Review: The Sistine Heresy by Justine Saracen
A Fun, Sexy Romp in a Turbulent Time of Religion and Politics
Feb 24, 2009
This historical romance begins in 1503 in Italy. Adrianna Borgia is the daughter of the pope who has just been killed. She flees, to reappear later in an attempt to regain some of the friendship she so enjoyed before her exile.
Perhaps one of the things Saracen does so differently in this novel is that she looks at sexual orientation as something fluid rather than static. Domenico, the castrato, loves Adrianna deeply, but seeks his pleasures in the arms of men. Men like Michelangelo, who also adores the Lady Borgia but whose true passion is for the male gender.
The Mixture of Politics and Religion
Although Saracen's story is about love, lust, and the desire to be ourselves regardless of societal strictures, it is also very much about the lethal combination of politics and religion. She delves into the hypocrasy of religion and of those who deliver the most severe punishments.
She also delves into the psyche of those who practice religion, on both sides of the coin. Michelangelo and Domenico are strict Catholics, and therefore in constant inner turmoil over their sexual orientation. Adrianna is forced to flee for her life because of the politics under her father, the former pope, only to have to flee once again in order to get away from the Spanish Inquisition, which would hang her for not being a "true" believer.
The Sistine Chapel
Along the lines of The Da Vinci Code, Seracen depicts the painting of the cieling in a new light, the ideas behind it coming directly from the character of Michelangelo himself. They are meant to be homoerotic, subversive and sensual. Michelanglelo is portrayed as an eccentric man who dissects corpses in order to find the truth behind the human form, to better understand and interpret it into his art.
The church is depicted as corrupt, powerful and vengeful. Each character must find their own belief system within, as without there is only deception and politics. Of couse, the fact that women are still expected to marry in order to be proper emblems of society is not left out. This adds further complexity and pathos to the issue of being a lesbian in a time when it wasnt even considered a possibility.
The Author
Justine Saracen is the author of the 100th Generation and Vulture's Kiss, both set between current and ancient Egypt. She currently lives in Brussels, and her next novel, Mephisto Aria, is due out in 2010.
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