SICILIAN AVENGERS with Stephen Riggio

This week on The Italian Radio Hour - In conversation with Stephen Riggio, former CEO of Barnes and Noble on his many accomplishments and achievements to his last successful enterprise on translating in English for the first time Luigi Natoli's Sicilian saga on the legendary sect "Beati Paoli" (title in English "Sicilian Avengers"). Emerging from the dark streets and subterranean caves of Palermo, the Beati Paoli, masked and hooded, mete out their own form of justice to counter the unfettered power and privilege wielded by the aristocracy. For the voiceless, weak, and oppressed, the Beati Paoli are defenders and heroes. Reminiscent of a Dumas novel, Sicilian Avengers is a vibrant, atmospheric fresco of early eighteenth-century Palermo. Onto the stage of the ancient city, Blasco da Castiglione, a bold, brash, orphan adventurer, arrives on a quest to discover his origins and seek his destiny. But this fearless, swashbuckling D’Artagnan-esque hero unwittingly gets caught up in a devious and murderous succession plot involving a powerful noble family. When the Beati Paoli hear about this plot to usurp a rightful inheritance, they spring into action. Their shadowy machinations entangle the charismatic Blasco, who crosses paths with a cast of characters that test his loyalty and resolve in the pursuit of his true identity. The historical accuracy of the novel is complemented by the most meticulous description of Sicily’s capital city ever written. Action-packed and laced with intrigue and chivalrous duels, Sicilian Avengers is a tale of love and hatred, friendship and betrayal, suffering and retribution. As French critic Jean Noël Schifano said, Natoli's novel is “the fifth historical monument of contemporary Italian literature.” Book 1 of 2 that includes an afterword by Umberto Eco. Available for preorder on: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sicilian-avengers-luigi-natoli/1145136699?ean=9781635769272 https://www.amazon.com/Sicilian-Avengers-Book-Luigi-Natoli/dp/1635769272