Book Review: "The Maestro's Daughter"
- marthaengber
- Nov 1
- 2 min read
I love strong, feisty, smart female protagonists. In THE MAESTRO'S DAUGHTER by Catherine Thrush (The Lady Blade Series Book 1), teen Francesca de DiCesare, daughter of the Maestro, a famous fencing master in 1716 Tuscany, Italy, is all that.
A natural rebel, Francesca strongly objects to everything young ladies are supposed to learn in order to become the wives of nobles. Cooking, household management, gardening. No thanks! What she really wants to do is fence like her two older brothers.
Instead, she’s forced to watch from her bedroom window as the privileged male pupils practice in the courtyard below. She watches, yes, but then she practices. And practices and practices. Her rebellion, however, leads to deadly consequences that force her to choose between succumbing to what society expects of her, or determine her own future where she’ll no longer be shielded.
The author does a wonderful job of portraying the historical facts of the era. More importantly, she completely succeeds in creating the claustrophobic atmosphere of female lives in that place and time, and what happens when a young girl bucks the system. I would not have done as well as Francesca!
Great read!
Interestingly, the author and her husband, Tom, are the owners of Urban Realms, a company that creates storylines for Dungeons & Dragons gamers.
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For updates about Martha’s forthcoming books, news and giveaways, subscribe to her website: MarthaEngber.com.
SCATTERED LIGHT, a novel, sequel to WINTER LIGHT, (Nov. 2025)
THE FALCON, THE WOLF AND THE HUMMINGBIRD a historical novel
BLISS ROAD, a memoir
WINTER LIGHT, a novel, in paperback and audiobook
THE WIND THIEF, a novel
GROWING GREAT CHARACTERS, a resource for writers
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