false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1177616299m/720102.jpg 720102 5 <P>Set against the stunning backdrop of Renaissance France, <I>The Serpent and the Moon</I> is a true story of love, war, intrigue, betrayal, and persecution. At its heart is one of the world's greatest love stories: the lifelong devotion of King Henri II of France to Diane de Poitiers, a beautiful aristocrat who was nineteen years older than her lover.<P>At age fourteen, Henri was married to fourteen-year-old Catherine de' Medici, an unattractive but extremely wealthy heiress who was to bring half of Italy to France as her dowry. When Catherine met Henri on her wedding day, she fell instantly in love, but Henri could see no one but the beautiful Diane. When Henri eventually became king, he and Diane ruled France as one. Meanwhile, Catherine took as her secret motto the words "Hate and Wait" and lived for the day Diane would die and she could win Henri's love and rule by his side. Fate had another plan.<P>Her Royal Highness Princess Michael of Kent, herself a descendant of both Catherine and Diane, imbues this seldom-told story with an insider's grasp of royal life. The Serpent and the Moon is a fascinating love story as well as a richly woven history of an extraordinary time.<P> 962706 2004 The Serpent and the Moon: Two Rivals for the Love of a Renaissance King total:57|5:8|4:21|3:22|2:4|1:2| 57 200 100 10 4 0 false false Sun Sep 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 21 10:29:28 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 21 11:07:03 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Aug 18 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 18 16:21:38 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 18 17:09:52 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Feb 26 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 06:53:22 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 26 08:53:06 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Dec 07 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 07 16:56:12 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 07 17:02:18 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Tue Jan 29 22:28:28 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 29 22:34:35 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 true false Tue Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Mar 13 10:49:47 -0700 2008 Fri Apr 25 02:37:02 -0700 2008 more...]]> 1 1 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Fri Aug 31 08:51:22 -0700 2007 Fri Aug 31 08:56:26 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Oct 11 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Feb 10 08:30:57 -0800 2008 Sun Feb 10 08:31:46 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Tue Apr 08 19:42:15 -0700 2008 Thu Nov 20 16:27:46 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Apr 15 08:51:12 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 15 08:51:43 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Thu Nov 05 11:45:15 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 05 11:45:15 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Nov 02 20:55:29 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 02 20:55:29 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Thu Oct 29 09:23:38 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 29 09:23:38 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Oct 16 09:00:33 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 16 09:00:33 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu Oct 15 07:39:39 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 15 07:39:39 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Sep 28 09:53:40 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 28 09:53:40 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Aug 29 13:22:39 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 29 13:22:39 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Aug 28 18:23:50 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 28 18:23:50 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Fri Aug 28 03:25:23 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 28 03:25:37 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Tue Aug 18 08:32:30 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 18 08:32:30 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=720102