Historical Novel Society Editor's Choice for 2013!Italy, 1326. While the brilliant and wily Cesco is schooled in his new duties at the hand of a hard master, Pietro Alaghieri travels to Avignon, current seat of the Papacy, to fight his excommunication and plead for Cesco's legitimacy. He doesn't know an old foe has been waiting to ruin Pietro's life and seize control of Verona for himself. Back in Verona, separated from everyone he trusts, Cesco must confront his ambitious cousin, a mysterious young killer, and the Holy Roman Emperor himself. Amid it all, Cesco discovers the dangers of romance, falling hard for a woman far more clever than he imagines. A harrowing series of adventures reveal a secret long hidden, one that threatens Cesco's only chance for true happiness.Inspired by Shakespeare, Dante, and Petrarch, this Renaissance novel of intrigue and passion reflects the heights of drama, exploring the capricious whims of lady Fortune, who has her favorites – and her...

Eight years after the tumultuous events of THE MASTER OF VERONA, Pietro Alaghieri is living in exile in Ravenna, enduring the loss of his famous father while secretly raising Cesco, the bastard heir to Verona's prince, Cangrande della Scala. But when word of Cangrande's death reaches him, Pietro must race back to Verona to prevent Cesco's rivals from usurping his rightful place. But young Cesco is determined not to be anyone's pawn. Willful and brilliant, he defies even the stars. And far behind the scenes is a mastermind pulling the strings, one who stands to lose - or gain - the most.Born from Shakespeare's Italian plays, this novel explores the danger, deceit, and deviltry of early Renaissance Italy, and the terrible choices one must make just to stay alive."David Blixt is one of the masters of historical fiction. Dramatic, vivid, superbly researched, VOICE OF THE FALCONER captures Renaissance Italy in all its heady glamour and lethal intrigue. This is a novel to savor - and...

The Master of Verona is a sweeping historical novel that takes place, primarily, in early 14th Century Verona. It is the story of Pietro Alaghieri - the eldest surving son of the poet Dante - who gets caught up in the sweep of history:  the war between Padua and Verona; the rise of Verona's Captiano, Cangrande della Scala, Dante's increasing fame since the publication of The Inferno, an infernal plot against Cangrande's bastard son, and the rivalry of his two best friends over the affections of a girl, a rivalry that will severe a friendship, divide a city, and ultimately lead to the best-known tragic romance in history. In 1312, the exiled poet Dante and his two sons, seventeen year old Pietro and fourteen year old Jacopo ("Poco"), travel to Verona at the invitation of Verona's leader, the legendary Franceso "Cangrande" della Scalla.  While there, a sneak attack on Vincenza, Verona's client city, leads Pietro into his first battle, into the confidences of the charaismatic Cangrande, and into a tight friendship with Mariotto ("Mari") Montecchi  and Antonio ("Antony") Capuletti.  But hidden forces are at work against Cangrande - a series of attempts against a male baby, named Francesco and adopted by Cangrande's sister, widely believed to be his bastard son and possible heir. Based on historical figures and the stories that formed the basis for some of Shakespeare's greatest plays, The Master of Verona is a compelling novel of politics, friendship, and conspiracy that recalls the best of Bernard Cornwell and Dorothy Dunnett.**