The Madman of Venice

by Sophie Masson

The London home of Matthew Ashby is visited by the beautiful, famous half-Venetian musician, Emilia Lanier, begging him for help. A young Venetian girl, Sarah, has been accused of witchcraft by a wealthy merchant's wife, and has since disappeared. Is she in hiding? Or worse - kidnapped or murdered?
So with his daughter, Celia, and his clerk, Ned, Matthew Ashby sets off for Venice and into a greater mystery than could ever be imagined. They must draw on all their wits and ingenuity to find allies in unexpected places. When Master Ashby is kidnapped, Ned and Celia have to race against the clock to find him as well as Sarah - but nothing is as it seems, not least the mysterious Madman of Venice ...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Mystery, Historical, Italy, Middle Grade, Romance

293 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Born in Indonesia of French parents, Sophie Masson was sent to live with her paternal grandmother in Toulouse, France, when she was just a baby and lived there till she was nearly five, when her parents came back from Indonesia and took her to Australia. All the rest of her childhood, the family stayed in Australia, with frequent trips back to France, and this dual heritage underpins a good deal of Sophie's work.
Sophie's first book appeared in 1990 and since then she has published more than seventy books, for children, young adults and adults. Her books have been published in Australia, the USA, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and many other countries. She has also had many short stories and articles published in newspapers, magazines, and online journals.
Sophie holds a BA and M.Litt in French and English literature, and a PhD in Creative Practice. A former Chair of the Australian Society of Authors, she is the current Chair (2021) of the New England Writers' Centre and of the Small Press Network. She is also the President committee of the New England and North West sub-branch of the Children's Book Council of Australia, NSW branch.
Sophie has received several awards for her creative work, including the Patricia Wrightson Prize in the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, and the YA category of the Aurealis Awards. In 2019 she received an AM in the Order of Australia for her significant service to literature as an author, a publisher, and through service to literary organisations.
Sophie's website is at www.sophiemassonauthor.com
She has a writing blog at www.firebirdfeathers.com
Her You Tube channel, with trailers to many of her books, is at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWLa...
She is also a regular contributor to the popular authorship blog Writer Unboxed, www.writerunboxed.com

Reviews

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Truth be told, the only reason I picked this book up from the library was because my ten year old slipped it into the stack of books we were going to check out. Why? Because she thought I would like it. I was skeptical, but didn't want to hurt her feelings. I shall be thanking her for picking out this book for me.

The Madman of Venice was a pleasant surprise. Simply put, it was a well rounded delightful read that I highly enjoyed. Sophie Masson's novel is well thought out, her plot twists and turns kept the story interesting, her characters developed nicely, and she threw in a wonderful dose of historical fact. It's the kind of book that is simply a joy to read.

[Carrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK. I am never reading reviews for a book I'm considering reading again. Going into this, I was worried, because some reviews were pretty negative, and I was afraid I wouldn't enjoy the story. Well, Sophie Masson, you have another fan. I loved this book.

Prepare for a full-on gushfest.

So Venice in 1602 is basically the perfect time/place for an author to set a novel if they want me to read it. As I mentioned in a status update on this book, What's better than beautiful people running around 17th-century Venice having adventures? And the author managed to do something that hardly any other writer has ever done: create a female character that I could stomach. Sure, Celia was a little bit too practical, but at least she made sense, and I found I liked her.

The plot was very well thought-out. Everything made sense, and there were even a few twists here and there. That's not to say everything blind-sided me, but I did enjoy reading it.

Masson's prose was nice, too. Several good word plays and quite a few cases of imagery that really amazed me. Make fun if you like, but I really, really enjoyed this book. Bottom line: If you like historical fiction with Shakespearean themes, then this is it.

Five stars out of five.

[Pamela Bronson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this book. The woman who checked me out at the library sale where I bought it said that it's great and added, graciously, that if she'd seen it the night before at the members-only sale she would have bought it. I mentioned that it only had three stars on Goodreads, but she said Goodreads isn't reliable. She may or may not be right in general, but in this case I think three stars is spot on.

It turned out to be for teens, which is often a good thing. But I found it strangely difficult to pay attention to it. I kept having to go back and reread bits to figure out what was happening. I thought it might be me - I do have ADHD and this kind of thing does happen to me, but I found it much, much less of a problem with the next books I read. It must be something to do with the way it's written - maybe because the young characters talk so much and make crazy plans so rapidly.

It would have been interesting to learn about old Venice, but I already knew a fair amount from other historical novels, like Donna Jo Napoli's wonderful Daughter of Venice. It bothered me a lot that the Doge is called the Duke in this book. While the words are related, the Doge of Venice was the elected chief executive of a republic, not a hereditary nobleman - the word Duke gives the wrong idea.

It was somewhat enjoyable. There are a lot of direct references and indirect allusions to Shakespeare and his works. The characters are likable.

Once the mystery was solved and the villains had their comeuppance, there remained an obstacle to one of the love matches, that of religious difference. There seemed to be an anachronistic attitude that it shouldn't really matter.

I plan to donate this book to the library where I bought it. Maybe the volunteer who checked me out will manage to buy it next time - that would be a happy ending.

[Kat · Rating 2 out of 5]

The only thing I really liked about this book was the poem "written" by the main character in the front of the book. The rest of it was just not great. The two main characters Ned and Celia were very boring and not very well developed. There romance felt very cringy, cliche and forced. I mean Celia was not interested in Ned AT ALL until she found out he was interested in her, and then all of a sudden she is head over heels in love with him... Another thing that I found disappointing was the plot itself. This book was a mystery novel, but it was probably one of the most predictable books I've ever read. And, although I could tell the author had done some research into Venice in medieval times, her knowledge seemed minimal at best. The book was not very historically accurate.
***SPOILERS***
The evil Countess who's ships were the only one's not being targeted by ruthless pirates was the one paying the pirates!!!! Gasp! Who could have guessed. And, the girl who looked like the Count was actually his bastard child!!! NO! Really?

[Suzie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was really keen to get into this book but I found it a bit boring and obvious. There were themes that could have been further explored to make it more interesting, and there too many love stories for my liking

[Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this book twice now and it's an absolutely beautifully written love and adventure story.

[Cristal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read! Retelling of Shakespeare’s Merchant in Venice with some Romeo and Juliet vibes. Definitely recommend it for younger audiences that like mystery and romance rolled up in one tidy book.

[Arina · Rating 4 out of 5]

While one is enjoying their ride on the infamous Gondolas, another is killing or stealing. Venice in 1602 is a diverse, romantic, and mysterious city that contains secrets of noblemen and pirates. By examining the romance and mystery in The Madman of Venice, it is evident that the author really tries to create a novel for all audiences, which ultimately illustrates that this is a great read.

When beseeched to find a Jewish girl,Sarah Tedeschi, Master Ashby links his investigation of the plaguing of English ships to the mystery of Sarah. After being accused of witchcraft, Sarah vanishes from the Venetian Ghetto and is nowhere to be found. During the investigation of the plaguing of English ships, Dr.Leone states "We will go to the Count...and ask humbly for his help in locating our imprudent friend, who was kidnapped by a gang of island pirates"(Masson 103). As the search for the pirates holding Sarah captive continues,the crew develops friendly relations and some relations even become more than friendly.
Throughout the book, it was always evident how much Ned liked Celia from how his "heart gave its familiar, hopeless leap"(Masson 12). The cute innocence and care Ned had for his crush really brought romance into the book and helped make it even more enjoyable.

With the mystery of Sarah unfolding, pirates, and romance, Sophie Masson was really able to create a great read that would appeal to a diverse audience. Based on a Tale of Two Cities, a new, modern fascinating read was created.

[Nielson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Master Ashby along with his daughter, Celia, and his clerk, Ned, embark on a journey to Venice, Italy to uncover who is behind the pirate attacks plaguing Ashby and other London merchants. They have also agreed to help find a Jewish girl accused of witchcraft who has recently disappeared. As Master Ashy and his cohorts work to solve the mystery, Celia refuses to be left out. She convinces Ned, who is secretly in love with her, to help her discover what happened to Sarah, the missing Jewish girl. After finding themselves in some dangerous and sticky situations, Ned and Celia realize that the pirate attacks and the kidnapping may have been connected, but are they too late? Although the storyline had enough to pull to make me want to read, the writing was choppy and the story was rushed. There were too many details to form a solid plot. The romance was stilted and not believable. And even though this is an o.k. book for young adults, they might pass it up as the cover looks like it is targeted for an older audience.

Choppy writing. Rushed through the story...too many details for form a solid plot. Interesting. Storyline still had enough pull that made me want to read. Romance wasn't built enough...happened to quickly. All the sudden Ned was calling Celia his love and his darling. Good mystery--I read the book quickly. Stilted romance. The cover was too adult-ish looking...I don't think young adults would pick it up.

[Erin Forson · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Madman of Venice
by Sophie Masson
I wanted to love this book, and I really tried. But somewhere after meeting the main character, Ned, and seeing what a reactionary, self-centered, jealous, and short-sighted character he was, it was all I could do to drag myself through the pages. The premise of the novel is that Ned, an orphan working for wealthy merchant Master Ashby as a clerk, accompanies Master Ashby and his beautiful daughter to Venice to investigate the disappearance of a Jewish girl. Ned is in love with Ashby’s daughter, Celia, who is one of those high-spirited British gals who hates being a proper lady (aren’t they all in historical romances?). While investigating the Jewish girl’s disappearance, Celia realizes that Ned loves her. Will she love him back? Will they find the missing girl? Sadly, the mystery is a tad confusing, and the forced history lesson about the plight of Jews in 1600s Venice, seems like an afterthought to the story. The title doesn’t work for the novel, and the story plods along slowly; I can almost see the outline playing out in the prose. Too many pages after meeting Ned, the novel comes to a hyper-dramatic, sappy ending. The most appealing part of this novel is the lovely artwork on the cover.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book isn't being marketed to the right audience. The cover is so serious and adult, and really this is a middle-grade light mystery/romance inspired by Shakespeare's plays, and it shows in the characters and plotting. Celia is a spunky girl who cross-dresses when necessary, like Rosalind, even though she's named after the more shy cousin. Everyone the group from England meets ends up being significant to the plot. The madman in Act 1 is indeed played in Act 3. Some elements are easy to predict, like the wicked Countess' connection to the pirates, but others are less developed and somewhat troubling, namely Sarah's true parentage and connection to the madman.

Masson fails to provide a truly solid sense of time, although she evokes Venice as a place well enough. This a pleasant, quick read with feel-good resolutions to conflicts. The wicked are punished, the just fall in love and all's well that ends well.

[Skylar · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG. I expected some good writing and some Shakespeare, but what I got was 8000% better. I loved Ned; I think he's an adorable character, and I think that Celia is a really great balance character for Ned, as well as just a great character all by herself. I admit, I started off not liking Henri one bit; I honestly thought that he was just a really stuck up pinhead who was going to get in the way of Ned and Celia. I really liked that he wasn't, though; I like how she incorporated him. I loved the plotline, the setting was great, and the villain was absolutely top notch. I also loved the spattering of Shakespeare; very nice touch, beautifully done. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll probably want to punch Ned a couple of times in the head, I guarantee it. If you like Shakespeare, read The Madman of Venice.

[Margaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

I do love books set in Italy and the cover of “The Madman of Venice” seemed quite “adult” …But, here I was tricked. The book is YA/ Teens and therefore, not quite what I expected.

It is a mystery story set in Venice in the seventeenth century and the idea is somewhat appealing. A Jewish girl goes missing from the ghetto and Celia Ashby, who is accompanying her father on a business trip to Venice, decides to do some investigating on her own. The clues point to a very powerful Venetian family and, when her father gets kidnapped, Celia starts thinking that she may be way over her head.

Being a book for younger readers, the characters are very cardboard like and too “modern” for the setting. Celia got on my nerves several times and the writing is just too easy, with no depth or unexpected twists. It reads fast, but is easily forgotten.

[Jules ✨ librarian_finds · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book what feels like over a decade ago but after seeing its ratings and reviews on Goodreads I had to put in a good word for it: never judge a book by its Goodreads rating, because clearly 95% of the people giving it 1-2 stars either 1) don’t know it’s modeled for the Shakespeare play or 2) don’t realize it’s a YA book….or 3) don’t know either point.

This is a delightful, quick read that is positive and feel-good. An excellent pick-me-up sort of story. If you like intricate twists and details then this may not be for you, but if you like a fun book that won’t leave you with anxiety and is based off of Shakespeare, you’ll love this story. To this day it’s truly one of my favorites.

[malune · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was strange how it was advertised as this darker, more mature book when it was actually a milder YA with those type of themes sprinkled in. I thought it was pretty average and kind of forgettable. The characters where just cliché and really unoriginal. Like, the main girl is this blonde young daughter of a rich dude, but surprise! she's actually smart and ambitious and wants to prove herself and that she can do everything the boys can do. Basically, she's just a copy-paste of every. female. lead. ever.

Also! I was told on the blurb that there would be pirates! They literally mention them like two or three times in the entire book! They never show up, they never have a fight or anything. They're just mentioned as a possible danger or whatever. Very dissapointing...

[Monica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up because the plot looked fascinating--a historic mystery set in Venice. Unfortunately, a plot isn't the only thing needed in a good novel. As I read, I found myself hammered over the head with a romantic plot that seemed out of place in this setting. The plucky female character was just self-centered and downright annoying. The gawky male lead was equally annoying. Granted, both of them could have had some character growth by the end of the book, but I'll never know--once I confirmed that my guesses were correct about where the plot was heading, I was relieved to stop reading.

[Dyna Clarisse · Rating 4 out of 5]

fast-paced, unpredicatable plot, rich in culture of the old venice..

the author did a good job writing a mysterious story about conspiracy and tragedy.

i love how connected those unseemingly connected parts came out to be. im not sure if i was just really slow but i never guessed what the importance of the "madman" was in the story.

the only thing that the author didnt
do a good job was the romance part of the story.
It seemed that Celia was totally & completely clueless about Ned's feelings & that she wouldn't have felt something if her aunt didn't tell her anything.

But all in all, it is a good book, it's story amazingly packed in 200+ pages,.

[Sheri · Rating 2 out of 5]

What I liked:
• The setting- Venice long time ago
• The idea of a mystery- where is the Jewish girl?
What I did NOT like:
• The silly romance between the two characters that are investigating the whereabouts of the Jewish girl- it came off too childish for my taste
• Masson did not manage to fully immerse me in the era they were living in. Most of the time I would forget it was supposed to be set hundreds of years ago..
• Overall good concept but executed to much as a children’s book for me to enjoy/ writing too simplistic

[Mary Louise Sanchez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elements of Shakepeare's, The Merchant of Venice and Romeo and Juliet come into play in this story. It is 1602 and Master Ashby, a merchant from London, takes his clerk, Ned,and daughter,Celia, with him to Venice to investigate pirates who are affecting his business. Ned is particularly excited to go because he's been to plays and read books by Shakespeare where Venice is the setting of his dramas. A high stakes, real life drama now ensues when the London people try to find the missing daughter of Master Ashby's friend from the Jewish Venetian Ghetto in the mysterious city on the lagoon.

[Aimee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up when I was in Venice. It's got a fairly interesting plot and the characters are much as you'd expect teenagers to act. The writing was pretty clunky though and had modern phrases and dialogue though it was set in the 1600s. Also it was pretty predictable. However there was one part that surprised me and the characters really weren't too bad. I did get all the way through it so I can't say it was the worst or anything. I'd recommend it if you really just want a fluff book that's a quick read.

[Emily Craven · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a delight to read. The plot had the right amount of twists and turns to keep things interesting, the characters were well rounded, charming and developed well, and the mystery aspect was a lot of fun and took me back to the delight I used to take in YA mysteries in high school. The description of Venice was also brilliant, I felt I was back there but this time actually taking part in city life rather than touring past it.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this in Venice sitting in the cannaregio district where it is set, so a lovely intro to Venice. It loosely follows the plot of the Merchant of Venice, but the writing was sometimes awkward, esp the flirting scenes and the constant use of 'so they explained what had happened' to progress the plot.

[Jens Kuhn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice enough but a bit tame, which is probably ok considering it's really a childrens book.
The descriptions of ancient Venice are virtually non-existent which is a real pity. This book could have been so much more.

[Hannah Wille · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't wait to see all of the places mentioned in this book! It was perfect for anybody going to Venice or anyone who loves adventure and mystery. I now want to read The Merchant of Venice because it was mentioned several times in the plot.

[Shazi A · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was really confusing at the beginning, but towards the middle of the book I began to understand the storyline. By the end, I fully understood how the mystery had unravelled itself and I really enjoyed it and the way it had been cleverly put together!

[Josephine · Rating 3 out of 5]

What saved the book for me was the intriguing location (Venice) and time period.

The story and characters feel a little formulaic. Plucky young adults solve a mystery and save the day, seasoned with a dash of budding romance.

[Jody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sophie Masson can really do no wrong. Every book she writes is an absolute great read and this one was no different. You will feel like you are actually in Venice. Great story and wonderful characters.

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this book. It had a GREAT story line, and the characters were easy to relate to.

[Janet]

The cover is better on the US version

[Jayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good Story - convoluted writing style.