'The Madonna of the Almonds' by Marina Fiorato

The year is 1525. A gifted young artist, Bernardino Luini of the Da Vinci school, is commissioned to paint a religious fresco in the hills of Lombardy. His eye is caught by the beautiful Simonetta di Saronno, recently widowed by the Italian Wars.

Captivated by her beauty and her sadness Bernardino paints her likeness, immortalizing her as the Madonna in his famous work which can still be seen in the Sanctuary of Santa Maria delle Grazia in Saronno.

As the sittings progress artist and model fall in love, and Simonetta reciprocates Luini's genius by creating a work of art of her own. She makes a drink for her lover from the juice of almonds – still enjoyed to this day as Amaretto di Saronno.

But as the fresco and the liqueur near their completion the couple's affair distils into a heady brew of religious scandal which threatens their love; and ultimately their lives.

Beautiful Books will be launching their biggest ever marketing promotion to support Marina’s second novel:

• • Bound proof copy mailing to UK reading groups


• • National competition supported by airline Alitalia and luxury fragrance group Floris – the winner will enjoy an all-expenses trip to Saronno to view Luini’s frescoes in the church of Madonna dei Miracoli, and will receive a unique Madonna of the Almonds fragrance created exclusively by Floris


• • Nationwide reading group evenings hosted by Marina in association with Amaretto, in which reading groups around the country will get the opportunity to discuss the novel in person with the author


• • National launch of the novel in May in London in conjunction with the Italian embassy – 30 tickets to the launch reserved for UK booksellers


• • Bound reading copies now available to UK booksellers

To obtain your bound reading copy of The Madonna of the Almonds, or to apply for a ticket to the launch, contact Kat Josselyn at kat@beautiful-books.co.uk.

Read a review of the book here

'The Madonna of the Almonds' has been longlisted for the Prince Maurice Literary Prize, which is awarded to novels which take love as their central theme.