Art+history Book

This book has all the fascinating histories; the families, lineages, money and influences. So much land and so many takers. Exciting topic, especially for those who visit the region.
Unfortunately for me (for the writing is detailed and deeply researched) I could not finish this book. I feel that with enough background on the topic I /might/ enjoy this book. Unless you're prepared for this topic it may leave you high and dry. "Fabulous History" could not excite my imagination except for short bursts where certain families, names and locations I had already in my memory.
The writing flows from one person and family to another, from one instance of history to another so quickly that it was frustrating. I was constantly getting lost in the mesh of marriages and/or political relations. Reminded me of a high school history book which gives either too much detail or not enough but in the end no connection personally to the material.
That said, I want to try and finish this book in the future. It has a lot of value but I don't think I'm ready for such dull reading yet.