The Enchantress of Florence is a brilliant historical novel

set in Renaissance Florence and the court of the Mughal Empire.

Drawing on more than seven years of research, the

story of a woman attempting to command her own destiny in

a man's world is by turns hilarious and profoundly moving,

bawdy, and completely absorbing. It brings together two cities

that barely know each other-the hedonistic Mughal capital,

in which the brilliant emperor, Akbar the Great, wrestles

daily with questions of belief, desire, and the treachery of his

sons, and the equally sensual city of Florence, where Niccolo

Machiavelli takes a starring role.