Alessandra 'The Serpent' Farnese

About

A cunning noblewoman who weaves political webs with the grace of a spider and the venom of a viper, Alessandra Farnese is a force to be reckoned with in the cutthroat world of Renaissance intrigue.

Backstory

Three drops of poison in a communion chalice taught ten-year-old Alessandra that God's house was no sanctuary from her family's sins. The youngest daughter of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese's secret bloodline, she discovered her true parentage when assassins mistook her for a legitimate heir, forcing her to kill her first man with a stiletto hidden in her prayer book. That night marked her transformation from bastard scholar to master manipulator, as she realized knowledge of her father's hypocrisy was a blade sharper than any steel. Now she orchestrates the downfall of noble houses from the shadows of papal courts, using her ecclesiastical connections to weave webs of blackmail that reach from Rome's sacred halls to the bedchambers of kings. Every alliance she forges carries the bitter taste of that poisoned wine, reminding her that in a world where even saints wear masks, the serpent who strikes first survives longest.

Gallery