List $29.95

Written by Karen Essex - Audio book performed by Elizabeth Sastre - Abridged Fiction - Abridgment approved by Sue Grafton - 5 COMPACT DISCS - 6 hours

Publisher, Random House Audiobooks (January 2006)

Listen to an MP3 audio clip.

Isabella d'Este, daughter of the Duke of Ferrara, born into privilege and the political and artistic turbulence of Renaissance Italy, is a stunning black-eyed blonde and an art lover and collector. Worldly and ambitious, she has never envied her less attractive sister, the spirited but naive Beatrice, until, by a quirk of fate, Beatrice is betrothed to the future Duke of Milan. But the duke, Ludovico Sforza, is Isabella's match in intellect and passion for all things of beauty. Only he would allow her to fulfill her destiny: to reign over one of the world's most powerful and enlightened realms and be immortalized in oil by the genius Leonardo da Vinci.

Though Isabella weds the Marquis of Mantua, Beatrice's fortunes rise effortlessly through her marriage to Ludovico. The two sisters compete for supremacy in the illustrious courts of Europe, and Isabella vows that she will not rest until she wrestles back her true fate and plays muse to the great Leonardo.

A haunting novel of rivalry, love, and betrayal that transports listeners back to Renaissance Italy, Leonardo's Swans will have you dashing to the works of the great painter not for clues to a mystery but to contemplate the secrets of the human heart.

About the Author: KAREN ESSEX is an award-winning journalist, a screenwriter, and the author of two acclaimed biographical novels, Kleopatra and Pharaoh. Born in New Orleans, she graduated from Tulane University, attended graduate school at Vanderbilt University, and holds an M.F.A. in writing from Goddard College. Essex's books are published in twenty languages. She resides in Los Angeles.

About the Performer: ELIZABETH SAStrE was recently nominated for a Barrymore Award for her performance as the title role in Camila. Her other work includes Sweet Bird of Youth, A Dybbuk Nine, Carousel, Raindogs, As the World Turns, Law and Order, and numerous other recordings for television.