M
Mary Hoffman
Stravaganza 1. Stadt der Masken.
Synopsis
Lucien Mulholland is sixteen and dying of cancer when his father gives him an old marbled notebook. Falling asleep while holding it, Lucien wakes in Talia, a parallel world resembling Renaissance Italy, in the city of Bellezza — a shimmering double of Venice where unmarried women over sixteen wear masks by ducal decree.
Lucien discovers he has become a Stravagante, one of a secret order able to travel between worlds using enchanted objects. Guided by the scientist Rodolfo and drawn to Arianna, a girl from the lagoon islands, Lucien is pulled into the intrigues of the ruling Duchessa and the ambitions of the rival city of Remora, even as his failing body waits for him back in London.
The first book in Mary Hoffman's Stravaganza sequence, City of Masks blends historical fantasy with a portal-fantasy premise, following Lucien across two worlds as his stays in Talia grow longer and the stakes in both grow higher.
Genres
Characters
Lucien MulhollandProtagonist
A terminally ill London teenager who becomes a Stravagante and travels between London and Talia.
AriannaSupporting
A girl from the Bellezzan lagoon islands who befriends Lucien in Talia.
RodolfoSupporting
A Talian scientist and senior Stravagante who mentors Lucien.
Frequently asked questions
Does this book need to be read in order with the rest of the series?
While each book in the series features a different protagonist and a unique setting, the overarching narrative and character connections make reading them in publication order the best way to follow the development of the world and the recurring cast.
What inspired the creation of the world in this book?
The author developed the setting after a family trip to Venice, using her own experiences and regular visits to Italy to craft a parallel version of the country that reflects her personal vision of the Renaissance period.