamonds..... show less

Lynn Cullen's novel, The Creation of Eve, tells the story of Sofonisba Anguissola, the first gifted female painter of the Renaissance. She studied with Michelangelo and her work was noted in her own time in The Lives of the Artists by Giorgio Vasari, but she has largely been forgotten by the modern world.

Early in her life, Sofi displayed a talent for drawing. Her father, a printer and bookseller, defied convention and encouraged her to develop her gift. Painting, at the time, was a pastime for men, like most other activities. So his support was crucial for her success. She was invited by renowned artist Michelangelo to study with him after he saw one of her sketches. While in Rome, she meets Tiberio Calcogni, another student of show more Michelangelo's. She falls in love with him but their single assignation is discovered. She flees for her home in Cremona, fearing the consequences.

She hopes to hear an offer of marriage from Tiberio, but none is made. In order to save her own reputation and that of her family, Sofi accepts a position as lady-in-waiting to King Philip of Spain's third wife, Elisabeth of Valois. Doing so requires her to give up her dream of becoming a master painter. (Employees of the king are not allowed to sign their work. Sofi's portraits done after her arrival in Spain are unsigned, resulting in confusion and mis-attribution of her work to contemporary male artists.)

King Philip had been married twice before (most notably to Mary Tudor of England) and widowed twice. His ambition to marry Elizabeth I of England after the death of her sister has come to nothing. So, he is in his early thirties when he marries Elisabeth of Valois, daughter of Catherine de Medici of France. She is just fourteen years old.

Sofi grows to love the young, impetuous Queen. But she is increasingly troubled by Elisabeth's developing interest in the King's half brother, Don Juan. The relationship between the King and Queen is often strained. He is saddled with the enormous task of running an empire that spreads over most of Europe. He does not have the youth or glamour of Don Juan and can't take the time to try to truly win the heart of his wife. The result is a love triangle that can never result in a happy ending. Sofi can only be there for the Queen and do her best to lessen the friction that exists between the three.

When Sofi eventually hears the fate of Michelangelo and her beloved Tiberio, she is devastated. But she cannot afford to show her pain and grief, the inquisition is in full swing. And though she is only a lady-in-waiting, she has developed enemies. She will have to tread carefully to emerge successfully from the embroiled court of Philip II.

This is historical fiction at its best! Fascinating real life characters with life breathed into them by a talented writer with a gift for imagining the possibilities so well that the story feels not only possible, but probable. I loved Sofi and her story and appreciated a look at Philip of Spain that was not through the eyes of any of the Tudors. A lovely book, vividly imagined, full of rich history. I loved it and highly recommend it! show less

After being caught in a compromising situation while studying with the great Michelangelo, Sofonisba Anguissola, a premiere painter of her time, decides to leave her home in Cremona, Italy to become the painting instructor and lady-in-waiting to the new Queen, Elisabeth de Valois. Arriving at court, Sofonisba meets the young and inexperienced queen as she first arrives at the palace, never expecting that Elisabeth will become her most cherished friend. Though the relationship between the king and queen is at first cool, the king soon becomes greatly enchanted by the young queen and begins to excessively dote on her and endlessly attempts to produce an heir with her. The queen, full of spirit and life, soon turns her attention elsewhere show more and finds that she has much in common with the three new young men in court: the king's son Don Carlos, his nephew Don Alessandro, and his illegitimate half brother Don Juan. The naïve Elisabeth quickly becomes entangled in a dangerous love triangle with both the king and Don Juan, a situation that causes no end of worry to Sofonisba. As the king and Don Juan grow ever more enamored of the young queen, the king becomes increasingly jealous and demanding of his wife's attention, a situation that puts Don Juan at great risk. Filled with political, religious and romantic intrigue, The Creation of Eve documents the trials of a powerful woman in love with two men and the havoc it wreaks upon her life as well as Sofonisba's.

The story in this book focuses on two very different women. The first, Sofonisba, is greatly bereaved by her decision to leave her family after a rash act threatens to ruin her reputation. Though she is very successful in her own right, her love for another of Michelangelo's students puts her at a disadvantage and rather than face the threat of scandal, she resigns herself to accept a position at court. As Sofonsiba plots a course to change her future, she realizes that that she is leaving the passion of her youth behind and struggles through her feelings of despair even as she begins her relationship as the queen's confidante. The queen, on the other hand, is young and fresh and hopes that her allure will be all that is needed to keep her husband from straying from her bedside. She is the kind of woman who is not savvy in her intrigues and is unable to keep from casting about in her desire for male attention. Sofonisba and the queen, though both kind and generous women, are very different. While the queen is unscrupulous and flighty, Sofonisba is more secretive and wary of all around her. The juxtaposition between the two woman gave this story an uncommon amount of depth, and I found it very interesting that despite the women's great differences, they had a lot in common as well.

While the queen professed to love the king, it was with great alarm and uncertainty that I read about her relations with the other men at court. The queen, while professing to love one man, flirted shamelessly with another and lusted after yet a third! There were points that she verbally dallied with the king's son Don Carlos, but I suspect this was done in order to keep her real passion for Don Juan hidden. The king seemed to be led around by the nose by the queen, and I believe that is why it took so long for him to discover his wife's passion for his half-brother. It was a wicked game she played, one that kept everyone off balance, with no one but Sofi able to realize exactly what she was doing. I don't think that her escapades were done maliciously; rather I think the queen was just very juvenile in her desire to be loved by all those surrounding her, sometimes to the great danger of others. Don Juan's attachment to the queen was, I think, sincere, but in the game the queen played, she put him in serious danger, making me feel at once sorry for her and exasperated with her. She was at times a bit of a loose cannon, with her affections ranging far and wide.

The king was actually one of my favorite characters in this tale. He was an extremely kind and patient man and seemed to love the queen beyond all measure. When he discovered his wife's feelings for his brother, I felt that he did not act rashly or in anger, choosing instead to remain calm and handle his adversity with honor. Later sections of the book had me wondering what his true motives were towards his wife, and I think the author used this strategy of doubt to the height of its perfection. The reader is left wondering just what the king had done or not done, and forcing a speculation on him that may or may not be valid. It was clear to me that he loved his wife but other aspects of his character were more concealed. Did he or did he not engage in relations with a mistress? Did he attempt to stop his wife's dalliances at any cost? It's never clear what the king was capable of, for he only showed what he wanted to be seen. A very shrewd man he was, of that I am certain. There were many sides to his character and he remained malleable throughout the narrative.

Sofonisba's story was definitely the most touching of all the narrative threads in this book. Her fear and reproach for herself was hard to bear witness to. Though she struggled to remain strong, she was constantly filled with doubt and a suspicion that she could not shake. I feel that the author excelled at her creation, and witnessing her walk through her life with so much regret was like watching a woman live in slow motion. Unfortunately the things she left behind were never to be regained, a fact that saddened and sobered me, and although she gave so much care and attention to the queen, she was not able to do the same for herself. Hers was a story steeped in pain and heartache.

This was an excellent story told with a great lushness of language and brilliant intimacy. There was a great gravity to all the events that unfolded in the tale and a natural rhythm to the narrative. I think that those who enjoy historical fiction would greatly love this book, as would those who love stories that are filled with unexpected intrigue. I did so much enjoy this book and am excited to see more by this author. A great tale to get swept away with, highly recommended! show less

Based on the true, but little known, story of the first renowned female artist during the Renaissance period, this is a captivating work of historical fiction. Sofonisba Anguisola (Sofi) studied under Michelangelo, though, as a woman, she was not allowed to draw the naked figure. Still, her reputation garnered her an invitation from King Felipe II of Spain to join his court as a drawing instructor for his young bride, Elisabeth of Valois, the daughter of King Henri II of France and his wife, Catherine de’ Medici.

I knew nothing about this extraordinary woman, and only a little about the court of King Felipe II. I had not realized the extent of his empire or how very powerful he was. I also was unaware of his relationship to the show more infamous Don Juan.

Cullen crafts a compelling story that includes intrigue, romance, mystery, politics and the frustration felt by a woman shackled by society’s conventions. Sofi is a strong woman: intelligent, observant, loyal, talented, and determined to live her own life. Her role in the novel, however, is mostly as observer to what is going on in the court, especially in regard to Elizabeth and her flirtations with Felipe’s son, Don Carlos, and with Don Juan.

The author’s notes at the end include more information about Sofonisba herself. I want to look up all her paintings now. show less

Summary: The Creation of Eve tells the story of Sofonisba Anguissola, one of Michelangelo's students, and the first famous female artist of the Renaissance. After losing her heart - and her virginity - to another of Michelangelo's students, Sofi is summoned to the Spanish court, where she is to teach King Felipe II's young French queen how to draw. She quickly become the Queen's favorite lady-in-waiting, but that position is not all it's cracked up to be; not only does her own painting take a back seat to the demands of royalty, but Sofi is also unprepared for the intrigues of court life - especially a court in which the young Queen may be developing feelings for the King's illegitimate half-brother... a crime that carries the penalty show more of death.

Review: The basic themes of The Creation of Eve - of a royal court full of intrigue, of a young woman forced into a political marriage, of the duty to king and country conflicting with the desires of the heart - are pretty standard fare in historical fiction. However, Lynn Cullen manages to take in these tropes and turn out a compelling story, and one that distinguishes itself from the pack via the addition of Sofonisba Anguissola as its narrator. One of the main reasons that I read historical fiction is to learn about people and events and places that I didn't know about before, and on that front, The Creation of Eve was wildly successful. Cullen brings the court of of Felipe II to life with a deft touch and vivid details, and its main inhabitants sound and feel like real people rather than stock characters. (It was also a refreshing change from my normal reading to come across a "royal intrigue and scandal" book that wasn't about the British monarchy.)

In The Creation of Eve, Cullen also introduced me to an artist - and a period of history - that had heretofore been missing from my (admittedly spotty) knowledge of art history. Sofi's a very interesting narrator, and Cullen never wanders from her voice or her perspective. I was a little disappointed that there wasn't more about the art - from reading the back cover, I was expecting the story to focus more on "Sofi the artist", but the novel turned out to primarily be "Sofi the lady-in-waiting," with the royal love triangle taking center stage. However, I guess I can't complain too much, since (as Cullen explains in her excellent author's note) the shift from artist to lady-in-waiting happened in real life as well, so it's really history and not the historical fiction that wasn't living up to expectations. Indeed, Cullen takes very few liberties with the historical record, which results in a book that is not only an enjoyable read, but actually an interesting and memorable history lesson as well. 4 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: Historical fiction fans will enjoy this one for sure, particularly those who like art history or Spain as well. show less