Janette Miller

I was lucky! "City of Vengeance" by DV Bishop was not a novel that I should have found by myself. I was lent a copy as my friend knew that I love Florence and everything Italian. I love walking around Florence on YouTube which is the closest I can get at the moment. I was told it was 'a first novel' and that the author loved Florence. A glance at the publisher Macmillian gave me the confidence 'to give it a go'. I am so glad I did. One gets so tired of formulaic books but this is 'a first novel'. I sense this is written with the opportunity to continue to a series but it does have a freshness about it that I enjoy. The content stands alone. It does not require a sequel. The style is economic, like all this genre with very short scenes and simple vocabulary and simple characters. An easy read. The author obviously loves his subject and must have spent hours on the story which is beautifully braided. I found out after I had read the epilogue that it is based on a true incident of those times. The scene-setting was a bit gory and repetitive as most of the readers will know that medieval towns were a bit dirty, one reminder would have been enough. The story itself was intriguing that this was not necessary but I happily put up with it. Did I work out who did it? Well yes, I did. Being mature I have read so much of this detective genre, that it is now too easy to spot the villain. This did not spoil the tale as the story was so well presented. Very clever. I look forward to another book on Florence and this period by this author perhaps non-fiction this time and I heartily recommend this novel as a good read. I do not know the author and no one has asked me to write a review I just felt I should to say thank you. Well deserved.