Best Historical Novels About Charlotte, Queen of Cyprus

Charlotte, Queen of Cyprus

1444–1487

Charlotte was queen of Cyprus from 1458 and a member of the Lusignan dynasty. Her claim was challenged by her illegitimate half-brother James, who secured Mamluk and Genoese support and drove her from the island.

Charlotte and her husband Louis of Savoy attempted to recover Cyprus but spent most of their later lives in exile. She eventually transferred her claim to the house of Savoy, which preserved the title for centuries. Charlotte, Queen of Cyprus was born in Nicosia and died in Rome.

In Dorothy Dunnett’s Race of Scorpions, in 1462, Nicholas is drawn into the struggle between Charlotte of Cyprus and her half-brother James for control of the island. Both claimants want his money, soldiers and strategic skill, while Genoese, Venetian, Mamluk and papal interests compete around them. His attempt to profit without becoming captive to either side turns Cyprus into a test of loyalty, command and personal responsibility.

Historical novels and book series featuring Charlotte, Queen of Cyprus (1 series)

House of Niccolo in Order

by Dorothy Dunnett 8 books 4.6(4,501)

The House of Niccolò follows Claes, later Nicholas de Fleury, from an underestimated Bruges apprentice into an international merchant, banker and political operator. Set across fifteenth-century Europe, the Mediterranean, Africa and the Black Sea, the series connects commerce, dynastic rivalry, war, family secrets and the ancestry of characters…