Since reading Kate Forsyth’s Brothers Grimm-inspired The Wild Girl last year, I have been looking forward to Bitter Greens, another novel with a Grimm connection. I’m sure most of us know, or have at least heard of, the fairy tale Rapunzel. Although this fairy tale was included in the Grimm Brothers’ 1812 collection, Children’s and Household Tales, it was actually based on a much earlier story, Persinette, which was published in 1698 and written by a woman called Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force. In Bitter Greens, Kate Forsyth combines a re-telling of the Rapunzel story with a fascinating account of the life of Charlotte-Rose.
The novel begins in 1697, on the day that Charlotte-Rose is banished from the court of Louis XIV and sent to a convent. With her sharp tongue, sense of humour and spirited personality, it seems that Charlotte-Rose has been the cause of too much scandal for the Sun King’s liking and is now receiving her punishment. After the lively and opulent court of Versailles, Charlotte-Rose finds it very difficult to adapt to life in a strict and austere nunnery. The only thing that makes her days bearable is her friendship with one of the nuns, Soeur Seraphina, who entertains her with a story about a little Italian girl called Margherita…
Accused of stealing a handful of bitter greens from a witch’s garden, Margherita’s parents are forced to make a bargain with the witch: she will not report them for the theft if they agree to hand over their daughter as soon as she reaches the age of seven. And so Margherita finds herself taken from her parents and locked in a high tower by Lake Garda – a tower which can only be accessed when Margherita throws her long red hair from the window to form a ladder.
Margherita’s story unfolds slowly, a few chapters at a time, and alternates with the story of Charlotte-Rose who is looking back on her life, her love affairs and her time at court. There is also a third strand to the novel and in this we learn the history of Selena Leonelli, the witch of the fairy tale, who was once a Venetian courtesan known as ‘La Strega Bella’ and a model for the artist Titian. These three women lead lives which are in some ways very different but in others quite similar. Each has been touched by sadness and tragedy, but each woman proves herself to be strong and resilient in the end.
There’s just so much packed into this novel: the scandals and intrigues of the 17th century French court, a version of Rapunzel much darker and more compelling than the one I remember from my childhood, a vivid depiction of Renaissance Italy, magic and witchcraft, religious persecution, stories within stories, and much more. I was never bored, no matter which of the three women I was reading about. Charlotte-Rose is a wonderful character and I’m surprised that more authors of historical fiction haven’t used her as a subject for their novels. This is the first time I’ve had the pleasure of reading about her and I think it’s sad that she seems to have been largely forgotten by history.
Much as I loved Charlotte-Rose, though, I always found myself looking forward to returning to Margherita in her tower. She and Selena never felt quite as real to me as Charlotte-Rose did (which is maybe not surprising as they are supposed to be fairy tale characters, after all!) but I really enjoyed revisiting the Rapunzel story, which I hadn’t read or even thought about for such a long time. There were elements of fantasy and magical realism within Margherita’s tale that worked well alongside the more realistic narrative of Charlotte-Rose and I thought the balance was perfect. I loved Bitter Greens and would highly recommend both this book and The Wild Girl.
I read Bitter Greens as part of the Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tour. For more reviews, interviews and guest posts please see the tour schedule.
She Reads Novels 
This sounds lovely! Have you read “Zel” by Donna Jo Napoli? It also tells the story of Rapunzel. It’s a YA book but it is so well written that it has stayed with me ever since I first read it, ten or fifteen years ago…
No, I haven’t read Zel, but I’m intrigued now. I’ll have to investigate!
What a lovely imaginative sounding novel.
It is, especially the Margherita storyline!
I started reading this book two weeks ago, but then ran out of time and had to return it to the library. Now I am impatiently waiting to get another turn so that I can finish it. 🙂
Oh, I hate it when that happens! I hope you have a chance to finish it soon!
I loved both of these novels too, glad you enjoyed them.
I liked this one slightly more than The Wild Girl, but they’re both great!
I loved this one — and I need to get my hands on her previous book. I suspect I’ll be a slavish fan.
I’m glad you loved it too, Audra!
thanks – now on my list. Cheers
You’re welcome, Carole. Hope you enjoy it!
What a lovely review. This has been on my TBR for a while and now I feel I MUST read it. Great post.
Yes, you must! 🙂 I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
I’ve wanted to read this for ages, and now you’ve pushed it right up y list of reading priorities.
It’s a great book and I think you would probably enjoy it. 🙂
Rapunzel was one of my favorite fairy tales when I was little…I made me sister tell it to me over and over. And now this book combines the tale with history…how can I resist? 🙂 Thanks for the great review!
I loved Rapunzel when I was little too, though I had forgotten some of the details until I started reading this book. The other storyline, about Charlotte-Rose, was fascinating as well.
I really must get round to reading Kate Forsyth. I love the sound of this and The Wile Girl.
I know you enjoy fantasy and fairy tales, as well as history, so I think you would really like Kate Forsyth’s books. 🙂
I have heard of this title before, but did not draw the connection that it was a fairy tale retelling, which is one of my favorite things ever. I will look for both this and The Wild Girl (but first, The Wild Girl).
I’ve never been very interested in reading fairy tale retellings until recently when I’ve read a few great ones. Both of the Kate Forsyth books are wonderful!