Set in the Europe of the Renaissance and the Reformation, THE SERPENT AND THE MOON is the story of the life-long love affair between King Henri II of France and Diane de Poitiers, a woman eighteen years his senior. his birth and once widowed, succumbed to the glamorous young prince. commoner and despised foreigner who stood miserable by as Henri became Dauphin and later King, all the while growing more devoted to his famously beautiful mistress. appearing on everything from official proclamations to palace doorknobs. Diane - and Catherine's all consuming envy of her rival. THE SERPENT AND THE MOON is a fascinating love story as well as a richly woven history of an extraordinary time.