Ritual of Fire by D.V. Bishop is the third book in the Cesare Aldo series.
We are once again in Florence, 1538. It is hot and there is a persistent drought. If the area does not get some substantial rain soon, crops will be lost. But there’s more at stake, people’s health and sanity matter especially when you fire them up.
Heat and Murder
While most people fill their days trying to stay cool, others are plotting murders. Murders that stage their victims as if they are an exhibit. To serve as a warning, a foreboding of what is to come.
Confronted with that and in this relentless heat, the authorities must stay one step ahead of the killer. And Florence’s main criminal court (that oversees investigations) is the Otto de Guardia e Balia. Staying a step ahead means that there is no room for egos. Sadly, Florence is filled with them.
Working Together
Due to the conflicts (book 2) between the Otto’s constable Carlo Strocchi and officer Cesare Aldo, related to the death of another officer and Aldo’s sexual orientation, Aldo is now working in the Dominion, the countryside around the City of Florence. That means the officer most likely to solve the murders in the city, is not around.
Strocchi is now married with a little girl, Bianca. His wife, Tomasia, has excellent people skills and understands human relationships better than her husband. She guides Strocchi along during his investigation and even encourages him to patch things up with Aldo. The world is not black and white, she knows that all too well. And if he wants to become an officer, Strocchi needs to learn to read people.
Strocchi investigates the murder in the city. The victim is Sandro Dovizi, a merchant. Aldo examines the corpse of a man found inside a burned-out villa in the countryside. The victim is Benozzo Scarlatti, another merchant. Upon examination of the scene with help from Doctor Saul Orvieto, it is established that Scarlatti died days before the fire was set to his estate. In fact, he could have died before Dovizi was murdered. But why? Why kill an old man, then hide his body, and later set fore to his estate?
Motives
As the events keep on unfolding, several lines of investigation emerge. Why kill merchants? What do they have in common? And why is it that at the same time, Florence is plastered in proclamations about the monk Girolamo Savonarola?
Despite being dead for forty years, the monk still has a hold over the city. What is more, the young men and boys who formed his little army, the Fanciulli, are still around. When a third merchant, Luca Uccello is murdered, it is time for Aldo and Strocchi to compare notes and start working as a team because what was happening now might just be the extension of something that started decades ago.
Notes
I could give you more details about the book or hint more at the plot but I really want you to read it yourself to see how it all unfolds. Book three is much better than book two and rivals book one in plot and pace.
Book one set the scene for the series. Introducing the institute of the Otto, exposing us to the power struggles in Florence, and showing us the vulnerabilities of the series’ main characters.
Book two is the bridge to book three in the sense that it makes you understand how badly someone wanted to hide “something” and how badly others would try to get their hands on “it.”
What “it” is becomes clear in book three and once exposed, it changes the pace of the story. It makes Strocchi realize how much he still has to learn. To work with or be friends with Aldo, he does not have to agree 100% with everything Aldo says or does. But before he speaks his mind, he should ask Aldo why he did something. Reasons, motives matters. Aldo in turn gets to know himself better. He realizes what he does best, where he belongs, and how close both came to be killed during this investigation.
Bishop’s Aldo series has quickly become a favorite. I have my preorder in for book four, A Devine Fury. If you like historical fiction, Italy, Florence under the rule of de Medici Family, and strong characters, this is for you. Highly recommended reading. My other book reviews are here.
P.S.:
D.V. Bishop is active on Instagram and very approachable. He kindly sent me the bookmark you see in the picture. Thank you again, sir!