Sicilian Avengers: Book Two
Luigi Natoli
Nov 2024 · Penguin Random House Audio · Narrated by Edoardo Ballerini
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Audiobook
18 hr 18 min
Unabridged
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infoThis book will become available on November 19, 2024. You will not be charged until it is released.
About this audiobook
The Beati Paoli’s unrelenting campaign to restore justice is compromised by an act of betrayal and a plot that threatens its very existence.
Set against the backdrop of the island’s increasing disillusionment with its new rulers from Savoy and a yearning for the return of the formerly detested Spanish monarchy, book two of Sicilian Avengers continues as the future of the House of Albamonte hangs in the balance and the survival of the Beati Paoli is threatened.
Shifting allegiances, brutal reprisals, tortures, and kidnappings occur as the Beati Paoli’s efforts to restore a usurped patrimony to its rightful owner is compromised by an act of betrayal. As they race to complete their mission, they must also thwart the diabolical plans of the villainous Don Raimondo and the evil Matteo Lo Vecchio, and deal with the wavering loyalty of one of the sect’s newest recruits.
Blasco de Castiglione finally discovers his true identity, which tests his sense of justice, honor, and fidelity to the people he knows, trusts, and loves: Duke Don Raimondo, whom he has pledged to protect; the beautiful and alluring Donna Gabriella, who has captured his heart; his friend and protector, the enigmatic Coriolano della Floresta; and the young and naïve Violante, whose love is within reach yet out of bounds.
Translated into English for the first time by Stephen Riggio, Luigi Natoli’s saga brings early eighteenth-century Palermo into vivid relief, where Sicilian aristocrats enjoy their soirees and luxuries while the poor and destitute scrounge for food in the dark and filthy streets. Nowhere is the contrast more shocking and wrenching than in the scrupulous depiction of the auto-da-fé.
Readers will become immersed in a Sicily that is long gone but whose glorious and troubled past echoes in these pages. As French critic Jean Noël Schifano said, Natoli's novel is “the fifth historical monument of contemporary Italian literature.”
Book 2 of 2 includes an afterword by Umberto Eco.
Set against the backdrop of the island’s increasing disillusionment with its new rulers from Savoy and a yearning for the return of the formerly detested Spanish monarchy, book two of Sicilian Avengers continues as the future of the House of Albamonte hangs in the balance and the survival of the Beati Paoli is threatened.
Shifting allegiances, brutal reprisals, tortures, and kidnappings occur as the Beati Paoli’s efforts to restore a usurped patrimony to its rightful owner is compromised by an act of betrayal. As they race to complete their mission, they must also thwart the diabolical plans of the villainous Don Raimondo and the evil Matteo Lo Vecchio, and deal with the wavering loyalty of one of the sect’s newest recruits.
Blasco de Castiglione finally discovers his true identity, which tests his sense of justice, honor, and fidelity to the people he knows, trusts, and loves: Duke Don Raimondo, whom he has pledged to protect; the beautiful and alluring Donna Gabriella, who has captured his heart; his friend and protector, the enigmatic Coriolano della Floresta; and the young and naïve Violante, whose love is within reach yet out of bounds.
Translated into English for the first time by Stephen Riggio, Luigi Natoli’s saga brings early eighteenth-century Palermo into vivid relief, where Sicilian aristocrats enjoy their soirees and luxuries while the poor and destitute scrounge for food in the dark and filthy streets. Nowhere is the contrast more shocking and wrenching than in the scrupulous depiction of the auto-da-fé.
Readers will become immersed in a Sicily that is long gone but whose glorious and troubled past echoes in these pages. As French critic Jean Noël Schifano said, Natoli's novel is “the fifth historical monument of contemporary Italian literature.”
Book 2 of 2 includes an afterword by Umberto Eco.
About the author
Luigi Natoli (1857–1941) born in Palermo, was a teacher, journalist, and historian. His rich literary output included the publication of thirty-one adventure and historical novels, most published in serial form under the pseudonym William Galt, including I Beati Paoli.
Stephen Riggio is the former chief executive officer of Barnes & Noble. For over forty years he was a key leader transforming the single flagship New York location into a national retailer that expanded into e-commerce, book publishing and video games. Riggio has served on the boards of the National Book Foundation, the National Down Syndrome Society, and is a founding member of the AHRC New York City Foundation Board. He and his wife live in New York City.
Stephen Riggio is the former chief executive officer of Barnes & Noble. For over forty years he was a key leader transforming the single flagship New York location into a national retailer that expanded into e-commerce, book publishing and video games. Riggio has served on the boards of the National Book Foundation, the National Down Syndrome Society, and is a founding member of the AHRC New York City Foundation Board. He and his wife live in New York City.
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