Told in the first person by best selling author, Bella Tyson, who is suffering from writer’s block. One day she receives a mysterious invitation to stay in Venice, along with a book about Venetian folklore. Deciding to take up the offer, she travels to Venice where she meets Will Carmichael, an Interpol agent. Together they end up trying solve some rather gruesome and bizarre murders which seem to link to the book Bella has been sent.

What to say! It starts out really well. The writing style is engaging and the narrator’s voice, which is lighthearted and very conversational, pulls you in. The story is entertaining, fast paced and quite humorous. It’s an intriguing read and I was quite eager to keep turning the pages to find out what happened next. However, it does contain some ‘Hammer House of Horror’ moments (probably showing my age here) and then it gets a little dark, darker than dark! I wasn’t always convinced by some of the events and parts of the story made me cringe. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it in a weird way and the twist at the end was a surprise. Could there be a moral to this story?

The descriptions of Venice are spot on, very easy to visualise. It’s a magical place to visit. Just don’t read any macabre mythological stories before you set off. You never know what might come true! ( )