David Hewson: The Medici Murders (2023)

From the Publisher:
Venice is a city full of secrets. For hundreds of years it has been the scene of scandal, intrigue and murderous rivalries. And it remains so today.

1548, Lorenzino de Medici, himself a murderer and a man few will miss, is assassinated by two hired killers.

Today, Marmaduke Godolphin, British TV historian and a man even fewer will miss, is stabbed by a stiletto blade on the exact same spot, his body dropping into the canal.

Can the story of the first murder explain the attack on Godolphin? The Carabinieri certainly think so. They recruit retired archivist Arnold Clover to unpick the mystery and to help solve the case. But the conspiracy against Godolphin runs deeper than anyone imagined.

David Hewson: The Medici Murders. Canongate, ISBN: 9781838858582 (May, 2023), 284 p., £9.99, $18.99.

David Hewson: The Medici Murders (2022)

From the Publisher:
Retired archivist Arnold Clover is one year into his new life as a Venetian when his peaceful existence is shattered. A well-known British TV historian, Marmaduke Godolphin, hires him to help sort through some historical papers of note and Arnold is intrigued. These dusty documents may contain previously unknown information about the murder of the fugitive assassin Lorenzino de' Medici, 500 years before.

But when Godolphin is found dead in the canals of Venice during carnival, stabbed with a stiletto blade, Arnold finds himself at the centre of the investigation. The Carabinieri capitano Valentina Fabbri is eager to have the case solved and cleared up within a day. So she drags him into her office, as the victim's acquaintance and fellow Brit, and demands the two of them unravel the mysterious events that led to Godolphin's demise.

Arnold soon discovers parallels between the past and present. Is it mere coincidence that Godolphin met his death in the same place as the Medici murderer, Lorenzino, on a cold, dark, bloody night? Arnold is challenged to use his powers of perception to establish a link and solve the riddle of Godolphin's death. But perhaps the truth lies closer to home than he thinks.

David Hewson: The Medici Murders. A Mystery in Venice Novel. Severn House, ISBN: 9781448306565 (August, 2022), 284 p., £21.99, $29.99, eBook £7.99, $14.99.