A Splendid Sin: MIchelangelo: A Renaissance Affair - Alana Bolton Cooke

Behind the masterpiece was a love that defined Renaissance art. Michaelangelo di Lodovico Buonarrotti has risen into Rome's artistic elite and the ailing Pope Clement commissions him to paint The Last Judgement. When the artist Tomasso, a young nobleman, becomes his muse and inspiration. Michaelangelo must contend with the conflict between his growing love and his fear of eternal damnation. Rumours of their relationship head the paranoid Cardinal de Cesena to bribe members of Michaelangelo's household to discover the truth behind the whispers. Can Michaelangelo hide his feeling from both the church and himself, or will the Last Judgement destroy him?