Renaissance Fiction

Som a lany 1553. En Max, un jove tan atractiu com estafador, senamora d una de les dames de companyia de Lady Jane Grey, cosina del rei Eduard VI. La Margaret, la jove dama, sembla correspondrel. Disfressat de noble, en Max assisteix a les noces de Lady Jane per ser a prop de la noia. Un fet inesperat, però, trasbalsa la cerimònia. Una enigmàtica dona apareix de sobte i formula un misteriós presagi a la núvia.

During a late-night hunt for a wolf, Ulric and Daciana are attacked. Before their bodies can fully succumb to the wild animal inside, the town witch claims she holds the cure. Instead of healing their wounds, she places a curse on Ulric and Daciana, so they must live with who they truly are. In a town where secrets can’t be kept and betrayal runs thick, Ulric and Daciana are hunted for the monsters they’ve become, even by those they love.

Tal como los alquimistas medievales se obsesionaron con la piedra filosofal, un sacamuelas sevillano, que llega hasta el virreinato peruano huyendo de la Inquisición, se afana en la búsqueda del gusano de los dientes que taladra las muelas y anida en las encías, precipitando la corrupción del cuerpo y flagelando a los cristianos con una espina del dolor de la Pasión, porque el imperio español de los siglos XVI y XVII era también el imperio del dolor.

In the late 1590s, Scotland was on the verge of many changes that would shape its future, such as religious reformation and the union of the crowns with England. But in many ways the country, was still rooted in its medieval past, and fear of witches and demons was still a large part of everyday life. Seton confronts his demons, both internal and external, as he wanders on the fringes of history.

A.D. 1526. Il racconto segue le paradossali peripezie tra l'Umbria e la Toscana del famoso poeta Pietro Aretino, ritratto in una veste tanto inaspettata per un cortigiano rinascimentale, quanto autentica: arguto, libertino, volgare e sfacciato, come si addice a quello che viene storicamente riconosciuto come l'ipotetico fautore del genere letterario ‘puttanesco'.

The pathetic but perceptive Lewis Raycie is sent on a grand tour of Europe with instructions to collect great art. He returns with Italian paintings not yet recognized in America as Renaissance masterpieces.

Zora Neale Hurston is best remembered today for her work as a novelist, but she was also an accomplished dramatist, short story writer, and folklorist. That range of interests and styles is on full display in this collection.

Nichts ist so spannend wie die Wirklichkeit - nichts abenteuerlicher als die Geschichte! Wie sah die Welt nach dem Mittelalter aus, wie dachten die Menschen im Humanismus, wie kam es zum Sklavenhandel? Was waren die Bauernkriege, was verbirgt sich hinter dem Namen "Heiliges Römisches Reich Deutscher Nation"?

Defiant, eloquent, and thoroughly modern, Claude McKay’s early collection of celebrated poems is widely recognized as having helped to spark the Harlem Renaissance. In Harlem Shadows, McKay gives precise and poignant expression to the injustices of white oppression in many forms. He also paints a vivid picture of Harlem at the dawn of its rebirth and shows the tremendous vitality of the neighborhood as well as the many threats it faced.

Countee Cullen was already a prominent literary figure when he published Color, his auspicious debut collection of poetry. In deceptively simple verse, and in harmony with lyric tradition rather than rebellion against it, Cullen covered such complex terrain as race, faith, mortality, sexuality, and identity. Cullen may be less well known today than his contemporaries, but his emotional candor, creative ambition, and impudent humor retain an unforgettable spark.

Georgia Douglas Johnson was a key contributor to the Harlem Renaissance - hosting an influential salon, breaking new ground as a Black playwright, and playing an important role as an anti-lynching activist. Her poetry, however, is what first brought her to national attention, and in the early works collected here, her wide-ranging talents are already quite evident. In The Heart of a Woman, Johnson’s exquisite verse captures the full emotional terrain of womanhood. These are poems about love and disillusionment, empowerment and fulfillment, loneliness and joy.

Before Langston Hughes and his literary prowess became synonymous with American poetry, he was a seventeen-year-old on a train to Mexico City, seeking funds to pursue his passion. His early poems, beloved verses like “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” were written without formal training, often on the back of napkins and envelopes, and were inspired by the sights and sounds of Black working-class people he encountered in his early life. Blues in Stereo is a posthumous collection of these early works, in which we see Langston Hughes like we’ve never seen him before.

Per Nina, Caravaggio è il pittore più grande di tutti. E quasi non crede ai suoi occhi quando con Lori e Jamal scopre proprio lui, il Maestro, sotto una barca rovesciata sulla spiaggia della Feniglia. Ma l'artista è febbricitante e malconcio, e farfuglia parole sconnesse. Cosa gli è successo? Qual è il segreto custodito nel prezioso carico con cui viaggiava? Ancora una volta, saranno gli indovinelli del magico merlo Mercurio a guidare i tre amici nella loro emozionante avventura nella Maremma del Seicento.

Chi sta cercando di incastrare Michelangelo per impedirgli di completare il suo David? Nella Firenze del Rinascimento, Nina, Lorenzo e Jamal si ritrovano al servizio del celebre artista. Pungolati dagli enigmi del merlo Mercurio, i tre amici indagano nella vivace città per smontare l'accusa di omicidio che ha colpito il geniale scultore. Tra la rivalità di colleghi e le trame di loschi personaggi, nulla sarà loro risparmiato, neppure la scoperta di lati assai tenebrosi del grande maestro.

In una sala buia della Galleria Palatina, il merlo Mercurio consegna una pergamena con un oscuro enigma a Nina, Jamal e Lorenzo. Quando un fulmine squarcia il cielo, i tre ragazzi si ritrovano smarriti in mezzo alla campagna veneta, in un tempo molto lontano. Nelle vicinanze c'è il casolare di Giorgione, ma il famoso pittore è scomparso. Tra mercanti in collera, pericolosi soldati e altre viscide insidie, i tre amici dovranno ritrovare l'artista e scoprire il suo segreto, prima di poter tornare a Firenze.

Spanien, Mitte des 16. Jahrhunderts. Lázaro schildert dem Leser seinen Aufstieg aus ärmlichen Verhältnissen zum angesehenen Ausrufer in der damaligen spanischen Hauptstadt Toledo. Bis zu diesem Ziel ist jedoch ein langer Weg zu gehen, und Lázaro muss vielen verschiedenen Herren dienen und oft schlechte Behandlung und Leid erdulden. Allerdings lernt er von seinem ersten Herren, einem blinden Wahrsager, auch viele listige Tricks, die ihm den steinigen Weg erleichtern. Welche das sind, verrät er in seinen Erzählungen.

Sam's bright idea to look for the inventor of the Book takes the guys to 15th-century Italy to meet up with Leonardo da Vinci. But it's going to take at least three more bright ideas, two magic tricks, and one great invention to get them out of trouble and safely back home. If not, it could be a lifetime of Italian army toilet-cleaning detail for Joe, Sam, and Fred.

In 1450 Christine de Pisan took up the pen to defend her maligned sex. Her book, The City of Ladies, was built around preserving women's reputations from the slights and misunderstandings of history. In it the author is visited by three spirits - Justice, Rectitude and Reason - who guide her in sifting through countless lives, in search of worthy citizens. Nearly 600 years later, the historian and novelist Lisa Hilton picks up the book and promptly falls asleep, only to be visited by three great women from history: Cleopatra, Lucrezia Borgia and Catherine the Great.

"The Contessa's Legacy" is a novella by Nora D'Ecclesis. The book tells the story of a family living in Pompeii, Naples in 79AD. It follows the lives of the family members as the ancestors eventually immigrate to America, including their relationships with each other, and their struggles to survive in a society that was not known for treating its citizens with compassion.

This is a new edition of Nathaniel Hawthorne's masterpiece The Scarlet Letter. The story of Hester Prynne - the first great female character in American literature - is brought to life by narrator Amanda Brewer.