The Iron Tongue of Midnight

Praise for The Iron Tongue of Midnight 'Tito proves himself a lively narrator, and fans of cozier period puzzles and Italian opera will enjoy his company.' -Publishers Weekly 'An accomplished historical novel that's also a classic country-house murder mystery.' -Kirkus Reviews In September 1740, singer Tito Amato receives a curious invitation. The German composer Karl Johann Weber is rehearsing a new opera at an isolated villa in the hills of the Venetian mainland. Would Tito accept the lead role? Puzzled by the air of secrecy that enshrouds the production but attracted by a generous fee, Tito agrees. Happily, artist Gussie Rumbolt, Tito's friend and brother-in-law, has also been summoned to paint scenes of the estate's grape harvest. The countryside is awash with the golden hues of autumn, but the bucolic mood turns menacing when a notorious figure from Tito's past turns up at the villa. Then at the stroke of twelve, a soprano stumbles over a stranger who has been beaten to death with the clock pendulum. With the local constable away on a boar hunt, the midnight murderer has struck with impunity, raising terror to a fevered crescendo. So Tito pursues his own quest for answers-straight into the painful secrets of his heart and beyond. Beverle Graves Myers fell in love with opera at age nine during a marionette production of Rigoletto. Retired after a career in psychiatry, she devotes herself to writing full-time. Beverle and husband Lawrence live in Louisville, Kentucky. www.beverlegravesmyers.com