IN THE HAND OF DANTE - Taschenbuch

Throwing together the worlds of violent New York crime and 15th-century poet Dante Aligheri might not be the most obvious choice, but cutting-edge journalist Nick Tosches has made a career of taking the road less travelled. Best known for his Vanity Fair reporting and books on subjects like Dean Martin and infamous boxer Sonny Liston, Toches adds an unsettling edge to his latest novel by borrowing a trick from his literary idol Philip Roth and casting himself as one of the book's main characters. The complex and challenging plot follows the semi-fictional version of Tosches as he's drafted in by a New York mob boss to authenticate a startling find - a complete original handwritten manuscript of Dante's Divine Comedy, a set of papers now valuable beyond calculation. Unable to resist the temptation, Tosches commits murder in order to steal the manuscript, and is then forced to go into hiding, hoping to sell the pages for an immense profit. Weaved in parallel with this plotline is the tale of Dante himself, of his quest to write the manuscript and his struggles to perceive the link between humanity and the Divine. Switching from lyrical, mediaeval prose to the edgy profanity of the street, it's a frequently shocking read with a mixture of sex, violence and harshly confrontational language that the easily offended will find difficult to cope with. Reminiscent of The Name of the Rose crossed with The Sopranos, what starts as a bizarre thriller soon turns into a challenging rumination on the relationship between Art and Religion, but one that becomes an increasingly difficult read. The level of research is breathtaking, and Tosches's recreation of mediaeval life is a dazzling achievement, but the book remains a tricky, gruelling experience; not without its rewards, but only to be attempted by the brave and open-minded. (Kirkus UK)