Sent to the devil

Author:
Laura Lebow
Publisher:
Minotaur Books
US Release date:
April 5, 2016
Pages:
379
ISBN:
978-1250053565
also available as ebook
Genre:
Historical Mystery

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     MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS BOOK

Have you ever done the list of detectives and their official jobs? Have you thought of including librettist? This is indeed the second book in a series of historical mysteries with Lorenzo Da Ponte (1749-1838), Mozart’s librettist and court poet. I enjoyed a lot The Figaro Murders, so I really had to read Sent to the devil, focused this time on Don Giovanni. I enjoyed it even more! Keep reading to know why.

The book takes place during April-May 1788. It opens with the death of a general, summoned by night by a mysterious correspondent. And then it’s the turn of one of Lorenzo’s old friends. Despite his less than pleasant experience with the police in book 1, he accepts to help find who did it, to avenge his friend. But the dead bodies multiply, apparently all the fact of the same killer who summons his victims with verses from The Divine Comedy, on a mysterious watermarked paper, and engraves their forehead with an obscure sign. And then, Lorenzo himself receives coded messages, followed later on also by a Dante quote…

I can’t tell you more about the plot. But trust me, it’s fabulous, with plenty of red-herrings, many possible leads, and great suspense scenes.

I found the character of Lorenzo even more developed than in book one. We see him at work, just a few weeks before the first representation of Don Giovanni. The life of a librettist is not all peaceful either, if he tries to please the requests of every singer…
Plus, all along the book, there looms the possibility that the theater will be closed, which would put him into unemployment: alongside Russia, Vienna is at war with the Turks. If it lasts too long, all the money will be needed for the army. The theater funds would be cut.
We also see Lorenzo’s vast connection of friends, including Giovanni Casanova! Da Ponte was born in Venice, but he lives as a refugee in Vienna because of some previous acts in Italy.  All these elements are inspired by what we know of him (see the author’s excellent note at the end of the book). And Lorenzo is also involved in a bit of a romance…

Not all are in favor of that war, far from it. There are many vocal protesters, at the heart of the plot. Some also criticize the emperor’s social reforms, inspired by French philosophers. It’s an effervescent period, with lots of new ideas floating round.

That’s about the historical and social ambiance, so well evoked throughout the novel.
There are also great descriptions of Vienna, its palaces and cathedral.

And of course, there are a lot of things about the world of Mozart (his family as well), operas (including variations in Don Giovanni that we usually no longer include in modern representations of it!), singers and rehearsals.

I found totally delightful and so smartly the connections between Don Giovanni‘s story, the plot of the mystery, and Dante’s quotations.
Incidentally, having just finished reading the seven books of In Search of Lost Time by Proust, my next big reading adventure is Dante’s Divine Comedy (bilingual edition with tons of notes), so imagine my delight when I discovered it was so often quoted!
It is also a brilliant way of joining together Da Ponte’s Italian background with his job for Mozart.

EN DEUX MOTS :

Avez-vous déjà pensé qu’un librettiste italien puisse être détective ? Eh bien oui, c’est le cas de Lorenzo Da Ponte, dans cette excellente série de romans policiers historiques centrées sur le monde de l’opéra. Un peu de Don Giovanni, des citations de Dante, et vous avez là de quoi vous régaler. Surtout que le personnage central est très bien développé et la présentation socio-historique du contexte excellente. je vous le recommande vivement !

VERDICT: Focused on Don Giovanni, the world of operas and Dante’s Divine Comedy, superb historical mystery at the heart of Vienna. Well written, with true to life characters, and an irresistible suspense. A must for all lovers of history and mystery.