Las Mentiras de la Luz Book

Tito Amato is looking forward to a nice relaxing vacation after a recent tour. Alas, this is not to be. His brother Alessandro is arrested for smuggling salt, a capital crime in Venice. It is, of course, a trumped up charge, meant to make Tito pliable to a venture he would otherwise never consider. Senator Montorio, the State Inquisitor, has a stake in the papal election which will occur just as soon as the current pope, Clement, dies. Montorio wants Tito to spy for him in the villa of Cardinal Fabiani.

So Tito goes to Rome. He becomes involved in the death of a serving girl, Gemma. It is probable that he has been set up for the murder, should a patsy be required. The plot is as convoluted as one might expect when papal politics are the milieu.

The one bright spot for Tito is all this mess is that Liya is in Rome. Liya has changed her name and her religion, and named her illegitimate son Tito. As big Tito is a castrato, one knows that little Tito is not related. Big Tito is delighted at the honor, and hopeful that this time around he and Liya can work out their differences.

This is the third in the Baroque series featuring Tito Amato. I don't know enough about Rome to know if the details of geography are correct; the atmosphere rings true. Tito has grown since INTERRUPTED ARIA, which is always a plus for a series character. Graves makes historical mysteries interesting and provocative, exploring some timeless motives and characters. Graves, in the very last paragraphs of CRUEL MUSIC, has given us the probable scenario for the next book in the series. If it as well written as the first three, readers will not be disappointed.