Description

Ceremonial murder has returned to Florence. Only two men can end the destruction. Featuring Officer Cesare Aldo, Ritual of Fire is an atmospheric historical thriller by D. V. Bishop, set in Renaissance Italy.

‘Fast becoming a serious rival to C. J. Sansom and S. J. Parris’ – Historical Novel Society

Florence. Summer, 1538.

A night patrol finds a wealthy merchant hanged and set ablaze in the city’s main square. More than mere murder, this killing is intended to put the fear of God into Florence. Forty years earlier, puritanical monk Girolamo Savonarola was executed the same way. Does this new killing mean his fanatical disciples are reviving the monk’s regime of holy terror?

Cesare Aldo is busy hunting thieves in the Tuscan countryside, leaving Constable Carlo Strocchi to investigate the killing. When another merchant is burned alive in public, the rich start fleeing to their country estates. But the Tuscan hills can also be dangerous.

Growing religious fervour and a scorching heatwave drives the city ever closer to madness. Meanwhile, someone is stalking those powerful men who forged lifelong bonds in the dark days of Savonarola.

Unless Aldo and Strocchi work together, all of Florence will be consumed by an inferno of death and destruction . . .

‘Religion and lust? Money and politics? It’s all here, combined into a murderous brew’ – Andrew Taylor, bestselling author of The Royal Secret

Ritual of Fire is the third Cesare Aldo mystery, preceded by City of Vengeance and The Darkest Sin. The series continues with A Divine Fury.

Winner of the 2023 Crime Writers’ Association Historical Dagger for The Darkest Sin.

Publisher Review

He is fast becoming a serious rival to C. J. Sansom and S. J. Parris with his page-turning novels. Highly recommended * Historical Novel Society * In Ritual of Fire, the third scintillating Cesare Aldo novel, D.V. Bishop once again immerses us in sixteenth-century Florence and the heady intrigues of Renaissance Italy. Aldo is a magnificent creation -- Vaseem Khan, author of Midnight at Malabar House A blaze of a book, grabs you from the first flicker -- S W Perry, author of The Angel's Mark Sweltering tension and an explosive ending. Great stuff -- Leonora Nattrass, author of Blue Water Place and time are pinned with stiletto precision, while pacing and plot grip all the way to the exciting denouement. Absolutely superb -- Douglas Skelton, author of An Honourable Thief Aldo is a fascinating and charismatic character -- Antonia Hodgson, author of The Silver Collar D. V. Bishop transports you to an utterly convincing sixteenth-century Florence, where the best and worst of human nature constantly circle each other -- S. G. MacLean, prize-winning author of the Seeker series A first-class historical thriller . . . Bishop's spirited and richly detailed story is a tour de force -- David Baldacci, internationally bestselling author of the Aloysius Archer series, on City of Vengeance