Rita Monaldi & Francesco Sorti
Italy
Writers Rita Monaldi (1966) and Francesco Sorti (1964) are a married couple, authors of the series of historical books "Imprimatur", "Secretum" and "Veritas". They live between Vienna and Rome with their two children. Rita graduated in classical studies, specializing in the history of religions. Francesco Sorti graduated in musicology. He is a specialist for the 17th century. They worked as journalists.
Imprimatur
Translation: Borjana Mojsovska, Lilijana Uzunović
A FANTASTIC MATCH OF UMBERTO ECO AND DAN BROWN!
September 11, 1683. The city of Rome is in limbo. Citizens are waiting for information about the outcome of the Battle of Vienna, in which the Ottoman Empire is at the gates of Catholic Europe.
Meanwhile, a Roman tavern is quarantined due to a suspected plague outbreak. Among the captives is the mysterious Ato Melanie, a spy serving the French king. With the help of a boy, he discovers a hidden passage leading to a network of tunnels beneath the city. Their nocturnal wanderings in the Roman underground will lead them to surprising revelations regarding the deadly enmity between Pope Innocent XI and Louis XIV and a secret plot to use weapons of mass destruction in the battle between Islam and the West.
Thoroughly researched and brilliantly conceived, Imprimatur contains astonishing discoveries that have been hidden for centuries. This is a startling thriller that sheds new light on the clash of powers in 17th-century Europe, the consequences of which are felt to this day.
When it was first published in Italy in 2002, the book caused a huge amount of controversy, it was boycotted by the Italian media and all publishing houses. However, the novel became a European bestseller, translated into 20 languages and published in 45 countries. More than a million copies have been sold so far.