Almost all accounts of the Pazzi conspiracy --which almost killed Lorenzo de' Medici and did kill his brother Giuliano -- are pro-Medici, partly because Lorenzo ended up the winner and winners notoriously write history (or hire it done) and partly because Lorenzo went on to be a great cultural patron and, arguably, the pivot of peace in the Italian peninsula for a generation. However this book on the whole leans the other way. I had previously understood that Medici control of Florence was generally accepted from the time of Lorenzo's grandfather Cosimo "the Elder," but this book makes clear that there was a genuine republican opposition which regularly challenged Medici rule and only narrowly lose on reasonably free votes in the major councils ; the Pazzi clan were by no mean the only ones who suffered from Medici financial and political harassment. However, their alliance with Pope Sixtus IV gave them the backing that almost made their coup possible, and even after it failed, Sixtus and his allies fought the Medici to a bloody stalemate for years. Also, though I had known the archbishop of Pisa Salviati was in the plot and got hanged for it, I had not realized that his appointment as an anti-Medici candidate to a diocese critical to Florentine control of Pisa was a major source of the conflict with Sixtus and the Pazzi. Moreover, Sixtus had transferred the papal alum monopoly which was a key source of Medici wealth to the Pazzi. All this background makes a lot more sense to me now. ( )

Three and a half stars. It was moderately dense, but still enjoyable and very informative. I had trouble keeping track of everyone the book covers, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Overall, I don't regret spending money for a copy of my own and would recommend April Blood to both history and government buffs. ( )

An interesting topic with an interesting hypothesis that the assassination of Lorenzo d'Medici's brother led to Lorenzo's preminence in Florence and ultimately brought about the end of the Florentine republic.

However as history this book is brought down by its leaden, unengaging prose. It is often only when the principals speak directly to us via their letters that things come alive. ( )

Martines vertelt uitvoerig over de omstandigheden die leidden tot, en vergaande gevolgen van de aprilse of ook wel Pazzi-samenzwering annex moordaanslag op de Florentijnse heerser Lorenzo il Magnifico. Het boek biedt een mooie kijk op de ingewikkelde en vooral erg wisselvallige politieke constellaties in het 15e-eeuwse Italiaanse schiereiland. Bij momenten was Martines in zijn schrijven en tijdslijn iets minder duidelijk en precies(enkele kleine foutjes met namen en data niet te na genomen). Maar globaal is dit een lezenswaardig boek over de Renaissancestad bij uitstek en zijn roemruchte families zonder echt stelling te nemen pro of contra de een of de andere. ( )

Gedetailleerd, maar soms wat warrig relaas van een samenzwering tegen Lorenzo il Magnifico. Of dit evenement het gewicht verdient dat Martinez eraan geeft, is niet helemaal duidelijk.

Martinez schetst in elk geval een mooi beeld van het politieke leven in Firenze in de tweede helft van de vijftiende eeuw. Maar het boek mist ofwel narratieve kracht, ofwel wetenschappelijke scherpzinnigheid om echt zo uitstekend te zijn als de recensies deden geloven. ( )