The Book of Unholy Mischief by Elle Newmark

Synopsis

It is 1498, and the whole of Venice is abuzz. Hidden somewhere in the labyrinthine city is an ancient book, rumoured to contain thorny heresies and secrets of immeasurable power. Luciano, a penniless orphan, has been plucked from the street and taken on as apprentice to the chef at the doge's palace. While learning the alchemy of cooking, he quickly finds himself entangled in the search for the ancient tome, even suspecting the chef, his maestro, may be concealing valuable information. But lurking in the wings are some of the most powerful, dangerous men in Venice, and Luciano's secret will lead him through a perilous maze to the center of an intrigue that will test his deepest desires and loyalties.

Review

This is a very elegantly written book and my original fears of it just being a historical Da Vinci Code went unfounded and the book quickly got into its stride, with the interaction of the principle characters being very believable and often bringing a smile to my face, almost as if you were getting to know them.

Since two of the main characters are a chef and his apprentice, a lot of the writing centres around food, and the descriptions of the said food are so elegant and detailed they leave you hungry for the real thing

The plot itself is intriguing with enough threads woven through it to keep it interesting, but not so many as to make it a heavy read.

If i did have one negative comment it was that the book, on a couple of occasions, jumps time periods that interrupts rather than adds to the plot, but on a whole the book flows well  

Rating

I give this book 7 out of 10, well written, in the most. and enjoyable

WW