ANDREA DI ROBILANT

In 1797, Lucia, a beautiful statesmans daughter was married off to a powerful Venetian, only to be caught up in the turbulence of Napoleons march. This is her story, from dazzling young hostess in Habsburg Vienna, lady-in-waiting at the court of Prince Eugene de Beauharnais in Milan, single mother in Paris during the fall of Napoleons Empire to Byrons hard-fisted landlady during the poets stay in Venice.

In the 1380s and 90s, Nicolo and Antonio Zen journeyed from Venice up the North Atlantic, encountering warrior princes, fighting savage natives and, just possibly, reaching the New World a full century before Columbus. The story of their adventure travelled throughout Europe, from the workshop of the great cartographer Mercator to the court of Elizabeth I. For centuries, the brothers were international celebrities, until, in 1835, the story was denounced as a tissue of lies and the Zens faded into oblivion.But was it a hoax? What if these Venetian navigators really made their incredible journey? Intrigued by the myth, Andrea di Robilant sets out to discover the truth about the Zen voyages. Following in their footsteps, his quest to solve one of Venices most intriguing mysteries takes him on a fascinating journey of his own, from the crumbling Palazzo Zen in Venice to the Orkney Islands, Shetland, the Faroes, Iceland and even as far as an isolated monastery in Greenland. Part history, part travelogue, Venetian Navigators is a charming tale of great journeys, fine detective work and faith, against the odds.

A dazzling tale, brilliantly told' Peter Frankopan'A wonderful book' Sunday Telegraph, 5*'Triumphant' Literary ReviewDURING THE AGE OF DISCOVERY, in the autumn of 1550, an anonymously authored volume containing a wealth of geographical information new to Europeans was published in Venice under the title Navigationi et Viaggi (Journeys and Navigations). This was closely followed by two further volumes that, when taken together, constituted the largest release of geographical data in history, and could well be considered the birth of modern geography. The editor of these volumes was a little-known public servant in the Venetian government, Giovambattista Ramusio.He gathered a vast array of both popular and closely guarded narratives, from the journals of Marco Polo to detailed reports from the Muslim scholar and diplomat Leo Africanus. In an enthralling narrative, Andrea di Robilant brings to life the man who used all his political skill, along with the help of conniving diplomats and spies, to democratise knowledge and show how the world was much larger than anyone previously imagined.

A dazzling tale brilliantly told Peter Frankopan Marries the intrigue of Europe s most powerful royal courts with the globe trotting thrill of adventure and discovery Sunday Telegraph 5 review DURING THE AGE OF DISCOVERY in the autumn of 1550 a little known public servant in the Venetian government Giovambattista Ramusio anonymously published Navigationi et Viaggi Journeys and Navigations Containing a wealth of geographical information new to Europeans from the diaries of Marco Polo to detailed reports from the Muslim diplomat Leo Africanus it became the basis of the world map we still use today In an enthralling narrative This Earthly Globe brings to life the man who used all his political skill to democratize knowledge and show how the world was much larger than anyone previously imagined and in doing so chronicles the birth of modern geography

National Geographic Travellers the best books on European cities, 2019In the autumn of 1948 Hemingway was approaching fifty and hadnt published a novel in nearly a decade. He travelled for the first time to Venice and there, at a duck shoot in the lagoon he met and fell in love with Adriana Ivancich, a striking young Venetian woman just out of finishing school. What followed was a platonic love affair; he continued to visit her in Venice; she in turn came to Cuba while he wrote The Old Man and the Sea. This is the illuminating story of a writer and a muse that intimately examines both the cost to Adriana and the fractured heart and changing art of Hemingway in his fifties.Hemingway [is] an enduringly fascinating character, one whom di Robilant, with his easy-paced style, has sympathetically brought to life.Literary ReviewEffortlessly and expertly explores the secret desires, successes, and depressive obstacles that shrouded Ernest Hemingways final productive years.New York Journal of Books

A dazzling tale, brilliantly told Peter FrankopanA wonderful bookSunday Telegraph, 5*TriumphantLiterary ReviewDURING THE AGE OF DISCOVERY, in the autumn of 1550, an anonymously authored volume containing a wealth of geographical information new to Europeans was published in Venice under the title Navigationi et Viaggi (Journeys and Navigations). This was closely followed by two further volumes that, when taken together, constituted the largest release of geographical data in history, and could well be considered the birth of modern geography.The editor of these volumes was a little-known public servant in the Venetian government, Giovambattista Ramusio. He gathered a vast array of both popular and closely guarded narratives, from the journals of Marco Polo to detailed reports from the Muslim scholar and diplomat Leo Africanus.In an enthralling narrative, Andrea di Robilant brings to life the man who used all his political skill, along with the help of conniving diplomats and spies, to democratise knowledge and show how the world was much larger than anyone previously imagined.

Andrea Memmo y Gustiniana Wynne se conocieron en un hermoso palacio veneciano una noche de 1754, y la pasión muy pronto los convirtió en amantes. Los dos eran jóvenes y hermosos, pero condenados a mantener su amor en secreto debido a los origenes oscuros de la dama y la nobleza del caballero. Asi llevaron su aventura de manera discreta, hasta que las habladurias obligaron a Gustiniana a dejar Venecia y recorrer Europa en compañia de su madre para cazar un marido que le permitiera obtener cierta estabilidad economica y continuar su relacion con el adorado Memmo. Las cartas de los amantes se intercambiaron a lo largo de seis años, han podido rescatarse, y con ellas Di Robilant ha reconstruido esta gran aventura amorosa.

Hemingway en otoño captura, de manera íntima, los fructíferos años finales de la vida del escritor Ernest Hemingway. Di Robilant relata como en el otoño de 1948, Hemingway y su cuarta esposa, Mary Welsh, emprenden un viaje a Venecia, una de las ciudades f