Editorial Content for Marvelous
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Pedro Gonzales was born with hair all over his body. He is afflicted with a condition called hypertrichosis, which makes him look more like an animal than a human being. He was abandoned in front of a church when he was a baby, and the people who took him in has cared for him as their own.
It is 1547, and life on the island of Tenerife is difficult for Pedro, who is teased mercilessly by the children in his village. He spends much of his time on the beach, searching for shellfish to add to the food on the table and empty shells for Isabelle (one of his guardians) to make into jewelry and sell. One day, while out on his own and tucked away in his secret hiding spot, he is kidnapped by a slave broker and sold to King Henri II of France.
"Molly Greeley brings the period alive with vivid descriptions of time, place and characters.... Readers will be captivated by this unforgettable love story that is also about faith, hope and humanity."
Pedro, now known as “Monsieur Sauvage,” lives the rest of his life as a “possession” of royalty. While he never lacks for material things, he doesn’t get what he longs for the most --- respect and freedom. But he won’t be alone forever.
Queen Catherine de’ Medici, who is fascinated by Pedro, makes a deal with a trader who loses his fortune when his merchant ship sinks. She will wipe out his debts if his beautiful daughter, 17-year-old Catherine Raffelin, marries Pedro. This is all in the hopes that the two will mate and Pedro will produce more delightfully hairy “pets” to be shown off at court.
Pedro and Catherine, who has been christened “Madame Sauvage” by the royal courtiers, do indeed become a couple and have children, the majority of whom are hairy like their father. But they also, against all odds, fall in love and live together for almost 50 years.
Readers are transported back centuries to a time when people like Pedro were considered “oddities,” often “kept” by royalty and treated like pets. Acclaimed author Molly Greeley brings the period alive with vivid descriptions of time, place and characters.
Switching between the past and the present, and back again, MARVELOUS is told from the alternating points of view of “Monsieur Sauvage” and “Madame Sauvage.” At times heartwarming and heartbreaking, the book is based on actual events that occurred during the Renaissance. Readers will be captivated by this unforgettable love story that is also about faith, hope and humanity.
Teaser
1547: Pedro Gonzales, a young boy living on the island of Tenerife, understands that he is different from the other children in his village. He is mercilessly ridiculed for the hair covering his body from head to toe. When he is kidnapped off the beach near his home, he finds himself delivered by a slave broker into the dangerous and glamorous world of France’s royal court. Catherine de’ Medici is fascinated by Pedro and determined to find him a bride. Catherine Raffelin is a beautiful 17-year-old girl whose merchant father has fallen on hard times and offers up his daughter to Queen Catherine. The queen will pay his debts, and his daughter will marry Pedro. Catherine must learn to navigate this strange new world and the unusual man who is now her husband.
Promo
1547: Pedro Gonzales, a young boy living on the island of Tenerife, understands that he is different from the other children in his village. He is mercilessly ridiculed for the hair covering his body from head to toe. When he is kidnapped off the beach near his home, he finds himself delivered by a slave broker into the dangerous and glamorous world of France’s royal court. Catherine de’ Medici is fascinated by Pedro and determined to find him a bride. Catherine Raffelin is a beautiful 17-year-old girl whose merchant father has fallen on hard times and offers up his daughter to Queen Catherine. The queen will pay his debts, and his daughter will marry Pedro. Catherine must learn to navigate this strange new world and the unusual man who is now her husband.
About the Book
A mesmerizing novel set in the French royal court of Catherine de’ Medici during the Renaissance, which recreates the touching and surprising true story behind the Beauty and the Beast legend, from the acclaimed author of THE CLERGYMAN'S WIFE and THE HEIRESS.
1547: Pedro Gonzales, a young boy living on the island of Tenerife, understands that he is different from the other children in his village. He is mercilessly ridiculed for the hair covering his body from head to toe. When he is kidnapped off the beach near his home, he finds himself delivered by a slave broker into the dangerous and glamorous world of France’s royal court. There “Monsieur Sauvage,” as he is known, learns French, literature and sword fighting, becoming an attendant to the French King Henri II and a particular favorite of his queen, the formidable Catherine de’ Medici. Queen Catherine considers herself a collector of unusual people and is fascinated by Pedro…and determined to find him a bride.
Catherine Raffelin is a beautiful 17-year-old girl whose merchant father has fallen on hard times and offers up his daughter to Queen Catherine. The queen will pay his debts, and his daughter will marry Monsieur Sauvage.
Catherine meets Pedro for the first time on their wedding day. Barely recovered from the shock of her father’s betrayal, she soon finds herself christened “Madame Sauvage” by the royal courtiers, and must learn to navigate this strange new world, and the unusual man who is now her husband.
Gorgeously written, heartbreaking and hopeful, MARVELOUS is the portrait of a marriage, the story of a remarkable, resilient family, and an unforgettable reimagining of one of the world’s most beloved fairy tales.
Audiobook available, read by Ell Potter
