From the international bestselling author of The Glassblower of Murano, Marina Fiorato’s newest novel
BEATRICE AND BENEDICK (St. Martin’s Press; December 8, 2015) has already been praised as “lively” and “impressive” (Kirkus Reviews). Fiorato, who specialized in the study of Shakespeare’s plays at Oxford University and the University of Venice,
imagines the backstory of Beatrice and Benedick from the much loved Shakespeare comedy
Much Ado About Nothing in this captivating new novel.
Hidden in the language of Shakespeare's comedy are several clues to an
intriguing tale. It seems that the witty lovers Beatrice and Benedick
had a previous love affair that ended bitterly. But how did they meet?
Why did they part? And what brought them together
again?
Fiorato begins with nineteen-year-old Beatrice as she first meets
Benedick at her uncle’s court in Sicily. Both quick with words and
independent, they resist the sparks that fly with each interaction.
Misunderstandings and politics on the island make their
parting tumultuous, and they go their different ways to follow a path
that has been laid out for them. With marriage far from either of their
minds, Fiorato explains the feelings that change a strong willed
couple’s point of view into the happy ending of
Much Ado About Nothing.
About the Author
MARINA FIORATO is
half-Venetian and has worked as an illustrator, an actress, and a film
reviewer, and designed tour visuals for rock bands including U2 and the
Rolling Stones. Her historical fiction includes The
Daughter of Siena, The Botticelli Secret, and her debut novel, The Glassblower of Murano,
which was an international bestseller. She was married on the Grand Canal in Venice, and now lives in London with her family.