Laura was an interesting character--living in a convent, so pretty removed from the world and then forced into Venice society to marry a horrible elderly man. The atmospheric, beautiful language of this novel was the best aspect of the experience. Excellent historical setting, mysterious secret society, murder, political twists--all help to create intrigue and capture the atmosphere and mystery.. Would have been better not to have so much given away in the book summary...

Unfortunately, this novel was too slow-paced for me and I ended up DNFing it. Thank you for the opportunity to read.