The Dark Lady's Mask
Shakespeare in Love meets Shakespeare’s Sister in this novel of
England’s first professional woman poet and her collaboration and love affair
with William Shakespeare. London, 1593. Aemilia Bassano Lanier is beautiful and
accomplished, but her societal conformity ends there. She frequently
cross-dresses to escape her loveless marriage and to gain freedoms only men
enjoy, but a chance encounter with a ragged, little-known poet named
Shakespeare changes everything. Aemilia grabs at the chance to pursue her long-held
dream of writing and the two outsiders strike up a literary bargain. They leave
plague-ridden London for Italy, where they begin secretly writing comedies
together and where Will falls in love with the beautiful country — and with
Aemilia, his Dark Lady. Their Italian idyll, though, cannot last and their
collaborative affair comes to a devastating end. Will gains fame and fortune
for their plays back in London and years later publishes the sonnets mocking
his former muse. Not one to stand by in humiliation, Aemilia takes up her own
pen in her defense and in defense of all women. The Dark Lady’s Mask gives
voice to a real Renaissance woman in every sense of the word. The Dark Lady’s
Mask will be published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in April 2016 to coincide
with the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death.
Buy Links: Amazon (Kindle) | Amazon (Hardcover) | Amazon UK |B&N
Advance Praise
“An exquisite portrait of a Renaissance woman pursuing her
artistic destiny in England and Italy, who may — or may not — be Shakespeare’s
Dark Lady.” — MARGARET GEORGE, internationally bestselling author of
Elizabeth I
“Perfectly chosen details and masterful characterization bring to
life this swiftly moving, elegant story. As atmospheric and compelling as it is
wise, The Dark Lady’s Mask is a gem not to be missed.” — LYNN CULLEN,
bestselling author of Mrs. Poe and Twain’s End
“Mary Sharratt’s enchanting new novel, The Dark Lady’s Mask, is a
richly imagined, intensely romantic and meticulously researched homage to
lauded poet, Aemilia Bassano Lanyer, an accomplished woman of letters who many
believe to be Shakespeare’s Eternal Muse. Sharratt unfolds a captivating tale,
a compelling ‘what if ’ scenario, of a secret union that fed the creative fires
of England’s greatest poet and playwright.” — KATHLEEN KENT,
bestselling author of The Heretic’s Daughter
“Mary Sharratt is a magician. This novel transports the reader to
Elizabethan England with a tale of the bard and his love that is nothing short
of amazing. Absorbing, emotional, historically fascinating. A work of marvelous
ingenuity!” — M.J. ROSE, New York Times bestselling author of The Witch
of Painted Sorrows
“I enjoyed this exciting fantasy of Shakespeare’s ‘dark lady.’
There was adventure, betrayal, resilience, and above all, the fun notion that
Shakespeare might have had far more than a muse to help him create his
wonderful plays.” —KARLEEN KOEN, bestselling author of Dark Angels and
Before Versailles
“Through the story of Aemilia Bassano, a talented musician and
poet, Mary Sharratt deftly tackles issues of religious and gender inequality in
a time of brutal conformity. The Dark Lady’s Mask beautifully depicts the
exhilaration and pitfalls of subterfuge, a gifted woman’s precarious reliance
on the desires of powerful men, and the toll paid by unrecognized artistic
collaborators. Resonant and moving.” —MITCHELL JAMES KAPLAN, author of
By Fire, By Water
“In The Dark Lady’s Mask, Mary Sharratt seduces us with a most
tantalizing scenario —that the bold, cross-dressing poet and feminist writer
Aemilia Bassano is Shakespeare’s mysterious muse, the Dark Lady. Romantic,
heart-breaking, and rich in vivid historical detail and teeming Elizabethan
life, the novel forms an elegant tapestry of the complexities, joys, and
sorrows of being both a female and an artist.” —KAREN ESSEX, author of
Leonardo’s Swans and Dracula in Love
“Mary Sharratt has created an enchanting Elizabethan heroine, a
musician, the orphaned daughter of a Jewish Italian refugee who must hide her
heritage for her safety. Taken up by powerful men for her beauty, Amelia has
wit and daring and poetry inside her that will make her a match for young Will
Shakespeare himself and yet she must hide behind many masks to survive in a
world where women have as much talent as men but little power.” —
STEPHANIE COWELL, author of Claude & Camille: A Novel of Monet
"Prepare to be swept away by Mary Sharratt's latest foray
into historical fiction. Inspired by the true story of poet, Aemilia Bassano,
THE DARK LADY'S MASK explores her relationship with William Shakespeare. Richly
detailed and well researched, this lush tale brings Aemilia out of the shadows
of history and let's her emerge as one of the founding mothers of literature.
Drama, intrigue, and romance will have readers racing through this brilliant
celebration of the muse." — PAMELA KLINGER-HORN, Sales &
Outreach Coordinator, Excelsior Bay Books
Author Info
MARY
SHARRATT is an American writer who has lived in the Pendle region of
Lancashire, England, for the past seven years. The author of the critically
acclaimed novels Summit Avenue, The Real Minerva, and The Vanishing Point,
Sharratt is also the co-editor of the subversive fiction anthology Bitch Lit, a
celebration of female antiheroes, strong women who break all the rules.
Author Links:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
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