Secrecy
A Novel
by Rupert Thomson
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Pub Date Apr 22 2014 | Archive Date Apr 15 2014
Description
Zummo, a Sicilian sculptor, is summoned by Cosimo III to join the Medici court. Late seventeenth-century Florence is a hotbed of repression and hypocrisy. All forms of pleasure are brutally punished, and the Grand Duke himself, a man for whom marriage has been an exquisite torture, hides his pain beneath a show of excessive piety.
The Grand Duke asks Zummo to produce a life-size woman out of wax, an antidote to the French wife who made him suffer so. As Zummo wrestles with this unique commission, he falls under the spell of a woman whose elusiveness mirrors his own, but whose secrets are far more explosive. Lurking in the wings is the poisonous Dominican priest, Stufa, who has it within his power to destroy Zummo’s livelihood, if not his life.
In this highly charged novel, Thomson brings Florence to life in all its vibrant sensuality, while remaining entirely contemporary in his exploration of the tensions between love and solitude, beauty and decay. When reality becomes threatening, not to say unfathomable, survival strategies are tested to the limit. Redemption is a possibility, but only if the agonies of death and separation can be transcended.
Advance Praise
“A novel rich as the past it conjures up, weaving a story as playful and disturbing as the strange wax sculptures that its hero gives life to.” —Sarah Dunant, author of the best-selling The Birth of Venus
“Chillingly brilliant and sinister…masterly.” —Financial Times
“Bewitching…Intensely atmospheric…Superb.” —Daily Mail
“Scene after scene trembles with breath-stopping tension on the edge of bliss or dread. No one else writes quite like this in Britain today.” —The Observer (UK)
“Thomson succeeds on a number of levels here, for the novel works as a
mystery, as a love story, as a historical novel and, more abstractly,
as an exploration of aesthetic theory.” –Kirkus
“A page-turning historical thriller by one of Britain’s finest writers;
Thomson’s lyrical and economical style draws comparisons to George
Eliot’s Romola.” –Library Journal
“Thomson brings Renaissance-era Florence to life with rich descriptions and scenic locales. Readers who have toured Florence will enjoy revisiting the sites in the mind’s eye, and historical fiction fans in general will relish the virtual trip brimming with mystery and intrigue.” –Booklist
“Beautifully evocative prose…makes this unusual historical novel truly memorable.” –Publishers Weekly
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781590516850 |
| PRICE | $16.95 (USD) |
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