Gemini : The Eighth Book of The House of Niccolo

With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. In 1462, Nicholas is a wealthy 21-year-old. His beloved wife has died. His stepchildren have locked him out of the family business. He and his private army are the target of multiple conspiracies. And both contenders for the throne of Cyprus, the brilliant Queen Carlotta and her charismatic, sexually ambivalent brother James, are demanding his support. Walking a tightrope of intrigue, Dunnett's hero juggles adversaries and allies, from the delectable courtesan Primaflora to the Mameluke commander Tzani-Bey al Ablak, a man of undiluted evil. Masterfully paced, alive with sensual delights, Race of Scorpions confirms Dorothy Dunnett as the grande dame of the genre.

With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.
Winter 1474 finds Nicholas exiled in the frozen port of Danzig, Poland. His Machiavellian exploits in Scotland have cost him friends and family—not to mention countless riches. As the ice melts, temptations arise. Will he assist the Muslim Prince Uzum Hasan against the Turks? Will he lose himself among the secret, scented gardens of the Crimea in the arms of a close friend's bride? As Nicholas pursues his future, his estranged wife, Gelis, seeks the truth about his past, only to discover the secret identity of his latest comrade in arms—a tantalizing ghost from the past poised to deal him the crowning death blow.
Shimmering with detail, alive with intrigue, Caprice and Rondo is Dorothy Dunnett's quicksilver evocation of a world where joy is fleeting, love is unexpected, and truth the rarest commodity of all.

Kirkus Reviews

The seventh volume (To Lie with Lions, 1996; The Unicorn Hunt, 1994, etc,) chronicling the extraordinary adventures of Nicholas de Fleury, a Machiavellian 15th-century merchant who is, as this hefty installment opens, still locked in battle with greedy, incompetent kings, a shadowy rival trading empire, and his estranged wife, Gelis, one of a very few figures who have been a match for him in terms of wit, passion, and cunning. Since Nicholasþs efforts to outwit those trying to destroy his influence have made much of Western Europe too hot for him, he turns eastward, toward Russia and the yet more mysterious lands beyond. Dunnett continues to demonstrate a distinctive ability to evoke not just the sights and sounds of the early Renaissance but, more importantly, its mindset; her characters are far more often moved by questions of respect, family (a particularly touchy subject for the mysterious Nicholas), and power than by more mundane emotional upheavals. By novelþs end, de Fleury, an engaging mix of ruthlessness and honor, seems closer to winning Gelis back, has helped preserve yet another kingdom, and has, for the time being, once more outflanked his foes. Those devoted to this unique series will be relieved to hear that it has not yet reached its conclusion.

with The Bravura Storytelling And Pungent Authenticity Of Detail She Brought To Her Acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, Grande Dame Of The Historical Novel, Presents The House Of Niccolò Series. The Time Is The 15th Century, When Intrepid Merchants Became The New Knighthood Of Europe. Among Them, None Is Bolder Or More Cunning Than Nicholas Vander Poele Of Bruges, The Good-natured Dyer's Apprentice Who Schemes And Swashbuckles His Way To The Helm Of A Mercantile Empire.
      
the Year 1464 Finds Nicholas Back In Venice. Plagued By Enemies Bent On Dissolving His Assets And Smearing His Character, He Sets Sail For Africa, Legendary Location Of The Fountain Of Youth, Home To A Descendant Of Sheba And Solomon, And The Source Of Gold In Such Abundance That Men Prefer To Barter In Shells. He Will Learn Firsthand The Brutality And Grandeur Of The Dark Continent, From The Horror Of The Slave Trade To The Austere Nobility Of Islamic Timbuktu. He Will Discover, Too, The Charms Of The Beautiful Gelis Van Borselen--a Woman Whose Passion For Nicholas Is Rivaled Only By Her Desire To Punish Him For His Role In Her Sister S Death. Erotic And Lush With Detail, Scales Of Gold Embraces The Complexity Of The Renaissance, Where Mercantile Adventure Couples With More Personal Quests Behind The Silken Curtains Of The Age Of Discovery.

publishers Weekly

from The Glassworks Of Murano To The Commercial Hub Of Timbuktu--and Through Fearsome Peril On Land And Sea--entrepreneurship, Religion, Gold Fever, Friendship And Revenge Fuel This Rich Historical Romance From A Masterful Raconteur. In 1464, Adventurer And Merchant Banker Nicholas Van Der Pole (hero Of Three Previous Dunnett Novels) Returns To Venice To Find His Financial Empire In Jeopardy Due To The Crusades And The Onslaught Of Powerful, Unscrupulous Competitors. Closely Guarding The Specifics Of His Mission, Nicholas Sets Out For Africa And Its Gold Trade, Taking With Him His Closest Friend Loppe, Guide And Former Slave; Father Godscalc, A Would-be Missionary To Ethiopia; Diniz, His Impetuous Young Cousin; And Gelis Van Borselen, A Strong, Brilliant Woman Who Blames Nicholas For The Death Of Her Sister. Relying On Nicholas's Unflappability, His Instinct For Leadership And Especially His Ever-calculating Intelligence, The Unlikely Group Make Their Way Deep Into The Continent's Perilous, Uncharted Interior. Moving Briskly From Thick Jungles To Barren Deserts To Opulent Salons Throughout Europe, Dunnett ( Race Of Scorpions ) Fills Each Page With Wit And Winning Detail. (june)

With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolo series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.

Scotland, 1468: a nation at the edge of Europe, a civilization on the threshold of the Modern Age. Merchants, musicians, politicians, and pageantry fill the court of King James III. In its midst, Nicholas seeks to avenge his bride's claim that she carries the bastard of his archenemy, Simon St. Pol. When she flees before Nicholas can determine whether or not the rumored child is his own—or exists at all—Nicholas gives chase. So begins the deadly game of cat and mouse that will lead him from the infested cisterns of Cairo to the misted canals of Venice at carnival. Breathlessly paced, sparkling with wit. The Unicorn Hunt confirms Dorothy Dunnett as the genre's finest practitioner.

Publishers Weekly

Praised for her historical novels (King Hereafter, the Francis of Lymond series), the prolific Dunnett continues with this crisp and dashing tale of venture and misadventure, the second volume of a monumental 15th century sequence. In Niccolo Rising, Nicholas married the middle-aged widow Marian Charetty, head of a lucrative dyeworks in Bruges. Now, plucky 19-year-old Nicholas, fleeing his bitter foe Simon de Pol, journeys via Florencewhere he gets funding from the Medicisto the East. There he hopes to trade with the Emperor of Trebizond. Thus, the setting moves to the land of the fabled Golden Fleeceunderscoring the title, which refers to the wool merchant's star sign, Ariesand the plot thickens briskly. Marian's nymphet daughter Catherine is ensnared by sea-prince Pagano Doria, who is working secretly for the formidable Simon in his quest to wrest control of the House of Charetty. Doria and Nicholas race each other's galleys and meet in hasty skirmishes. The invading Turks pose a further threat. But the seductive Princess Violante, in diaphanous deshabille, offers Nicholas protectionand much more. Steeped in Byzantine luxury, pageantry and intrigue, this lengthy, complex narrative shows Dunnett at her dextrous best. History Book Club alternate. (July)

"The year is 1471; the time, the dawn of the modern era and the Age of Exploration; the location, both the palaces and the wild places of Europe; and the man, Nicholas de Fleury - a former dyer's apprentice whose innate qualities of intelligence, audacity, and determination have propelled him to the very summit of economic power and political influence.". "No novelist matches Dorothy Dunnett's skill in bringing to life the vigorous, innovative spirit of the fifteenth century, and no one has ever created a character who epitomizes that period more perfectly than her "Niccolo." In the five previous books of this series - synopsized in an introduction to this volume - Nicholas has accumulated a vast fortune, a private army, a network of allies and informants, and a formidable list of enemies. At the end of The Unicorn Hunt, the novel that precedes To Lie with Lions, he wrests his little son Jordan from his estranged wife, Gelis, and sails off into the Venetian night. To Lie with Lions opens several months later, as Nicholas reappears with the boy in Marseilles, draws his wife back to his side, and is soon caught up in the intrigues of the French, Scottish, and Burgundian courts, all vying for the services his money and genius can provide. He and Gelis, passionately at odds since their wedding night, engage in a no-holds-barred contest for control of their son and of their mutual destiny. Their deadly serious "game" changes the lives of everyone in their orbit and takes Nicholas from Scotland and the frozen volcanic wastes of the north to the easternmost limits of Europe: Cyprus, kingdom of James de Lusignan, friend and foe of his youth.". "As the rivalry of husband and wife is played out in the quicksands of Renaissance politics, the feudal civilization in which they were born is slowly giving way to the modern understanding that commerce, not religion, makes the world turn - that it is entrepreneurs like Nicholas and Gelis, rather than the kings and the prelates, who have the greatest power to shape the course of history. So deft is Dorothy Dunnett at re-creating the sights and sensations of this long-gone world that this brilliant history lesson becomes the invisible but all-pervasive subtext of a romantic story that twists and turns through relationships both sublime and tragic, in fabulously rendered settings of cinematic vividness."--BOOK JACKET. Scotland, 1477: Nicholas de Fleury, former banker and merchant, has re-appeared in the land that, four years earlier, he had brought very close to ruin in the course of an intense commercial and personal war with secret enemies—and, indeed, with his clever wife Gelis. Now the opportunity for redemption is at hand, but Nicholas soon finds himself pursuing his objectives amid a complex, corrosive power struggle centering on the Scottish royal family but closely involving the powerful merchants of Edinburgh, the gentry, the clergy, the English (ever seeking an excuse to pounce on their neighbor to the north), the French, the Burgundians. His presence soon draws Gelis and their son Jodi to Scotland, as well as Nicholas's companions and subordinates in many a past endeavor—Dr. Tobias and his wife Clémence, Mick Crackbene, John le Grant, and Andro Wodman among them. Here, too, Nicholas meets again with others who have had an influence, for good or evil, in his life: King James III of Scotland and his rebellious siblings; the St. Pols: Jordan, Simon, and young Henry; Mistress Bel of Cuthilgurdy and David de Salmeton; Anselm Adorne and Kathi his niece. Caught up in, and sometimes molding, the course of great events, Nicholas exhibits by turns the fierce silence with which he masks his secrets, and the explosive, willful gaiety that binds men, women, and children to him. And as the secrets of his birth and heritage come to light, Nicholas has to decide whether he desires to establish a future in Scotland for himself and his family, and a home for his descendants. Gemini brings to a dazzling conclusion Dorothy Dunnett's House of Niccolò series (synopsized in this volume), in which this peerless novelist has vividly re-created the dramatic, flamboyant world of the early Renaissance in historical writing of scrupulous authenticity and in the entrancing portrait of her visionary hero. Now, in a book infused with wit and poetry, emotion and humor, action and mystery, she brings Nicholas de Fleury at last to choose his heart's home, where he can exercise all his skills as an advisor to kings and statesmen, as a husband, a father, and a leader of men—and where, perhaps, we will discern a connection between him and that other remarkable personality, Francis Crawford, whose exploits Lady Dunnett recorded so memorably in The Lymond Chronicles.

With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.
     Niccolò Rising, Book One of the series, finds us in Bruges, 1460. Jousting is the genteel pastime, and successful merchants are, of necessity, polyglot. Street smart, brilliant at figures, adept at the subtleties of diplomacy and the well-timed untruth, Dunnett's hero rises from wastrel to prodigy in a breathless adventure that wins him the hand of the strongest woman in Bruges and the hatred of two powerful enemies. From a riotous and potentially murderous carnival in Flanders, to an avalanche in the Alps and a pitched battle on the outskirts of Naples, Niccolò Rising combines history, adventure, and high romance in the tradition stretching from Alexandre Dumas to Mary Renault.

Library Journal

Dunnett has chosen the 15th-century Low Countries as the setting for her new historical series. The four-page list of characters announces the panoply of individuals, many based on historical persons. The fictional Claus, later Niccolo, is an apprentice at the Bruges branch of the Charetty company, run by the widowed owner. Claus is an engima, seemingly a buffoon getting into scrapes with Felix, the Charetty heir, but also capable of initiating a courier service in connection with the Charetty commercial and mercenary ventures. In an era of economic and political intrigue, Claus makes the most of all opportunitiesromantic and business. The action is swift; major and peripheral characters are well developed; and settings and events are interestingly depicted. The unresolved plots leave the door open for a sequel. Ellen Kaye Stoppel, Drake Univ. Law Lib., Des Moines

With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.

In 1461, Nicholas is in Florence. Backed by none other than Cosimo de' Medici, he will sail the Black Sea to Trebizond, last outpost of Byzantium, and the last jewel missing from the crown of the Ottoman Empire. But trouble lies ahead. Nicholas's stepdaughter--at the tender age of thirteen--has eloped with his rival in trade: a Machiavellian Genoese who races ahead of Nicholas, sowing disaster at every port. And time is of the essence: Trebizond may fall to the Turks at any moment. Crackling with wit, breathtakingly paced, The Spring of the Ram is a pyrotechnic blend of scholarship and narrative shimmering with the scents, sounds, colors, and combustible emotions of the 15th century.

The fifth installment in Dunnett's fascinating saga of audacious, brilliant Flemish adventurer Nicholas van der Poele opens in 1478, as Nicholas, still reeling from the shock of his bride's wedding-night revelation that she is pregnant by his sworn enemy, embarks on building a new empire in Scotland.

With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. The year 1464 finds Nicholas back in Venice. Plagued by enemies bent on dissolving his assets and smearing his character, he sets sail for Africa, legendary location of the Fountain of Youth, home to a descendant of Sheba and Solomon, and the source of gold in such abundance that men prefer to barter in shells. He will learn firsthand the brutality and grandeur of the Dark Continent, from the horror of the slave trade to the austere nobility of Islamic Timbuktu. He will discover, too, the charms of the beautiful Gelis van Borselen--a woman whose passion for Nicholas is rivaled only by her desire to punish him for his role in her sister s death. Erotic and lush with detail, Scales of Gold embraces the complexity of the Renaissance, where mercantile adventure couples with more personal quests behind the silken curtains of the Age of Discovery. In this first book of The House of Niccolò series, the author of the Lymond Chronicles introduces a new hero, Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges.Niccolò Rising, Book One of the series, finds us in Bruges, 1460. Jousting is the genteel pastime, and successful merchants are, of necessity, polyglot. Street smart, brilliant at figures, adept at the subtleties of diplomacy and the well-timed untruth, Dunnett's hero rises from wastrel to prodigy in a breathless adventure that wins him the hand of the strongest woman in Bruges and the hatred of two powerful enemies. From a riotous and potentially murderous carnival in Flanders, to an avalanche in the Alps and a pitched battle on the outskirts of Naples, Niccolò Rising combines history, adventure, and high romance in the tradition stretching from Alexandre Dumas to Mary Renault. In this first book of The House ofNiccol series, the author of the Lymond Chronicles introduces a new hero,Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccol series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges. Niccol Rising, Book One of the series, finds us in Bruges, 1460. Jousting is the genteel pastime, and successful merchants are, of necessity, polyglot. Street smart, brilliant at figures, adept at the subtleties of diplomacy and the well-timed untruth, Dunnett's hero rises from wastrel to prodigy in a breathless adventure that wins him the hand of the strongest woman in Bruges and the hatred of two powerful enemies. From a riotous and potentially murderous carnival in Flanders, to an avalanche in the Alps and a pitched battle on the outskirts of Naples, Niccol Rising combines history, adventure, and high romance in the tradition stretching from Alexandre Dumas to Mary Renault. With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccol series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. Winter 1474 finds Nicholas exiled in the frozen port of Danzig, Poland. His Machiavellian exploits in Scotland have cost him friends and family--not to mention countless riches. As the ice melts, temptations arise. Will he assist the Muslim Prince Uzum Hasan against the Turks? Will he lose himself among the secret, scented gardens of the Crimea in the arms of a close friend's bride? As Nicholas pursues his future, his estranged wife, Gelis, seeks the truth about his past, only to discover the secret identity of his latest comrade in arms--a tantalizing ghost from the past poised to deal him the crowning death blow. Shimmering with detail, alive with intrigue, Caprice and Rondo is Dorothy Dunnett's quicksilver evocation of a world where joy is fleeting, love is unexpected, and truth the rarest commodity of all. With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire.Winter 1474 finds Nicholas exiled in the frozen port of Danzig, Poland. His Machiavellian exploits in Scotland have cost him friends and family--not to mention countless riches. As the ice melts, temptations arise. Will he assist the Muslim Prince Uzum Hasan against the Turks? Will he lose himself among the secret, scented gardens of the Crimea in the arms of a close friend's bride? As Nicholas pursues his future, his estranged wife, Gelis, seeks the truth about his past, only to discover the secret identity of his latest comrade in arms--a tantalizing ghost from the past poised to deal him the crowning death blow.Shimmering with detail, alive with intrigue, Caprice and Rondo is Dorothy Dunnett's quicksilver evocation of a world where joy is fleeting, love is unexpected, and truth the rarest commodity of all. With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccol series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. The year is 1471. Within the circus of statecraft, where the lions of Burgundy, Cyprus, England, and Venice stalk and snarl, Nicholas wields a valued whip. Having wrested his little son Jordan from his estranged wife, Gelis, he embarks on the greatest business scheme of his life-- beginning with a journey to Iceland. But while Nicholas confronts merchant knights, polar bears, and the frozen volcanic wastelands of the North, a greater challenge the vengeful Gelis, whose secrets threaten to topple all Nicholas has achieved. Here is Dorothy Dunnett at her best. Robustly paced, prodigiously detailed, To Lie with Lions renders the quicksands of Renaissance politics as well as the turnings of the human soul, from love to hate and back. Release date: March 30, 1999 With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolò series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. Niccolò Rising, Book One of the series, finds us in Bruges, 1460. Jousting is the genteel pastime, and successful merchants are, of necessity, polyglot. Street smart, brilliant at figures, adept at the subtleties of diplomacy and the well-timed untruth, Dunnett's hero rises from wastrel to prodigy in a breathless adventure that wins him the hand of the strongest woman in Bruges and the hatred of two powerful enemies. From a riotous and potentially murderous carnival in Flanders, to an avalanche in the Alps and a pitched battle on the outskirts of Naples, Niccolò Rising combines history, adventure, and high romance in the tradition stretching from Alexandre Dumas to Mary Renault. With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccol series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. In 1461, Nicholas is in Florence. Backed by none other than Cosimo de' Medici, he will sail the Black Sea to Trebizond, last outpost of Byzantium, and the last jewel missing from the crown of the Ottoman Empire. But trouble lies ahead. Nicholas's stepdaughter -- at the tender age of thirteen -- has eloped with his rival in trade: a Machiavellian Genoese who races ahead of Nicholas, sowing disaster at every port. And time is of the essence: Trebizond may fall to the Turks at any moment. Crackling with wit, breathtakingly paced, The Spring of the Ram is a pyrotechnic blend of scholarship and narrative shimmering with the scents, sounds, colors, and combustible emotions of the 15th century. With the bravura storytelling and pungent authenticity of detail she brought to her acclaimed Lymond Chronicles, Dorothy Dunnett, grande dame of the historical novel, presents The House of Niccolo series. The time is the 15th century, when intrepid merchants became the new knighthood of Europe. Among them, none is bolder or more cunning than Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, the good-natured dyer's apprentice who schemes and swashbuckles his way to the helm of a mercantile empire. Scotland, 1468: a nation at the edge of Europe, a civilization on the threshold of the Modern Age. Merchants, musicians, politicians, and pageantry fill the court of King James III. In its midst, Nicholas seeks to avenge his bride's claim that she carries the bastard of his archenemy, Simon St. Pol. When she flees before Nicholas can determine whether or not the rumored child is his ownor exists at allNicholas gives chase. So begins the deadly game of cat and mouse that will lead him from the infested cisterns of Cairo to the misted canals of Venice at carnival. Breathlessly paced, sparkling with wit. The Unicorn Hunt confirms Dorothy Dunnett as the genre's finest practitioner. "Winter, 1474: In the frozen port of Danzig, Nicholas de Fleury, one-time soldier, merchant, and banker to kings, leads his raffish companions on frivolous, drunken adventures that give little indication of the dark and complex events that have brought him among them - his activities as a spy; his shifts of allegiance from the Duke of Burgundy to the Holy Roman Emperor, and back; the mischief-making at the court of Scotland so vicious that his disgusted friends cast him into justifiable exile.". "Now, as the ice melts in Danzig, Nicholas must decide his own future: Will he make a new life working for the Italian colonies of the Levant? Or assist the great Muslim prince Uzum Hasan in his stance against the Turks? Will he remain in Poland, trading and fighting, or lose himself in the secret, scented gardens of the Crimea? In fact, he could appear to be doing any or all of these things while engaged in his private search for a lost fortune in gold..."--BOOK JACKET. Now bereft of family, friends, and riches, the exiled Nicholas de Fleury winters in Danzig, Poland--wenching and tippling with a notorious pirate. But as the harbor ice melts, new temptations call him eastward. Before long, Nicholas helps a Muslim prince against a Turkish foe. Soon the seductive spell of the Crimea's scented gardens lures him into the arms of another's bride. If only Nicholas knew the shocking truth about his trusted comrade-in-arms GEMINI represents the final appearance of Nicholas de Fleury, who opened this series as a carefree, clumsy 18 year old apprentice in Flanders. Now he is in his thirties. The culmination of this amazing series sees Niccolo face his toughest battle yet, against an enemy who will tax every skill he has acquired over the course of the last few years...� The sixth volume in the popular The House of Niccolo series, this vivid novel of the 15th century centers on Nicholas vander Poele who, in 1471, is acclaimed by all the great courts of Europe, but whose personal life is tumultuous. He and his passionate rival--his wife--embark on a deadly competition for control of their mutual destiny. "January 1474, and Niccolo has been shunned by all who know him after revelations of his murderous mischief-making. But Niccolo's talents are too great to be squandered, and a subtle political dance ensues as rivals in Poland, Venice and Persia bid for his services in trade and war and diplomacy." -- Provided by publisher In this conclusion to the House of Niccolò series, Nicholas de Fleury reappears in Scotland, "and as the secrets of his birth and heritage come to light, Nicholas has to decide whether he desires to establish a future in Scotland for himself and his family, and a home for his descendants."--Jacket Spring 1471: Europe's leaders anxiously await the outcome of the conflict in England between the Houses of York and Lancaster. The armies of France and Burgundy wait on opposing banks of the River Somme. Caught up in the political manoeuvrings is merchant and master of secrets, Nicholas de Fleury. The fifth title in the "House of Niccolo" sequence, recreating the perilous world of trade, war and banking in Renaissance Europe. Niccolo has returned to Venice from Africa - richer, wiser yet ever unpredictable. He journeys to Scotland, closer at hand to the secrets of his birth. This is the third book in the *House of Niccolo* series. Set in 15th-century Cyprus, this novel continues the saga of Nicholas van der Poel, international mercenary who started out as a dyer's apprentice, as he plays for the highest stakes with the greatest super-powers in Europe. The fifth installment in the saga of Nicholas van der Poele, the Flemish adventurer who rises from obscurity to a position of power in 15th Century Europe. It begins with his bride's wedding night revelation that she is pregnant by his sworn enemy. By the author of Scales of Gold In 1471, As The Great Courts Of Europe Vie For His Wealth And Genius, Nicholas Vander Poele Faces The Ultimate Competition When His Wife, With Whom He Has Been At Odds Since Their Wedding Night, Vies For Control Of Their Mutual Destiny. Dorothy Dunnett. CATHERINE DE CHARETTY, having chosen a lover just after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (a festival highly regarded in Bruges), was much put out to learn that, at nearly thirteen, she did not possess all the required qualifications. In 1462, widowed twenty-one-year-old merchant/adventurer Niccolò and his private army become caught between warring factions--respectively led by Queen Carlotta and her brother, James--battling for control of Cyprus Eager to expand his commercial empire, ambitious merchant banker Nicholas van der Poele travels to Africa, followed by Gelis van Borselen, a determined young woman who blames Nicholas for her sister's death Street smart, and adept at the subtleties of diplomacy, the hero rises from wastrel to prodigy in a breathless adventure that wins him the hand of the most powerful woman in the city of Bruges FROM VENICE to Cathay, from Seville to the Gold Coast of Africa, men anchored their ships and opened their ledgers and weighed one thing against another as if nothing would ever change. Fifteenth-century adventurer Nicholas van der Poele discovers that his new bride is pregnant by his archenemy, builds a Scottish empire, and finds adventure throughout Europe and Egypt In fifteenth-century Europe, young Niccolo travels from Florence to Trevizond on the Black Sea, where the West and the Orient meet and where he finds both opportunity and danger