The Assassin of Venice

There are so many books by Alyssa Palombo that I’m excited to read, but I was happy to start with her newest work of historical fiction: The Assassin of Venice, set in Renaissance Italy. With courtesans, assassins, and cruel schemes in the name of political power, this is an engrossing and memorable novel.

Special thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Review

The year is 1538, and Valentina is a well-known courtesan in Venice… with a secret side hustle as an assassin. After tragedy struck 11 years prior, she’s made Venice her home and is both skilled at seduction and reliable in accomplishing her deadly assignments. The Council of Ten—a secretive and powerful set of rulers—seem to know all, and Valentina’s only job is to obey their assassination orders. As a woman in her profession, she has the kind of access and position that makes her an asset to the Council of Ten. But when they order her to kill her lover, Bastiano—the father of her young daughter—they’ve gone too far. Valentina must find a way out of this mess, even if it means eliminating one of the most powerful men in Venice.

From the very beginning, The Assassin of Venice is easy to fall into. I love the way the backdrop of 1538 Venice is drawn, from its canals to its political powers to the courtesans who make a good living there. Valentina is a formidable woman herself, both courtesan and deadly assassin. But she’s not completely ruthless or without moral compass; she does what she has to do, and justifies her killings as eliminating bad men… and also keeping herself (and her daughter) safe. Valentina is loving to Bastiano and their child, she’s a loyal friend, and she’s determined to do what is right, however it may look to others.

It’s not often I read about courtesans or assassins, let alone both in one book, and it was fun to get into these characters and this shadowy world. Much of the first half of the novel sets the stage, showing Valentina in action, but also making her doubt a recent kill for the first time. Was the man actually innocent? And if so, what does that mean for her and her assignments? But when she’s ordered to kill her lover Bastiano, things escalate even more. How can she uncover a powerful man’s secrets in order to save the lives of the two people who matter the most to her? What is she willing to do to save her daughter?

The Assassin of Venice is action-packed and smart, and it puts our characters into seemingly impossible circumstances. But I love how cunning Valentina is, her friendship with a fellow courtesan, and the strength she shows throughout the novel. I also enjoyed the glimpses into her past in 1527, when she went by a different name and experienced a life-changing loss, and how it comes back around in the end. As much as I love these characters, I wouldn’t hesitate to read more books set in this world.

Audiobook

Nicol Zanzarella is an excellent narrator for The Assassin of Venice. She breathes life into Valentina, capturing her strength and courage well. She also speaks with the kind of Italian accent that, for me, made the audiobook much more immersive. It felt like I was whisked back in time to 16th century Italy, making the story that much more vivid.

Final Thoughts

The Assassin of Venice is an utterly captivating novel. It has historical details, emotionally compelling trials, strong characters, and a fast pace that keeps it engaging throughout. I loved getting to know these characters and seeing them navigate difficult choices. This is the kind of novel I need to read more of! Though this is only my first time reading Alyssa Palombo, I have all of her other books high on my TBR, so look out for more reviews of her work.

Get the Book

You can buy The Assassin of Venice here – it’s available as a hardcover, ebook, and audiobook.

The Assassin of Venice by Alyssa Palombo
Audiobook Narrator	Nicol Zanzarella
Audience	Adult
Genre	Historical Mystery
Setting	Venice, Italy
Book Length	320 pages; 10 hours
Format I Read	Audiobook (NetGalley ARC)
Original Publication Date	June 18, 2024
Publisher	Crooked Lane Books; Dreamscape Media

Official Summary

A Renaissance courtesan must choose between love and duty in this high stakes 16th-century mystery, perfect for fans of Madeline Hunter and Rhys Bowen.

Valentina Riccardi is many things: beautiful, cultured, deadly. As one of Venice’s famous courtesans, she’s perfectly positioned to seduce powerful men, get them alone, and assassinate them. Spies. Traitors. Who they are doesn’t matter—only that they made an enemy of the Council of Ten, the shadowy and seemingly omniscient power from which Valentina takes her orders without question.

Venice is her home, and after losing everything once before to an invading army, there is nothing she won’t do to protect her city, for there is nothing she loves more.

Almost nothing.

She vowed to never fall in love again, but Valentina can’t help but give her heart to Bastiano Bragadin, a fellow assassin. But when Bastiano starts asking the wrong questions, Valentina receives a new assignment: kill him.

Yet the more Valentina learns about the Council of Ten, the more she wonders if they are truly acting in the interest of the Venetian state, or using her for their own dark ambitions. If Valentina is to save Bastiano, she must untangle their conspiracy—with the help of her fellow courtesans—before it’s too late.

The Assassin of Venice is a captivating, sensual, high stakes read that brings 16th-century Venice to life, and draws on the fascinating real history of both Venetian cortigiane oneste—“honest courtesans”—and Renaissance Venice’s sprawling intelligence service.