Linda Ghio
Merging fantasy with Italian history and folklore, Linda Ghio creates an unforgettable and vivid world of an alternative Venice, split into Lower and Upper. In Upper all is light and glass, tranquillity and wealth but Lower is where all life is at. A powerful mysterious creature is roaming the streets. It appears to be sucking the life force out of its victims, leaving husks where there were once living humans. Initially the victims look like they might have been killed by a Lamia: women with a snake tail who live in the canals, and are peaceful but mistrusted. Captain Meneghin of Upper Venice’s guards can’t open an official investigation as that could spark civil war. The task falls to Cornelia Furlan, a strong-willed young woman from Lower Venice, who is determined to find the murderer and save her community. She has a heart condition and is kept alive by an apparatus inserted in her chest which she needs to wind up each morning. The apparatus, however, is old and starting to malfunction. Cornelia is aided in her task by Stefano, a disgraced guard who’s half-Lamia and half-human, and as such is an outcast in both communities. Initially working together reluctantly, a growing attraction develops between the two.
Incredibly vivid and believable with a brilliant cast of characters. There are orphans who move between Lower and Upper secretly and are Cornelia’s friends and informants. There is Professor Vàclav who believes he can animate dead matter. Cornelia’s landlord and friend is a crafty dwarf named Giuseppe, an inventor researching the elusive energy source phlogiston. There are glassblowers who might help contain phlogiston but the Council wants them to build weapons of war.
Tense, page-turning stuff with the odds stacked against Cornelia and Stefano and their friends. Will they save Lower Venice and each other?
‘This fantasy novel has revolutionised the Italian publishing landscape… The best-received Italian fantasy of recent times.’ Francesco Cialini, one of the top Italian fantasy reviewers
‘A debut that’s become the talk of the industry.’ Rotte Narrativa
‘In her debut novel, Linda Ghio transforms Venice into a labyrinth of light and shadow, where every canal hides secrets and dangers. The story unfolds through secrets and twists, where each character is a pawn on a rapidly moving chessboard, revealing, move by move, a power game centred on life itself, in all its forms. Venice is the pivotal element, its bridges rising high and descending into the depths, its rooftops and canals becoming the stage for Cornelia and Stefano’s exploits. But the mystery comes from afar, and the two protagonists can do nothing but pursue it, losing themselves in a labyrinth that seems to play with them, a maze from which only thanks to their ingenuity and their uniqueness will they be able to emerge, perhaps safe and sound.’ Il Libraio
‘My enthusiasm for this novel is total: the writing is fluid and elegant, the investigation gripping, and the book demonstrates how the steampunk genre can become a voice for mature and passionate reflection. A powerful debut, highly recommended.’ Martina Ventura, fantasy reviewer
‘Cornelia’s mechanical heart immediately sets the tone for a city where flesh and gears coexist. A solid and thoroughly enjoyable read — one I’d recommend even to readers who don’t usually pick up fantasy.’ Melograno Nero book club
‘Ghio transports us into a Venice that feels at once familiar and alien, where alchemy and science fuse in a tightly wound spiral at the very heart of the story – where the impossible becomes painfully possible, and where things, and people, are not always what they seem. The author weaves together mythological elements drawn from distant traditions and blends them seamlessly, delivering a narrative that moves swiftly and compellingly from chapter to chapter.’ Fantasy Magazine
‘I was immediately captivated by the author’s writing, which transports us to a smoky steampunk Venice, full of fantastical elements, such as clockwork automatons, alchemists, and lamias. The worldbuilding is truly well constructed, and plenty of Venetian terminology is used to introduce the local customs, the techniques of the glass masters, and the geography of the city itself. This is an alternate Venice, whose bellicose rulers jealously guard their industrial secrets and are at odds with neighbouring powers. A truly unique book that captivated me from the first pages and which I highly recommend. Last but not least, the volume is enriched with beautiful illustrations and reproductions of steampunk advertisements and various notes on glass art and alchemy.’ The Fantasy Herald
Sales
- Oscar Fantastica/Mondadori Italy – lead title October 2025
Material: : Italian edition, pdf and complete English MS