DNF at 20%

I tried to read this as an ARC and then again as a physical copy just to say that I actually did my due diligence. However, I just did not jive this book at all. It is all of the Dan Brown melodrama and action with none of the magic that makes those books so fun.

Thank you to NetGalley and Matador for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!

The author has a keen intellect which is put to good purpose in this novel. Her thoughts on Shakespeare and Dante add a rich texture to a beautifully written and absorbing plot. There's mystery and intrigue, a minimum of graphic detail, all woven into the tapestry of a Florence shown with warts and all. I absolutely loved this book. Five stars are not enough to do it justice.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
I saved the book for my autumn stay in Tuscany, what better place than read a mystery based on Dante's inferno.

Maggie Rose is a theatre producer who unexpectedly comes into a windfall when her uncle, whom she has never met, is murdered and leaves her a substantial inheritance. Once she has arrived in Florence she meets her uncle's closest friends. Not everybody seems to be over the moon that her uncle has left such a big part of his inheritance to a niece they have never met. And I must say, this was one of a couple of things that stroke me as odd too.

Than strange murders start to happen that all seem to have a connection with Dante's inferno. In itself a very interesting idea, When the police fail to discover the murderer of her uncle and the bodies start to pile up, Maggie decides to start investigating herself, with the help of some of her newfound friends.

The book appealed to me from the start, because of it's strong connections to both Dante and Shakespeare, as well as to Etruscan art and tombaroli. That said I found the story somewhat lacking in the plot and some parts were just not very convincing. For instance [spoiler alert] I found the fact that Sing got also murdered rather strange. I don't think that the murderers would have taken notice of a simple doormen / concierge, even if he did turn out to be kind of a friend to her uncle.
The completion of the book was a bit weak too in my opinion. So 3 starts for the interesting details about Dante, Shakespeare and the tombaroli.

Some fascinating and clever references to Dante and his Inferno in this interesting book. The story itself is good with some great characters, although I think the pace was a little bit slow.

I was eager to read this book as the plot interested me. Murder, Florence and Dante, a theatre producer based in Manchester gets a call from Florence telling her that her uncle has been murdered. What then ensues is a journey to Italy and the Tuscan region trying to figure out more about the uncle she never knew and the person who did it.
Having read through the book I was a little disappointed, the plot I believe was weakened due to the characters not being as fully developed as well as the connections and situations around events that follow lacking a bit of depth. In stories like this I tend to like being drawn into the sights and sounds and immersed into the world but all too often I found that I couldn't get there, sometimes due to the chapters being short or other times a conversation or particular scene not fully being played out. I also found some sections repetitive. However on the plus side, the historical references to Dante and the leisurely pace of the book made this a book, you could just pick up and read casually.

I received a copy of this title from the publisher for an honest review. 2.75 stars rounded up to 3. I really wanted to rate this book higher as the premise sounded really exciting, but there was just something missing from the story that holds me back. Set in 2020, the story features Maria who travels from England to Florence upon the murder of her uncle who she had never met. She is surprised to learn that he left her an inheritance; his close friends and long term partner seem resentful of her windfall at what they perceive to be their expense.

Maria decides to try and solve the murder after the police seem stymied. Soon, additional murders occur and figuring out the murder's identity becomes even more important. I had a couple of issues that held back my rating even though the murders's identity was nicely done. First, I don't feel like I got to know Maria well enough; she never felt fully fleshed out. Second, I was expecting the Dante connection to be more prominent to the mystery than it was. Third, I think the mystery around the falling out Peter had with his family took too much time away from the murder mystery. I did like a ot of the book and would read another title from the author to see how she grew from this one to the next.

I recently read The Divine Comedy and so I found this book really interesting, it is such a greatr and unique premise that had me on the edge of my seat and wondering what would happen next. A great read