Carnival of Lies by DV Bishop

DV Bishop’s award winning Cesare Aldo crime series has taken readers across Renaissance Florence in the early part of the Sixteenth Century. Each of the first four books, starting with City of Vengeance, were historical crime procedurals. Aldo was part of the Otto, the city police and with his sometimes partner Strocci, solved murders that usually had wider political implications. In the fifth book of the series, Carnival of Lies, Bishop changes register. He not only takes Aldo out of Florence but also delivers an extremely enjoyable combination of thriller and heist novel.

When Carnival of Lies opens, Aldo has quit his position at the Otto but is still helping out by exposing those who are trying to shake down the city’s brothel owners. He is also still working for the ruler of the city Cosimo de Medici by maintaining contact with the Venetian spy Contessa Valentine Coltello. The Contessa tips Aldo off to a plot to kill Medici and while Aldo helps foil that plan, some valuable and potentially damaging documents are stolen by another Venetian operative during the attempt. Aldo is made part of the team dispatched to Venice to recover the documents. Part of the deal is that if he fails Aldo will be banished from Florence.

To talk any more about the plot would be to give away some of its great twists and reveals. But as always, Aldo is the centre of the action and this tale gives Bishop the ability to dig deeply into Aldo’s past. For Aldo had lived in Venice before and there are reasons why he never wanted to return. Bubbling in the background of this book and possibly a set up for the next is also the question of Aldo’s parentage and his mother in particular. While there are plenty of great side characters in this book, clearly Bishop’s favourite is the Contessa, a delightfully scheming presence in both this and the previous book A Divine Fury.

Once again, there is plenty of historical detail, atmosphere and setting to chew on. Bishop takes readers from Florence to Venice and then around Venice in the weeks of Carnivale – from the great to the crumbling houses, masked balls and the recently formed inquisition. And peopled by a range of fascinating characters, some based on real historical figures.

But the driving force of Carnival of Lies is thriller structure and a rollicking heist centrepiece. Bishop delivers in this register just as confidently as he produced historical procedurals in the previous volumes. This is overall another page-turning adventure through Renaissance Italy, and a great set up for future Aldo exploits to come.

Carnival of Lies by DV Bishop

8.5

8.5/10