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Her journey, rich in historical authenticity and imaginative storytelling, offers insights that resonate across the centuries.\"—Christina Baker Kline, New York Times bestselling author of The Exiles\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFor readers of Hilary Mantel and Madeline Miller, a deeply engrossing work of biographical historical fiction—a tale about a woman of the Shakespeare family struggling to manage both her private grief and public danger.  \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAt the age of sixty-one, Judith Shakespeare, a midwife-apothecary and twin of the long-dead Hamnet, must flee provincial Stratford on horseback to avoid arrest for witchcraft. Her traveling companions are a zealous Puritan woman and child who have been displaced by civil war—the bloody seventeenth-century strife between Royalists and Roundheads. 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Within another year, she has become a beloved star at the famed Paris Opera. Her lovers include some of Europe's most powerful men and France's most beautiful women. Yet Julie is destined to die alone in a convent at the age of 33. Based on an extraordinary true story, this is an original, dazzling and witty novel - a compelling portrait of an unforgettable woman. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: 'times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU\"\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\"\u003e'I thought the book was utterly fascinating, dazzlingly original and inventive, and written with such wit and flair. the character of Julie is drawn so poignantly - what a woman!' 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Scenes sparkle with period details and sensory impressions: all spectacle and shimmer, all gesture and pose, Baroque mask and mirror and role-play. Gardiner does this very well. And her goddess fascinates.' \u003cem\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\" style=\"MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: 'times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan lang=\"EN-US\" style=\"FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: 'times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-ansi-language: EN-US\"\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\"\u003e'This is a wonderful story, made all the more gripping for being founded on truth. 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