The family by Mario Puzo

"The family" by Mario Puzo - Intriguing!

This book is published by William Morrow and company in 2011 and has 432 pages.

It's Renaissance era Europe. Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia is an ambitious man. He becomes Pope Alexander VI. He has four illegitimate children, 3 sons and a daughter. He acknowledges them publicly and bestows Papal favours on them.

How does he become Pope? What favors does he bestow? How can Cardinals and Popes have family? How do the children fare,  especially the eldest, Cesare? How is Vatican politics? What will be Borgia family strategy?  What will be the legacy of Borgia family?

Pope's eldest son Cesare is appointed as Cardinal and later commander of Papal forces. Juan is appointed as commander of Papal forces. Daughter Lucrezia and son Joffre are married for political alliances. Does it look like modern political family? Does it look like mafia family?

The Borgia family, despite being family of Pope, enjoyed carnal pleasures. The debauchery was so immoral that there were multiple incests. Incest between brother and sister. Incest between brother in law and sister in law. Incest between father in law and daughter (niece) in law. Then there is also  fratricide. In addition there are murders, rapes, extramarital affairs, bastard children, treaties and deals, reneging from promises, favouring family, duplicitous behaviour of Pope and what not. Revulsing! One really wonders how can they be called men of God?

Famous historical personalities like Niccolo Machiavelli, Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo are characters in this story. 

Cesare Borgia occupies the center stage. His character undergoes a sudden transformation in later part of the book. But these traits are not evident in the first part. So the transformation appears abrupt. 

It's said that Niccolo Machiavelli's famous and controversial book "The Prince", was written with Cesare Borgia as the model. It professes  that results justify the means and unscrupulous, cunning, intelligent, duplicitous behaviour is not only acceptable but necessary for success. It's an irony that model of the book (Cesare Borgia) is forgotten and such behaviour is known as Machiavellian and used as pejorative. 

It's a fascinating, colourful and eventful account of ambitious, capable, vicious and fearless Borgia family. They created their fiefdom but weren't able to hold on to it after the death of the patriarch. In the epilogue Carol says that Mario believed that Borgias were the first crime family. Popes were Dons and Pope Alexander the greatest of them all.

This is a partly fictionalized account of the Borgia family. So readers should take it with a pinch of salt. However, as they say, there's no smoke without fire. 

Mario Puzo spent over twenty years working on the book off and on, while he wrote others. The novel was completed by his longtime girlfriend, Carol Gino. The Family is effectively his last novel.

Why did I read this book? Author.

What did I like? The story. 

What I didn't like? Slows down at times. 

Its an intriguing story. Recommend reading.