2022-07-22
A Florentine lawyer investigates the disappearance of boys from an orphanage and troubling mercenary attacks on villages in this 15th-century mystery.
In 1465, Nico Argenti, a lawyer for the Florentine Security Commission, receives a chilling report from his sister, Alessa: Boys have been vanishing from the Ospedale degli Innocenti orphanage. Nico promises to investigate and quickly determines that the orphanage’s rector, Patrizu Nieddu, a shifty character who obtained his position under false pretenses, is selling the boys to a mysterious buyer. Meanwhile, Nico discovers that rogue mercenaries have been attacking villages on the outskirts of Florence. He has reason to believe these assaults are organized by the Strozzi brothers, members of a family exiled from Florence to Venice after a failed attempt to overthrow the Florentine government. Moreover, those mercenaries are transferring money to Bologna and impressing young boys into service. Nico is discomfited by yet another case of missing children: “Nico tensed. For the second time in hours, he was being told about children being displaced. A coincidence? Nico wasn’t a believer in coincidences.” In this fourth installment of the Nico Argenti Renaissance mystery series, Tentarelli paints a vivid picture of 15th-century Florence, a world in which generational feuds are fought with private armies contracted by wealthy families in search of power and vengeance. The author’s writing is lucid, if unliterary—the language is plain and generally unembellished by flourishes of notable style. But the historical authenticity of the cultural depiction is impressive—Tentarelli’s command of the nuances of the time and place is simply remarkable. Furthermore, the tale is dramatically captivating and moves with a gripping urgency. Finally, Nico is a memorable protagonist, as decent as he is astute, a rare blend of benevolence and cunning. And while the novel is part of a series, it is entirely independent of its predecessors—readers will understand and enjoy this installment as a stand-alone.
A delightful period tale, historically sharp and dramatically engrossing.
