I have read that many claim that Machiavelli's (in)famous work is a satire, as the prologue of the book he states that the work is dedicated to the Medici family and any prince who wishes to govern his principality efficently.
But i have also heard there was a dislike between the Medici family and Machiavelli. So, my question is: Was Machiavelli's work a genuine guidebook of sorts to princes and autocrats, or was it irony, satire and a attempt to make princes/autocrats make blunders?
No. The history of Machiavelli is interesting. Italy at this time was comprised of city-states, and Machiavelli a courtesan for a court that replaced the Medici's for a time in Florence. From plato.standford.edu:
Florence had been under a republican government since 1484, when the leading Medici family and its supporters had been driven from power. During this time, Machiavelli thrived under the patronage of the Florentine gonfaloniere (or chief administrator for life), Piero Soderini. In 1512, however, with the assistance of Spanish troops, the Medici defeated the republic's armed forces and dissolved the government. Machiavelli was a direct victim of the regime change: he was initially placed in a form of internal exile and, when he was (wrongly) suspected of conspiring against the Medici in 1513, he was imprisoned and tortured for several weeks.
He was exiled and seen as a threat. He did NOT write The Prince as a satire, he wrote it as a manuscript for how to achieve and maintain power. He wanted to prove his worthiness to the Medici's. He wanted to regain the former political stature that he once had. It was his gift to them, in hopes of honest redemption. It wasn't what he truly believed was ethical, but what was effective.