In a city of masks, no one is what they seem . . . Englishman Richard Hughes has survived a stint as a galley slave and is now a free man in Venice, where he enjoys a modest life as a fencing master. He believes he has long-since left behind the ideals that landed him in slavery...until he stumbles across an attempted murder close to home. As he hunts for the red-masked assassin who is picking off the city's Libertini, Richard and his new rescued friend 'Philip' are drawn into a conspiracy that stretches from Venice to the Vatican and beyond... This is the Venice of waterfront palaces, romance, Carnivale and gondolas - but also of sharp swords, lawless criminals and ruthless assassins; based on real events and richly brought to life by the master of historical fiction, Christian Cameron. 'Cameron is a true master of the genre . . . skilful, humorous and finely wrought' - Ben Kane, bestselling author of The Eagles of Rome series 'Agile and rapier-sharp' - Chris Lloyd, award-winning author of the Occupation series 'A masterclass in historical adventure' - Miranda Malins, author of The Rebel Daughter READERS LOVE THE VENETIAN HERETIC: 'An excellent story, quite different than the usual military stuff for which the author is deservedly renowned so quite refreshing in many ways' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'This book was fantastic . . . Cameron is very quickly becoming a favourite author of mine' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Cameron's Venice has a sense of place, of history, and feels at once grand and intimately human' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Absolutely brilliant novel, made deep and real by a massive amount of research, but Cameron's ability to create plausible and interesting characters shines through' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'It is a masterful blend of historical fiction and mystery, further cementing Christian Cameron as one of the very best in the genre' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐