The Harem Midwife

An opulent, riveting, and suspenseful continuation of the thrilling historical novel The Midwife of Venice set in medieval Constantinople.

The Imperial Harem, Constantinople, 1579.

Hannah and Isaac Levi, Venetians in exile, have begun a new life in Constantinople. Isaac runs a newly established business in the growing silk trade, while Hannah, the best midwife in the city, plies her trade within the opulent palace of Sultan Murat III, tending to the thousand women in his lively and infamous harem.

But one night, when Hannah is unexpectedly summoned to the palace, she’s confronted with Zofia, a poor Jewish peasant girl who has been abducted and sold into the sultan’s harem. The sultan favors her as his next conquest and wants her to produce his heir, but the girl just wants to return home to the only life she has ever known. Will Hannah risk her life and livelihood to protect this young girl, or will she prioritize her high esteem in the eye of the sultan?

Filled with adventure, lavish detail, and peopled with unforgettable characters, The Harem Midwife showcases Roberta Rich as a beloved and talented writer.

Praise for The Midwife of Venice:
“In her U.S. debut, Rich successfully captures the seedy side of
16th-century Venice—the Jewish ghetto, the plague, the confluence of religious and legal authority…Isaac comes to full life: his thoughts, feelings, humor, and behavior leap off the page.” (Publishers Weekly)

“It’s one crisis after another for a 16th-century Italian-Jewish midwife and her merchant husband struggling to be reunited. Religious persecution, sexism, pestilence and murderous, scheming siblings are just a few of the hurdles confronting Hannah Levi and her husband Isaac in Rich’s cliffhanger-strewn debut…a heavily researched but lightweight historical adventure.” (Kirkus Reviews)

“A lavishly detailed historical novel.” (Elle Magazine)

“A lively tale involving love, blackmail, family, murder, plague, intercultural compassion, dramatic last-minute rescues and some very creative disguises…. Rich capably depicts the strength of women and the precariousness of their lives, regardless of status or religion.” (The Globe and Mail)