The Black Opera: A Novel of Opera, Volcanoes, and the Mind of God - Couverture souple

Gentle, Mary

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 1597802190 ISBN 13 : 9781597802192

Editeur : Night Shade Books, 2012

Synopsis

Naples, the 19th Century.

In the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, holy music has power. Under the auspices of the Church, the Sung Mass can bring about actual miracles like healing the sick or raising the dead. But some believe that the musicodramma of grand opera can also work magic by channeling powerful emotions into something sublime. Now the Prince's Men, a secret society, hope to stage their own black opera to the empower the Devil himself-and change Creation for the better.

Conrad Scalese is a struggling librettist whose latest opera has landed him in trouble with the Holy Office of the Inquisition. Rescued by King Ferdinand II, Conrad finds himself recruited to write and stage a counteropera that will, hopefully, cancel out the apocalyptic threat of the black opera, provided the Prince's Men, and their spies and saboteurs, don't get to him first.

And he only has six weeks to do it . . . .

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A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur

Conrad Scalese is a writer of librettos for operas in a world where music has immense power. In the Church, the sung mass can bring about actual miracles like healing the sick. Opera is musicodrama, the highest form of music combined with human emotion, and the results of the passion it engenders can be nothing short of magical.

In this world of miracles, Conrad is an atheist - he sees the same phenomena, but sees no need to attribute them to a Deity ... until his first really successful opera gets the opera-house struck by the lightning bolt of God's disapproval ...

... And Conrad comes to the attention of the Prince's Men, a powerful secret society, who are trying to use the magic of music to their own ends - in this case, an apocalyptic blood sacrifice.

Life is about to get interesting for Conrad.

Biographie de l'auteur

Mary Gentle is one of the world's most acclaimed writers of fantasy and SF. She has a number of academic degrees, including an MA in War Studies, and has hands-on experience of sword-fighting and armour, amongst many other useful talents. She lives in Stevenage, Hertfordshire.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Night Shade Books
• Date d'édition: 2012
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1597802190
• ISBN 13: 9781597802192
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 550
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible