I’m currently finalizing my novel, Bequest of Shadows, a dual-timeline story set in modern-day Venice and early-seventeenth-century Rome.
When young American Zoe Lee unexpectedly inherits a palazzo in Venice from her great-aunt, she arrives expecting a magnificent but neglected relic of another age. Instead, she discovers clues suggesting that her inheritance may include something far more valuable: a long-lost painting by the Baroque master Caravaggio.
Zoe’s story is intertwined with that of Lena Antognetti, a young silk weaver who posed for several of Caravaggio’s paintings and became one of his lovers. Lena’s relationship with the turbulent painter unfolds alongside clues to the origin of the lost masterpiece.
As Zoe searches for the painting, she is drawn to a mysterious and charismatic gondolier whose loyalties are uncertain. When others learn of the painting, Zoe finds herself in danger from those willing to do anything to possess it.
To uncover the truth, Zoe must unravel a centuries-old legacy before the secrets of the past claim her as well.
Bequest of Shadows will be released in January, 2027 through Amazon and Laurel Vista Publishing.
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