Set in the steaming heat of a Tuscan summer, The Daughter of Siena uses the centuries' old tradition of the Palio di Siena, the famous horse race of this ancient Italian city, as backdrop to a tale of romance and intrigue, alliances and betrayals, hope and dread fear, while at the same time exploring an alternate history for the famed Casa di Medici.

Marina Fiorato only gradually reveals the personal histories of her protagonists, allowing the reader to accompany them during the most critical moments of their lives, in which they face life-altering choices that force them to grow beyond what life has prepared them for.

There is nothing subtle in Fiorato's prose; the book is fraught with glaring contrasts: black and white, good and evil, the blessed and the damned. We all know life is far more complicated; intentions and actions aren't so easily understood, and neither heroes nor villains behave consistently. At one point in the story, Fiorato seems to grasp this incalculable element in the human spirit in the character of Guiliano Dami, when he faces death with an honest assessment of his life's choices.

Overall, I would say that the story of Pia and Riccardo is a sweet romance, with some heavy moral admonitions, set against a very thinly painted backdrop. It is a piece of historical fiction with just a smattering of local culture, geography, and historical truth.