Just Finished Reading: Inquisition by Alfredo Colitto (FP: 2009)

The Italian city of Bologna, 1311. Despite opposition from the Holy Inquisition medic and scientist Mondino de Liuzzi is determined to understand the workings of the human body. Forced to use recently buried corpses he lives on the edges of legality just a few steps away from being denounced. But, he believes, the risks are worth it to save even a single life. Surprised and initially delighted that his new student Gerardo brings him a fresh corpse in the dead of night Mondino quickly realises that something isn’t right. Examined by candlelight it becomes plain that the man’s chest cavity has been exposes and, a sight which shocks him to his core, the heart had been turned into iron. Only a powerful alchemical reaction could have caused such a transmutation and Mondino is determined to find out how such a seemingly diabolical change could have taken place. With such knowledge the physician could map the human circulatory system down to its smallest extant and move science ahead decades in a single night. As if finding the source of the affliction wasn’t complicated enough – with its religious and sacrilegious overtones – Mondino discovers that his student is both more and less than he seems. Gerardo is a Templar on the run from the Church who have been charged with the extinction of that heretical Sect. As the secret of the transmutation and the identity of the sorcerer becomes clearer Mondino must determine how far he is willing to go in the name of knowledge and decide if the ends justify any means to attain them.

I wasn’t 100% sure about this book when I started. I do roll my eyes somewhat at all the nonsense written about the Templars and the so-called esoteric knowledge they’re supposed to have gathered around them. It makes for a good fantasy tale – for about 10 minutes – before the whole edifice falls apart with the simplest of investigations. However, after a rather sedate start, this book proved to be rather entertaining. The characters of both Mondino and Gerardo are multi-faceted and multi-levelled and you learnt more about both as the story progressed. I thought several times that Mondino would be an interested person to sit and chat with over a glass of wine. The Inquisitor was from central casting and about as evil as you might imagine but I forgave the author this one as there were plenty of other things (and people) to keep me interested. I was pleased that the identity of the sorcerer/killer wasn’t revealed until the author wanted it to be – I was definitely kept guessing to the end on that one and rather surprised by the reveal which was great. The city itself was very well presented ‘visually’ and I never really got ‘lost’ in the back streets during various chases. I even liked the ending (along with the moral of the story) delivered by a very intriguing Arabian ‘witch’. Overall I enjoyed this rather a lot – more than I thought I would certainly – and although I wouldn’t exactly say it was great literature or even that gripping it certainly kept my attention and kept me turning pages. Very reasonable.

Translated from the Italian by Sophie Henderson.