Book Reviews
An intoxicating tale of love, betrayal and redemption…Cullen tackles the contradictions of the Renaissance and captures the dangerous spirit of the Inquisition while handling these vivid characters with prodigious control. The Creation of Eve is a historical romance that teaches as it touches.
Eugenia Zuckerman - Washington Post
Cullen's previous books include I Am Rembrandt's Daughter and Moi and Marie Antoinette. With this suspenseful, evocative tapestry of Renaissance life, art and royal skullduggery, the author has made a skillful—and, with any luck, permanent—jump into adult fiction.
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Cullen richly draws her principal characters and their milieu, effectively transporting the reader back to 16th-century Italy and Spain.... Believable storytelling and wonderfully descriptive writing make The Creation of Eve a must-read for those who love historical fiction, especially if they also love art.
Newark Star-Ledger
The largely unknown story of female Renaissance painter Sofonisba Anguissola (c. 1532–1625) is beautifully imagined here in YA novelist Cullen's sparkling adult debut.... [A] page-turning tale.... Ongoing references to the Spanish Inquisition and the life of the controversial Michelangelo add depth to this rich story.
Publishers Weekly
Cullen captivates her readers with the thrill and drama of 16th-century Spain. Hewing closely to historical record, the author fills in enough spaces to make a satisfying story but strategically leaves certain details to the imagination, a trick that has the reader deliciously wishing for just a little bit more.... Highly recommended. —Leigh Wright, Bridgewater, NJ
Library Journal
[F]ew are familiar with Renaissance painter Sofonisba Anguissola. Cullen, best-selling author of the YA hit I Am Rembrandt’s Daughter (2007), corrects this oversight with this finely textured fictional biography.... Cullen does a magnificent job reinvigorating a still-life portrait of an all-but-forgotten maestra. —Margaret Flanagan
Booklist