Charles would need watching; was Anne of Brittany up for the job?

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“Anne and Louis is a masterpiece that paints an extraordinary emotional and political vision of its times. Satisfying, educational, and hard to put down.”—D. Donovan, Midwest Book Review

Rozsa Gaston - Author

Anne and Louis
Passion and Politics in Early Renaissance France: The First Years of Anne of Brittany’s Marriage to Louis XII (
Book Two of the Anne of Brittany Series)

Rozsa Gaston

Renaissance Editions: 2018

978-0-9847906-8-5 (pbk)              $14.95  Available on Amazon and Ingram

978-0-9847906-9-2 (ebook)          $2.99     Available on Amazon

www.renaissanceeditions.com

Anne and Louis: Passion and Politics in Early Renaissance France: The First Years of Anne of Brittany’s Marriage to Louis XII will delight readers of historical fiction who want their dramas firmly rooted in facts. This audience—especially those who enjoyed the first

AnneLouis-EBOOK 9-21-18Louis XII and Anne of Brittany by Francois-Seraphin Delpech

book in the Anne of Brittany series—will find a compelling continuation of the saga in this story of Anne, the Duchess of Brittany, who has a country to run even as her lover Louis has a controversial annulment to pursue in order to fulfill his romance…

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Anne and Charles: Passion and Politics in Late Medieval France

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Kirkus review blurbANNE AND CHARLES

Passion and Politics in Late Medieval France: The Story of Anne of Brittany’s Marriage to Charles VIII

Book One of the Anne of Brittany Series

by Rozsa Gaston

Publication date: Jan. 22, 2018
Publisher: Renaissance Editions
357 pps.
eBook, paperback, audiobook by Tantor Media coming spring 2018

A historically sharp and dramatically stirring love story. — Kirkus Reviews

A historical dramatization of the 15th-century marriage between Anne of Brittany and Charles VIII of France.

Upon the death of Anne’s father, Duke Francis II, she becomes the ruler of Brittany at the tender age of 11. Determined not to have her authority usurped by meddling advisers or foreign powers, she searches for a suitable husband whose allegiance will bring peace and security to Brittany. She’s offered protection—as well as condolences—by King Charles VIII of France, but she rejects his offer as an imperialist scheme to gain…

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The Impeccable Hauteur of Jacqueline de Ribes

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Rozsa Gaston - Author

The Impeccable Hauteur of Jacqueline de Ribes
By Rozsa Gaston for The Westchester Guardian, Dec. 10, 2015

“Elegance. It’s an attitude. A frame of mind. An intuition, a refusal, a rigor, a research, a knowledge. The attitude of elegance is also a way of behaving.”—Jacqueline de Ribes

Jacqueline de Ribes by Victor Skrebneski, 1983 Jacqueline de Ribes in her own desgin, 1983. Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Photograph by Victor Skrebneski, ©Skrebneski Photograph, 1983

Gift yourself this holiday season with a visit to see Jacqueline de Ribes: The Art of Style, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s latest exhibit. The impeccable hauteur of Parisian designer Jacqueline de Ribes is on display now through February 21, 2016 in a dazzling exhibit featuring 60 haute couture and ready-to-wear ensembles from her personal archive, dating from 1962 on. The clothes are gorgeous, unfussy, and vibrantly colorful. But the exhibit’s focus on Jacqueline de Ribes’ life and imprint…

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Sense of Touch banner shotSense of Touch is burning up the Hot & Trending list of Kindle Scout nominations for the second week of its one month campaign to receive a publishing contract. Why?

Readers want to know more about her.

Anne of Brittany is a fascinating historical figure about whom almost nothing has been written in English. Her dates? 1477-1514. She reigned as Queen of France after Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122-1204) and before Catherine de Medici (1519-1589).

Douleur du Roi sans Fils by Jean Pichore, c. 1503

Douleur du Roi sans Fils by Jean Pichore, c. 1503

This week I uncovered a powerful and poignant painting of her with husband Louis VII by court painter Jean Pichore. The name of the painting says it all: Douleur du Roi sans Fils. Translation: Sorrow of the King without a Son.

Before you feel sorry for Anne of Brittany, don’t.

Claude of France

Claude of France, eldest daughter of Anne of Brittany and Louis XII

She may not have brought a son to adulthood, but she succeeded with two daughters, Claude of France, and Renée of France. Claude of France married Francis I, known as the Renaissance King, and produced Henry II, husband of Catherine de Medici.

Anne’s Breton blood found its way into the French royal bloodline through her daughter, not her sons. Her leadership skills, authority and self-confidence have informed French women ever since. Long live Anne of Brittany, vive Anne de Bretagne!

Speaking of sons, she had many. All of them either stillborn, dead hours after birth, weeks after birth, or by age three.

Let’s take a look at the full Jean Pichore painting of Anne of Brittany with second husband Louis XII.

We see Louis XII, King of France, looking sad. The man behind him looks at the queen with a recriminating expression, as if to say, “Why can’t you produce a son for France?”

We see Anne of Brittany, Queen of France looking regal, confident, not sad at all. Defiant, in fact. Why?

She’s pointing to their daughter, Claude of France. “What’s wrong with the daughter I gave you?” she appears to be saying.Sadness of a King without a Son, Jean Pichore, c. 1503

Sadness of the King without a Son, Jean Pichore, c. 1503

Who’s in the hot seat here? Anne.

Who’s the power on the throne? Anne.

Who’s appealing to whom? Louis and his court are appealing to Anne.

Who’s the boss? Anne.  She was also a loving and deeply beloved wife to both of her husbands, Charles VIII of France before Louis, and Louis XII of France.

The more I learn about this French Renaissance queen, the more I fall in love with her.

Anne of Brittany is an amazing historical role model for girls. Please nominate my book about her here.

Keep Sense of Touch on Kindle Scout’s Hot & Trending list until campaign ends Oct. 20. It’s FREE to vote and if Sense of Touch is selected for publication you will receive the eBook free.

I can’t wait to share more with you about Anne of Brittany.

Warmly,

Author Rozsa Gaston

Sense of Touch: Love and Duty at Anne of Brittany’s Court

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Anne of Brittany by Jean Bourdichon, courtesy gallica.BnF.fr Anne of Brittany by Jean Bourdichon, courtesy gallica.BnF.fr

Sense of Touch is coming soon. My seventh and latest novel is based on the life of Anne of Brittany, twice Queen of France. Her dates? 1477-1514.

Sense of Touch has been chosen by Kindle Scout for a 30-day pilot program to see if readers get interested in this story. If the book receives enough nominations by Oct. 19, 2015, it will be chosen for publication by Kindle Press. That’s a very big deal. Why? Worldwide distribution.

Here’s the link to nominate Sense of Touch for publication. It’s free, and if Sense of Touch gets picked up for publication, you will receive a complimentary advance copy. I will include your name on my acknowledgments page if you let me know you voted. Thank you.

Why am I excited about Anne of Brittany? This remarkable woman, Duchess of Brittany in her own…

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Budapest Romance is a “thoughtful romance.”—Publishers Weekly

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Budapest RomancePublishers Weekly weighs in on my Dec. 2014 latest release Budapest Romance in its June 22, 2015 issue:

“The traditional healing properties and beauty of the thermal spa baths still enjoyed throughout Budapest are the true stars of this thoughtful romance.”—Publishers Weekly

http://publishersweekly.com/978-1-4801-4063-9

Budapest Romance is now available on all major online retail sites. Thank you, Publishers Weekly, for this greatest of all honors, a review in the publishing industry’s most respected news magazine.

Readers—for those of you who read and post a short review of my tender romance set in Budapest’s thermal bath spas, I will be delighted to send you an eBook thank you gift of your choice of any of my other books.

Enjoy and stay playful. —Rozsa Gaston

Széchenyi Baths entrance, Budapest;  the site of Kati and Jan's first kiss in Budapest Romance

Széchenyi Baths entrance, Budapest; the site of Kati’s and Jan’s first kiss in Budapest Romance

There’s only one way to dine alone—with panache.

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Dining alone with panache is the subject of my June 11 article for The Westchester Guardian. Enjoy and bon appetit!Dining Alone with Panache 6-11-15

How to Be An Unconventional Beauty

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Rozsa Gaston - Author

How to Be An Unconventional Beauty

From The Westchester Guardian, 5-28-15

Rozsa Gaston headshot.jpgBy Rozsa Gaston
Striking. Breathtaking. Someone with a certain je ne sais quoi (a certain something, literally, “I don’t know what,” in French). What does that sort of person have and does it really boil down to beauty? I say no. What it boils down to is attitude.
Let’s talk prom for a moment. Or next month’s graduation ceremonies. Perhaps you’re going away to college for the first time this fall. How are you going to carry off your own special style of being you?
Not a beauty? Neither are most of us. But why not decide right here, right now, that you are? You can practice on prom night, then you have the entire summer to dress-rehearse your new attitude about yourself before shipping off to school at the end of August. Fake it till you make it…

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