The Phoenix of Florence: Mystery and murder in medieval Italy

Available Formats

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Sixteenth century Italy, deep in the Tuscan countryside, adolescent Onoria is the sole survivor of a family massacre. Abandoned and alone in the forest, she meets the leader of a fierce band of soldiers who, mistaking her for a boy, takes her under his wing. Determined never to be vulnerable ever again, Onoria reinvents herself as a mercenary, leaving behind the identity one man saw fit to soil and discovering soldier Celavini along the way. In Florence, ex-soldier now government law enforcer Celavini investigates two brutal murders that on first look seem to be crimes of passion. Convinced this hides a more sinister truth, Celavini digs further and is perturbed to discover a family heirloom from his past and a man using his dead brother's name. When it becomes clear that behind the murders lurks a menacing conspiracy, Celavini must revisit the turbulent past he shares with Onoria, reconciling himself to her so, together, they can lay the ghosts of their shared history to rest.

Reviews

Selected as the Historical Book of the Month in The Times: `This is a historical crime novel with soul, written with beauty and tenderness.' Antonia Senior, The Times; `A complex narrative of violence, betrayal and the power of traumatic events to shape identity... Kazan has written convincingly about Renaissance Italy in earlier books and his vivid vigorous prose brings it to life again.' Nick Rennison, The Sunday Times

Author Bio

Philip Kazan was born in London and grew-up on Dartmoor. He is the author of two previous novels set in fifteenth-century Florence and the Petroc series following a thirteenth-century adventurer. After living in New York and Vermont, Philip is back on the edge of Dartmoor with his wife and three children. philipkazan.wordpress.com @pipkazan