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Sicilian Avengers
A Novel (Books One & Two)
Part of Sicilian Avengers
By Luigi Natoli
Afterword by Umberto Eco / Translated by Stephen Riggio
Published by Radius Book Group
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
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Table of Contents
About The Book
A thrilling Sicilian saga about the legendary secret sect purported to be forerunners of the Mafia, translated into English for the first time.
Emerging from the dark streets and subterranean caves of Palermo, the Beati Paoli, masked and hooded, mete out their own form of justice to counter the unfettered power and privilege wielded by the aristocracy. For the voiceless, weak, and oppressed, the Beati Paoli are defenders and heroes. Reminiscent of a Dumas novel, Sicilian Avengers is a vibrant, atmospheric fresco of early eighteenth-century Palermo. Onto the stage of the ancient city, Blasco da Castiglione, a bold, brash, orphan adventurer, arrives on a quest to discover his origins and seek his destiny. But this fearless, swashbuckling D’Artagnan-esque hero unwittingly gets caught up in a devious and murderous succession plot involving a powerful noble family. When the Beati Paoli hear about this plot to usurp a rightful inheritance, they spring into action. Their shadowy machinations entangle the charismatic Blasco, who crosses paths with a cast of characters that test his loyalty and resolve in the pursuit of his true identity. The historical accuracy of the novel is complemented by the most meticulous description of Sicily’s capital city ever written. Action-packed and laced with intrigue and chivalrous duels, Sicilian Avengers is a tale of love and hatred, friendship and betrayal, suffering and retribution. As French critic Jean Noël Schifano said, Natoli's novel is “the fifth historical monument of contemporary Italian literature.” This eBook includes the full Book One and Book Two saga plus an afterword by Umberto Eco.
Emerging from the dark streets and subterranean caves of Palermo, the Beati Paoli, masked and hooded, mete out their own form of justice to counter the unfettered power and privilege wielded by the aristocracy. For the voiceless, weak, and oppressed, the Beati Paoli are defenders and heroes. Reminiscent of a Dumas novel, Sicilian Avengers is a vibrant, atmospheric fresco of early eighteenth-century Palermo. Onto the stage of the ancient city, Blasco da Castiglione, a bold, brash, orphan adventurer, arrives on a quest to discover his origins and seek his destiny. But this fearless, swashbuckling D’Artagnan-esque hero unwittingly gets caught up in a devious and murderous succession plot involving a powerful noble family. When the Beati Paoli hear about this plot to usurp a rightful inheritance, they spring into action. Their shadowy machinations entangle the charismatic Blasco, who crosses paths with a cast of characters that test his loyalty and resolve in the pursuit of his true identity. The historical accuracy of the novel is complemented by the most meticulous description of Sicily’s capital city ever written. Action-packed and laced with intrigue and chivalrous duels, Sicilian Avengers is a tale of love and hatred, friendship and betrayal, suffering and retribution. As French critic Jean Noël Schifano said, Natoli's novel is “the fifth historical monument of contemporary Italian literature.” This eBook includes the full Book One and Book Two saga plus an afterword by Umberto Eco.
Excerpt
Ours is not written in any royal constitution, but it is carved in our hearts; we observe it and force others to observe it: we don 't have soldiers, guards, algozini, corporals; we don 't pay judges; we don 't search the laws for equivocations in order to excuse injustice. We open our ears and hearts to the voices of the weak, to those who don 't have the strength to break that dense network of arrogance within which they struggle to no avail, and to those who have a thirst for justice and ask for it in vain and suffer.
Who acknowledges our authority? No one. Who acknowledges in us the right to exercise justice? No one. Well, we must impose this authority and this right, and we have only one weapon terror and a means to deploy it mystery and shadow. We don 't hide out of cowardice but out of necessity. The shadows multiply our army and awaken the faith of those who cry out for our protection. He who would not dare seek the help of a legal magistrate in order to defend himself, his house, the honor of his women because the appeal would expose him to the ire, to the reprisals, to the revenges of a baron or an abbot willingly confides, once in the shadow, the pain and violence suffered; a man who he doesn 't see and doesn 't know will listen to his complaint. We determine if he has been wronged. A mysterious warning reaches the oppressor in his own palazzo and the complicit magistrate in his seat; do they heed it? We hope for nothing more. Do they disregard it and carry on with their bullying, and continue with the offense? We punish, and we avenge the offense. No one sees the punishing arm; thus, no one can avoid it. . . . This is our justice. It never punishes an innocent person, and it has wiped away many tears.
Who acknowledges our authority? No one. Who acknowledges in us the right to exercise justice? No one. Well, we must impose this authority and this right, and we have only one weapon terror and a means to deploy it mystery and shadow. We don 't hide out of cowardice but out of necessity. The shadows multiply our army and awaken the faith of those who cry out for our protection. He who would not dare seek the help of a legal magistrate in order to defend himself, his house, the honor of his women because the appeal would expose him to the ire, to the reprisals, to the revenges of a baron or an abbot willingly confides, once in the shadow, the pain and violence suffered; a man who he doesn 't see and doesn 't know will listen to his complaint. We determine if he has been wronged. A mysterious warning reaches the oppressor in his own palazzo and the complicit magistrate in his seat; do they heed it? We hope for nothing more. Do they disregard it and carry on with their bullying, and continue with the offense? We punish, and we avenge the offense. No one sees the punishing arm; thus, no one can avoid it. . . . This is our justice. It never punishes an innocent person, and it has wiped away many tears.
Product Details
- Publisher: Radius Book Group (October 22, 2024)
- Length: 1200 pages
- ISBN13: 9781635769326
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Raves and Reviews
Ours is not written in any royal constitution, but it is carved in our hearts; we observe it and force others to observe it: we don't have soldiers, guards, algozini, corporals; we don't pay judges; we don't search the laws for equivocations in order to excuse injustice. We open our ears and hearts to the voices of the weak, to those who don't have the strength to break that dense network of arrogance within which they struggle to no avail, and to those who have a thirst for justice and ask for it in vain and suffer.
Who acknowledges our authority? No one. Who acknowledges in us the right to exercise justice? No one. Well, we must impose this authority and this right, and we have only one weapon—terror—and a means to deploy it—mystery and shadow. We don't hide out of cowardice but out of necessity. The shadows multiply our army and awaken the faith of those who cry out for our protection. He who would not dare seek the help of a legal magistrate in order to defend himself, his house, the honor of his women—because the appeal would expose him to the ire, to the reprisals, to the revenges of a baron or an abbot—willingly confides, once in the shadow, the pain and violence suffered; a man who he doesn't see and doesn't know will listen to his complaint. We determine if he has been wronged. A mysterious warning reaches the oppressor in his own palazzo and the complicit magistrate in his seat; do they heed it? We hope for nothing more. Do they disregard it and carry on with their bullying, and continue with the offense? We punish, and we avenge the offense. No one sees the punishing arm; thus, no one can avoid it. . . . This is our justice. It never punishes an innocent person, and it has wiped away many tears.
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