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The Alvise Marangon Mysteries #1
Ascension
Wonderful . . . I loved being transported to my favourite time in my favourite city' - ANDREA DI ROBILANT'
A special thriller set in the Venetian past - its colours and intrigues so vividly described'- FRANCESCO DA MOSTO
When a young tour guide, Alvise Marangon, offers to help an English Grand Tourist, little does he know that it will lead to his being embroiled in blackmail and conspiracy. To add to his woes, he is then forcibly recruited into the city’s powerful secret service to investigate a murder case. A reluctant spy he may be, but he is a gifted one. Amidst the world of gambling dens and courtesans, something momentous is being planned for the Feast of the Ascension, Venice's most important and spectacular holiday, and it seems that only Alvise can prevent the day turning into bloody mayhem.
A special thriller set in the Venetian past - its colours and intrigues so vividly described'- FRANCESCO DA MOSTO
When a young tour guide, Alvise Marangon, offers to help an English Grand Tourist, little does he know that it will lead to his being embroiled in blackmail and conspiracy. To add to his woes, he is then forcibly recruited into the city’s powerful secret service to investigate a murder case. A reluctant spy he may be, but he is a gifted one. Amidst the world of gambling dens and courtesans, something momentous is being planned for the Feast of the Ascension, Venice's most important and spectacular holiday, and it seems that only Alvise can prevent the day turning into bloody mayhem.
305 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 17, 2015
37 people are currently reading
293 people want to read
About the author
Gregory Dowling
24 books25 followersGregory Dowling grew up in Bristol, UK. He studied English Literature at Christ Church, Oxford. He moved to Italy after graduating and has lived there since 1979, teaching in language schools in Naples, Siena, Verona and eventually Venice, where he has lived since 1981. He is now Associate Professor of American Literature at Ca' Foscari University of Venice. He published four thrillers in the 1980s and 1990s and then devoted himself to academic work and translation. He returned to fiction in 2015, with his novel set in 18th-century Venice, Ascension, and the sequel The Four Horsemen in 2017 (the Alvise Marangon Mysteries).
His academic work mainly concerns British and American poetry; he has published a study of American narrative poetry, a study of the poet David Mason, a guidebook to Byron's Venice and has co-edited two anthologies of 20th-century poetry. He has also published numerous essays and articles on writers from the Romantic period to the present day. He was non-fiction editor for the magazine Able Muse for several years and is responsible for the British section of the Italian poetry magazine Semicerchio. He has also written numerous articles on Venice, and was responsible for the sightseeing pages of the first five editions of the Time Out Guide to Venice. He is on the board of the committee for a new museum in Ravenna devoted to Lord Byron, due to open in 2019.
His academic work mainly concerns British and American poetry; he has published a study of American narrative poetry, a study of the poet David Mason, a guidebook to Byron's Venice and has co-edited two anthologies of 20th-century poetry. He has also published numerous essays and articles on writers from the Romantic period to the present day. He was non-fiction editor for the magazine Able Muse for several years and is responsible for the British section of the Italian poetry magazine Semicerchio. He has also written numerous articles on Venice, and was responsible for the sightseeing pages of the first five editions of the Time Out Guide to Venice. He is on the board of the committee for a new museum in Ravenna devoted to Lord Byron, due to open in 2019.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
March 9, 2025
Wonderful and gripping mystery!
4.8 stars rounded up to 5, but only because the author was lazy enough to include only a few meager lines as historical notes, when he could have enlightened the reader in a better way.
As for the mystery itself, the main character, the side ones and the setting, my rating is 5 full stars, I really loved it !!!!
---> If you like historical settings and Italian city like Venice, I recommend it!
Readable as a standalone, since it leaves nothing hanging, but there is also a book #2 ( series : The Alvise Marangon Mysteries ), which I already own and will read as soon as possible.
____PLOT IN SHORT ___ Venice, under the Dogeship of Pietro Grimani ( 1741-1752 ).
Alvise Marangon is a young man born in Venice, but raised by his mother, a theater actress, in England.
Returning to Venice to try his hand at art, after a couple of years he decided to earn a living as a tour guide (cicerone, is the old Italian word), working in tandem with his faithful gondolier friend Bepi.
Thanks to Alvise's perfect bilingualism, they work exclusively with English tourists.
One day they take on a boy and his tutor as clients, both interested in esotericism and who will meet mysterious and suspicious people, dragging Alvise into a network of murders, criminals, blackmailers and spies.
In fact, one of the greatest authorities in Venice will demand that Alvise become an agent in his service, under penalty of prison on false charges.
Days of investigations, disguises, kidnappings, escapes and fortunately also desperate rescues will follow, until Alvise, with the help of his friends, will find the truth.
___****______ **** ______
__MAIN CHARACTER ___ The story is told in the first person by Alvise, who is a sunny, spontaneous, lively character with a subtle irony that makes reading fun, even in moments of great tension.
The humor is never forced or exaggerated to be annoying, on the contrary it is well-dosed by the writer with wit and fully conveys the way of being cheerful and so little inclined to worry about the consequences of words and actions, of the main character.
Alvise will not fail to make you become his fan.
In addition to his sympathy, he proves to be a witty and enterprising guy, full of affection towards his friends and generous to the point of wanting to help even when it would not be convenient for him.
His only flaw is perhaps his loose tongue, he cannot hold back his sarcasm even in front of the authorities and despite having taken a vow of secrecy, he cannot help but be sincere.
Well, I also liked him for this!
___ SIDE CHARACTERS___ They are divided into 4 groups:
- the small circle of people dear to Alvise
- the authorities with whom he is forced to collaborate
- the clients
- the evil ones
Each character has their own peculiarity and each of them (even those that in a film we would call the extras) is useful to make the story more fun, more intriguing, more mysterious, more exciting, more suspenseful ... depending on the case and the moment.
I find them all well described and vivid, so much so that I almost believe I really know them.
___ DIALOGUES__ The dialogues are well written and thanks to the description of the tones of voice we can perfectly imagine the characters while they recite their lines, something that helps to define the atmosphere of the moment, whether it is light or threatening and full of suspense.
___ SETTING ___ In this case the city becomes the co-protagonist of the story.
Its beauty is made of luxurious palaces with foundations in the water, significant monuments in the history of the ancient republic and still existing nowadays, lagoons and canals on which gondolas and boats of different types parade day and night, fabulous and large squares where the festive crowd pours in full of colors and masks, dark nights in which only few lanterns reveal the human figures hidden under tricorn hats and cloaks...
Dowling's descriptions take you directly to the first half of the 18th century of the Venetian Republic and you can enjoy its timeless charm to the full while reading the book.
___MYSTERY____ It seems more complicated than it is, but until the end the reader remains wrapped up in uncertainty and doubt.
Perhaps I was more fascinated by Alvise's way of operating and the constant trouble he finds himself in, rather than by the mystery of the murder.
---> I mean, I was so caught up in the whole adventure that I wasn't focused on wanting to know who killed who at all costs.
I think that the strength of this thriller is precisely this and I think that a good film director could really make a great movie out of it!
There are several characters who are not who they say they are so the twists and turns alternate with the theories that the reader is led to hypothesize, in this way you get to the end of the book without ever having a boring moment.
__ YOU HAVE TO KNOW THAT ___ There are several words in the book that necessarily had to be written in Italian and Venetian, just to make the story more impressive and suggestive, but the author has provided a GLOSSARY, located AT THE END OF THE BOOK.
It is very useful even for me, because despite being Italian I do not know the Venetian words.
___ HISTORICAL NOTES: unfortunately disappointing, they are only a few lines and to know the basic history of the characters who really existed and the politics of Venice and some objects mentioned in the book by name (such as the "Marangona" and the "Bucintoro", but which are not explained during the story or in the glossary and you will have to search for them yourself on the web.)
In a novel in which fiction merges with true history, historical notes by the author are important to me.
I always feel disappointed when they are missing or almost that.
RECOMMENDED READ ?? Off course yes!!
I recommend it to all mystery lovers, even to those who love "cozy mysteries" because:
- there are no gruesome scenes
- the language is clean
- there are no sex scenes
Thanks for reading my opinion and sorry for my English, I'm from Italy.
04 March 2025 - MY 5-star REVIEW ABOUT book #2 : The Four Horsemen
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
4.8 stars rounded up to 5, but only because the author was lazy enough to include only a few meager lines as historical notes, when he could have enlightened the reader in a better way.
As for the mystery itself, the main character, the side ones and the setting, my rating is 5 full stars, I really loved it !!!!
---> If you like historical settings and Italian city like Venice, I recommend it!
Readable as a standalone, since it leaves nothing hanging, but there is also a book #2 ( series : The Alvise Marangon Mysteries ), which I already own and will read as soon as possible.
____PLOT IN SHORT ___ Venice, under the Dogeship of Pietro Grimani ( 1741-1752 ).
Alvise Marangon is a young man born in Venice, but raised by his mother, a theater actress, in England.
Returning to Venice to try his hand at art, after a couple of years he decided to earn a living as a tour guide (cicerone, is the old Italian word), working in tandem with his faithful gondolier friend Bepi.
Thanks to Alvise's perfect bilingualism, they work exclusively with English tourists.
One day they take on a boy and his tutor as clients, both interested in esotericism and who will meet mysterious and suspicious people, dragging Alvise into a network of murders, criminals, blackmailers and spies.
In fact, one of the greatest authorities in Venice will demand that Alvise become an agent in his service, under penalty of prison on false charges.
Days of investigations, disguises, kidnappings, escapes and fortunately also desperate rescues will follow, until Alvise, with the help of his friends, will find the truth.
___****______ **** ______
__MAIN CHARACTER ___ The story is told in the first person by Alvise, who is a sunny, spontaneous, lively character with a subtle irony that makes reading fun, even in moments of great tension.
The humor is never forced or exaggerated to be annoying, on the contrary it is well-dosed by the writer with wit and fully conveys the way of being cheerful and so little inclined to worry about the consequences of words and actions, of the main character.
Alvise will not fail to make you become his fan.
In addition to his sympathy, he proves to be a witty and enterprising guy, full of affection towards his friends and generous to the point of wanting to help even when it would not be convenient for him.
His only flaw is perhaps his loose tongue, he cannot hold back his sarcasm even in front of the authorities and despite having taken a vow of secrecy, he cannot help but be sincere.
Well, I also liked him for this!
___ SIDE CHARACTERS___ They are divided into 4 groups:
- the small circle of people dear to Alvise
- the authorities with whom he is forced to collaborate
- the clients
- the evil ones
Each character has their own peculiarity and each of them (even those that in a film we would call the extras) is useful to make the story more fun, more intriguing, more mysterious, more exciting, more suspenseful ... depending on the case and the moment.
I find them all well described and vivid, so much so that I almost believe I really know them.
___ DIALOGUES__ The dialogues are well written and thanks to the description of the tones of voice we can perfectly imagine the characters while they recite their lines, something that helps to define the atmosphere of the moment, whether it is light or threatening and full of suspense.
___ SETTING ___ In this case the city becomes the co-protagonist of the story.
Its beauty is made of luxurious palaces with foundations in the water, significant monuments in the history of the ancient republic and still existing nowadays, lagoons and canals on which gondolas and boats of different types parade day and night, fabulous and large squares where the festive crowd pours in full of colors and masks, dark nights in which only few lanterns reveal the human figures hidden under tricorn hats and cloaks...
Dowling's descriptions take you directly to the first half of the 18th century of the Venetian Republic and you can enjoy its timeless charm to the full while reading the book.
___MYSTERY____ It seems more complicated than it is, but until the end the reader remains wrapped up in uncertainty and doubt.
Perhaps I was more fascinated by Alvise's way of operating and the constant trouble he finds himself in, rather than by the mystery of the murder.
---> I mean, I was so caught up in the whole adventure that I wasn't focused on wanting to know who killed who at all costs.
I think that the strength of this thriller is precisely this and I think that a good film director could really make a great movie out of it!
There are several characters who are not who they say they are so the twists and turns alternate with the theories that the reader is led to hypothesize, in this way you get to the end of the book without ever having a boring moment.
__ YOU HAVE TO KNOW THAT ___ There are several words in the book that necessarily had to be written in Italian and Venetian, just to make the story more impressive and suggestive, but the author has provided a GLOSSARY, located AT THE END OF THE BOOK.
It is very useful even for me, because despite being Italian I do not know the Venetian words.
___ HISTORICAL NOTES: unfortunately disappointing, they are only a few lines and to know the basic history of the characters who really existed and the politics of Venice and some objects mentioned in the book by name (such as the "Marangona" and the "Bucintoro", but which are not explained during the story or in the glossary and you will have to search for them yourself on the web.)
In a novel in which fiction merges with true history, historical notes by the author are important to me.
I always feel disappointed when they are missing or almost that.
RECOMMENDED READ ?? Off course yes!!
I recommend it to all mystery lovers, even to those who love "cozy mysteries" because:
- there are no gruesome scenes
- the language is clean
- there are no sex scenes
Thanks for reading my opinion and sorry for my English, I'm from Italy.
04 March 2025 - MY 5-star REVIEW ABOUT book #2 : The Four Horsemen
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
December 26, 2016
Video-review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKiMt...
Featured in my Top 20 Books I Read in 2016: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4X6OQ...
A thrilling ride through 18th Century Venice that's constantly playing with genres and defies expectations time and again. Also amazingly accurate on a historical level, and a must-read if you're visiting Venice and wanna know more about some of the town's oddities.
Featured in my Top 20 Books I Read in 2016: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4X6OQ...
A thrilling ride through 18th Century Venice that's constantly playing with genres and defies expectations time and again. Also amazingly accurate on a historical level, and a must-read if you're visiting Venice and wanna know more about some of the town's oddities.
May 20, 2017
The *real* mystery is how this perfectly-okay genre novel made it onto my TBR list.
September 1, 2019
History is an illusion. The real truths of the cosmos are perpetual and unchanging. p37
In this imaginative historical fiction, GD dives in to the heart of illusion and intrigue that propel a clever, laid back narrator to untangle a web of shady associations among a cast of colourful characters, gliding along the elaborate system of canals or slinking the twisted alleyways between the grand cathedral squares. Along the way, the reader is rewarded by glimpses of daily life in the Venice of 1749 and the differences that dominated the various classes that consorted there.
I had decided early in life that most people were unfathomable and just to be taken as they were. p93
It is probably my own fault that I was frequently confused between all the sets of brothers...were there only two sets or were there three significant sibling bonds hidden in the plot? Somehow I did not feel it was urgent to keep flipping back to check on the about-faces, ambiguities and red herrings but rather simply immersed myself in the atmosphere, which will probably lead me to grabbing the next volume when it becomes available.
Too many worse things had happened by this point for the setback to upset me unduly. p267
4/7 in my system, 3.5 to almost fit GR
August 4, 2023
I saw this book in a charity shop , the cover caught my eye as you see a woman in a red cloak appearing to run down a passage way. I opened up the book and too my joy there was a map
of Venice- I always love it when there are maps in
a book.
I've visited Venice , so it was nice to rediscover areas of the city via this read.
It has been a somewhat slow read until midway when the pace and adventure of this thriller intensified with Alvise Marangon life being put at risk several times as a reluctant spy for Venice's secret service .
I liked Alvise as a character , clever and somewhat misleading to people before they realise how good he is at the end.
of Venice- I always love it when there are maps in
a book.
I've visited Venice , so it was nice to rediscover areas of the city via this read.
It has been a somewhat slow read until midway when the pace and adventure of this thriller intensified with Alvise Marangon life being put at risk several times as a reluctant spy for Venice's secret service .
I liked Alvise as a character , clever and somewhat misleading to people before they realise how good he is at the end.
January 20, 2023
So so. It did not hold my interest enough for me to want to read book two.
December 16, 2023
I liked this book. Coming from a horrible, terrible, not good novel set in Venice, this one is exactly the opposite. Very consciously editing historical facts to make for compelling fiction, it shows late Republic of Venice in all its greatness and its squalor, vices and virtues. Through the eyes of Alvise Marangon, a quintessential Venetian, with a name, Alvise, that can’t be more Venetian, and a surname, Marangon, a kind of boat carpenter that worked in the Arsenale; the bell that rings every night from the Campanile is called the “Marangona”. Alvise finds himself at the center of a series of crimes involving tourists and, possibly, a book. Several “gnaghe”, or male prostitutes, are killed gruesomely; eventually, a tourist Alvise was helping is killed in the same way and he finds himself accused of aiding and abetting.
All in all, it’s a very well put together historical fiction, with plot twists coming in the right number and time, and a good set up for a series of books with the same protagonist. So, a good book for Venetiophiles or fans of historical crime fiction alike.
All in all, it’s a very well put together historical fiction, with plot twists coming in the right number and time, and a good set up for a series of books with the same protagonist. So, a good book for Venetiophiles or fans of historical crime fiction alike.
June 5, 2019
I'm not much on historical thrillers as a general rule, but Dowling did a good job of capturing Venice. He creates a credible character who can pass on different societal levels, the tone is consistent, the characters are picturesque but potentially accurate, and Dowling's tale easily takes us back to the time period. Some of the plot devices seemed a bit repetitive, but I couldn't help liking Alvise Marangon and cheered for him throughout.
May 8, 2023
Good read set in Venice of 1749, you could almost feel and smell it, it was very well researched. I also enjoyed learning about the differences of Italian ( which I have been trying to learn via Duolingo for a few years) and Venetian. The characters were believable and interesting and I still do wish to visit Venice at some point in the future
February 10, 2018
I really enjoyed this book, it's set in my favourite city, Venice, in 1749! Lots of historical detail, lots of lovely stuff about Venice and a murder mystery! I have already downloaded the next one onto my kindle and have started to read it!!
May 19, 2019
Little hard to follow with all of the old Venetian terms. I liked learning the history of the times but it wasn’t as suspenseful or as believable as I would like. Decent read, but I wouldn’t probably recommend it.
March 8, 2021
Excellent thriller set in Venice in 1749. Obviously written by somebody who knows Venice very well indeed, both from a geographical and a historical/cultural perspective. Great storyline, great characters.
March 24, 2017
Yes. I looked forward to reading this...a success all around although a bit...not meh but...although the plot was tight and nice it was a bit too squishy for me. HOWEVER, I loved the characters; I understand a 'next' book is in the works and look forward to it...
July 22, 2018
I found this story to be fascinating. I loved the Historical Venitian setting coupled with the mystery aspect, it gave the story an interesting complexity!
June 13, 2019
Rollicking yarn, well told with aspects of Venetian culture and language added. Great for a light hearted read.
January 6, 2021
Eighteenth century Venice mystery and intrigue. Found it quite engaging with enough period detail to colour in the setting and a likeable accidental ‘agent’ too. Enjoyable enough - no complaints.
July 24, 2021
Sorry, not for me. Just couldn’t get into it or care about any of the characters.
Read
August 8, 2021to-read
May 10, 2022
As good as any modern day thriller except set in medieval Venice. Convincing characters and plausible plot worthy of any spy, espionage writer with even a slight romantic interest.
July 29, 2025
Very enjoyable trip to 18th century Venice. Main characters are very likeable, which makes the whole experience worthwhile. Looking forward to reading the sequel.
June 18, 2018
Complex story set in 18-century Venice. A plot and the foiling thereof are involved. And a young tour guide is the hero of the day.
December 19, 2021
Rating
3.5/5 🌟🌟🌟💫
Spoiler Free Review
Overall, I liked the book, but I wouldnt be in a hurry to pick it up again and I wasn't in a hurry to pick it up while I was reading it. Though I really enjoyed and respect the easy writing style of Dowling and his knowledge of 1700's Venice that was well conveyed to the reader. The story flowed naturally and smoothly.
Positives ✅
Dowling is a professor in Venice and his knowledge of the city really shines through. I enjoyed the description of the city, its social structures, and its culture. The history was seamlessly blended into the storyline and the book was so well thought out and written.
I did appreciate the multiple layers of story that were going on in this book and which were revealed in the end - each suspects role was revealed to the reader and you got that "ahhhh 💡" moment like when you watch a drama and the killer and their reasons are revealed. It would probably make the perfect period drama for TV as it follows the pattern of revealing everything at the very end.
Negatives ❌
I didnt really feel anything for the characters in the book - they found themselves in all kinds of situations but I never felt fear for them, my heart was never really in my mouth, and I didnt feel heartbreak for them. I felt that Dowling was more focused on vividly painting the image of Venice in the 1700's than on his characters, they could have done with a bit more depth.
Lastly, as I already mentioned, I never felt a compulsion to need to pick up the book, I feel like perhaps the first half-three quarters is quite slow and although exciting events happened throughout, it just didn't hook me.
3.5/5 🌟🌟🌟💫
Spoiler Free Review
Overall, I liked the book, but I wouldnt be in a hurry to pick it up again and I wasn't in a hurry to pick it up while I was reading it. Though I really enjoyed and respect the easy writing style of Dowling and his knowledge of 1700's Venice that was well conveyed to the reader. The story flowed naturally and smoothly.
Positives ✅
Dowling is a professor in Venice and his knowledge of the city really shines through. I enjoyed the description of the city, its social structures, and its culture. The history was seamlessly blended into the storyline and the book was so well thought out and written.
I did appreciate the multiple layers of story that were going on in this book and which were revealed in the end - each suspects role was revealed to the reader and you got that "ahhhh 💡" moment like when you watch a drama and the killer and their reasons are revealed. It would probably make the perfect period drama for TV as it follows the pattern of revealing everything at the very end.
Negatives ❌
I didnt really feel anything for the characters in the book - they found themselves in all kinds of situations but I never felt fear for them, my heart was never really in my mouth, and I didnt feel heartbreak for them. I felt that Dowling was more focused on vividly painting the image of Venice in the 1700's than on his characters, they could have done with a bit more depth.
Lastly, as I already mentioned, I never felt a compulsion to need to pick up the book, I feel like perhaps the first half-three quarters is quite slow and although exciting events happened throughout, it just didn't hook me.
April 27, 2016
A fascinating take on Venice
What starts as a normal day at work, ends with Alvise Marangon being swept into dark secrets that are ingrained into the foundations of Venice and its history.
Being half English, Alvise is drawn towards a wealthy Englishman visiting his city. Little does he know that this encounter will forever change his life, relationships and even Venice itself.
I really enjoyed the characters in this story; the way the relationships evolved through the book was very elegantly done. There was everything you could need, family, friends and even a bit of romance.
There are plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing, with the final reveal like the closing of the theater curtains.
The entire story flowed seamlessly from one chapter to another, allowing you to really become a part of the action.
Unfortunately, I don’t speak any Italian. So I found myself taking more time than usual to read through each page. There is a section at the back of the book with the translation, however not all of the phrases are included.
All in all, not necessarily a book I would read a second time, but I definitely do want to visit this amazing city and follow the map on the book’s covers!
Curtana
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review
What starts as a normal day at work, ends with Alvise Marangon being swept into dark secrets that are ingrained into the foundations of Venice and its history.
Being half English, Alvise is drawn towards a wealthy Englishman visiting his city. Little does he know that this encounter will forever change his life, relationships and even Venice itself.
I really enjoyed the characters in this story; the way the relationships evolved through the book was very elegantly done. There was everything you could need, family, friends and even a bit of romance.
There are plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing, with the final reveal like the closing of the theater curtains.
The entire story flowed seamlessly from one chapter to another, allowing you to really become a part of the action.
Unfortunately, I don’t speak any Italian. So I found myself taking more time than usual to read through each page. There is a section at the back of the book with the translation, however not all of the phrases are included.
All in all, not necessarily a book I would read a second time, but I definitely do want to visit this amazing city and follow the map on the book’s covers!
Curtana
Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review
December 15, 2017
Dowling really captures the fabric of Venetian society in this thriller. Venice comes alive with details about gondolas, bookstores, festivals, and daily life in this city on the water. A fast-paced story and likable characters kept me reading!
January 18, 2017
Having recently visited Venice, I found this a interesting read. The action was a bit far fetched but the characters and the geography and time of Venice was of interest. It was a little slow reading in places but mostly good fun.
January 27, 2016
Loved the characters and the scenes of Venice.
December 17, 2016
This was a well-paced read with excellent period detail. Alvise is a smart, likeable, engaging hero, and the cast of secondary characters are equally compelling.
December 22, 2016
A lush and vivid Venetian thriller. Alvise is a great character and an engaging narrator.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews