Actually, we're talking about Sarah Dunant, author of the new fiction bestseller, The Birth of Venus, set in 15th-century Florence. The book was published in England last year to critical acclaim and huge success, and it looks like the author's doing an encore on this side of the Atlantic. Random House reports 90,000 copies after four trips to press and is bringing Dunant over for her first U.S. tour, beginning March 2 and covering 12 cities. Interviews on NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday and Charlie Rose are planned. Thus far, her U.S. reviews have been stellar, including PW's, which said, "Dunant's vivid, gripping novel gives fresh life to a captivating age of glorious art and political turmoil."