Leonardo's swans - Karen Essex

Worldly and ambitious, Isabella d'Este is a legendary beauty and when she weds the Marquis of Mantua, all her dreams seem to come true. Superior in looks and intellect to her sister, the spirited but naive Beatrice, Isabella believes she is destined to rule the courts of Italy.

But her triumph is short-lived. When Beatrice is betrothed to Ludovico, the Duke of Milan, Isabella finds herself drawn to her sister's husband, a man as dangerous as he is charismatic. Locked in a fierce rivalry, the sisters fight for Ludovico's affections and for the larger prize, to be immortalized by his court painter, Leonardo da Vinci. Meanwhile Da Vinci fights a battle of his own, to escape the incessant pressure of his noble patrons.

But in a treacherous political climate, immortality through art becomes a luxury, and the two sisters must choose between loyalty and survival.