Of course when one reads the blurb one also immediately notices the big nod to 'Romeo and Juliet I am going to give the writer benefit of the doubt and assume that they are. My knowledge of Italian and Japanese equals zero so I don't know whether the words are used correctly. I have not note that there are some simple Italian words and some Japanese honorifics used in the book. You can see the manga influenced cover of the book and this book certainly has manga influences moreover, the medieval Italy in this book is a mixture of Italy and Japan. I giggled more than once when I was seeing familiar names of the characters given to most unexpected characters in this book.īy no means this book is a homage *only* to Count Monte Christo.

Don't get me wrong, the writer does not hide the fact that this is the homage to the Count. I did not expect to see such direct homage to one of my favorite books in the world 'Count of Monte Cristo' by Alexander Dumas. I mean, I have read most of her novels in the past and she certainly seems to enjoy writing all kinds of from enemies to lovers romances or adventures with romantic elements. On the way home from a bar one night, accompanied by the sister come to drag him home, they are attacked by a bandit-and saved by an intriguing man who goes by the name of Dante. Unhappy with the pending marriage, Naoki spends most of his time drinking and sleeping. But on the night they depart, Arata is murdered, and Carac is wrongfully blamed for it, betrayed by everyone he trusted.įifteen years later, Carac is long dead of disease while in prison, and Verona is abuzz with nervous excitement over the betrothal of Ferro Selinah to Ishikawa Naoki. Determined to be together, young Ferro Carac and Ishikawa Arata decide to run away and leave their families behind. Royal decrees cannot so easily quell generations of hate and bloodshed, but ancient feuds cannot stop love. A short time later, murder and vengeance exploded into a feud that has lasted for generations-and by decree of Hardegin-principe, will end now or else. The House of Ishikawa arrived on Verona's shores a few years later, made powerful and wealthy by way of their rare, priceless magia d'acqua.

The House of Ferro has dominated the city-state of Verona since its creation, made mighty by their magia del ferro, financial acumen, and ties to the imperial throne.

Blood in the Water by Megan Derr