Iago: A Novel - Tapa dura

"[A] familiar coming-of-age story with a touch of Elizabethan finery. . . . A likable page-turner about love, war and conspiracy in the early 16th century." - Kirkus "Snodin gives readers a closeup of an unforgettable villain: his charm, his strength, his capacity for brutality and manipulation . . . . while simultaneously taking readers on a dark, fast-paced adventure with satisfying moments of humor and romance." - Publishers Weekly "Readers won't need a thorough knowledge of Shakespere's "Othello" to enjoy this vivid. . . novel, which is filled with all the drama, intrigue, and violence of Renaissance Italy--and even a little romance on the side." - Library Journal "richly cinematic" - AARP "I thoroughly enjoyed being swept up in the setting; I swam with the characters in the muck of the Venetian canals and ran for shelter in the Paduan monastery where they briefly hid. . . for pure entertainment, Iago hit its mark." - The Washington Independent Review of Books"Finely drawn characters inhabit this riveting novel. . . . a many layered story righ in its unfolding. . . Snodin weaves a masterful tale of treachery as various truths and sedition are uncovered in a compelling march to the conclusion." - About.com"Iago is back and more deadly than ever. . . . The novel pulls us through one just-missed-him confrontation after another, leaving a slick trail of blood, sleeping throats cut and chests pierced. . . . [Snodin drops] witty allusions as freely as Puck sprinkles love potion around the forest. And the large cast of characters is wonderfully well drawn. . ." - The Washington Post

Wounded in love, tormented by his past, Shakespeare's most complex villain is brought magnificently to life in this tale of two adversaries - one an accused killer; the other, one of the most powerful men in Venice. Having escaped from Cyprus, accused of the murders of the governor, known as the Moor, and his lovely young wife, Iago is now locked in battle with Annibale Malipiero, known as II Terribile, the chief inquisitor of Italy's greatest city. Malipiero is repelled by the more brutal tasks of the interrogante. His obsession is with the very nature of evil. What makes a man into a murderer, he longs to know? Is Iago a lone psychopath, or does he lie at the heart of a more widespread Ottoman conspiracy? Malipiero knows that torture will not provide him with the answers he seeks. But there is, perhaps, a more audacious and unusual route to the truth...Exuberantly inventive, thrillingly complex, and richly entertaining, "Iago" will captivate fans already familiar with Shakespeare and appeal to anyone who loves a rich historical novel. "Iago" marks the emergence of a remarkable new literary voice.