Sicily is the perfect setting for the perfect mystery

This is the book you have to read before going to Sicily

When the great ancient Greek inventor Daedalus escaped the island of Crete and the vicious Minotaur on his manufactured wings he landed on top of a mountain on the island of Sicily. There he built himself a new village modeled after his famous labyrinth, with streets as narrow and confusing as those of his original maze so that enemies could never enter.

On top of that same mountain there used to be a dragon who lived in a narrow cave. For centuries he emerged once a year and devoured the town’s children until he was slain by a great knight.

Photo by Nicola Fittipaldi on Unsplash

These are the Sicilian stories from the village of Caltabellotta that I grew up hearing. My dad heard them from his dad who heard it from his own Sicilian father who was born in the tiny town on top of a rock on top of that mountain that is constantly shrouded in mists that seem to be hiding something mystical.  

I remember the first time I traveled to Sicily. I was alone as I wove my way through the dimly lit streets of many of the small mountain towns. I didn’t feel unsafe, but I felt cautious. I felt like I was being watched and that around every turn I could happen upon something unexpected. There are secrets here, I thought to myself. Mysteries waiting to be uncovered. Since then the island has been a place of inspiration and creative rebirth for me for the past twenty years but it’s taken me two decades to finally write a novel set in that very village my dad told me stories about as a little girl.

My new book, The Sicilian Inheritance, brings one of my own family’s mysteries to life. For generations my family has passed down a of the murder of my great great grandmother Lorenza Marsala. Lorenza was left behind in the village of Caltabellotta when her husband Antonino and her four sons came to America to try to make their fortunes. 

Before she could join them she was murdered. My family has two theories about what happened to her. The first is that she was killed by the mafia for her land. The men of my family, the ones who adore the Godfather movies, prefer this tale. The second theory is that she was killed because she was a witch and she crossed the wrong person. The women in my family tend to enjoy this one. I think we all believe ourselves to be at least part Sicilian witch. 

I took this nugget, this unsolved mystery, and I wove it into a delicious and adventurous thriller set in a tiny Sicilian village. The Sicilian Inheritance takes readers from the cave of the dragon on the top of the mountain down to the ruggedly beautiful cliffs that plunge into the sea at Scopello. We travel deep into the crypts of the Capuchin catacombs to confront the child mummies and the bones of Palermo’s past. 

Sicily has everything a thriller and mystery writer could hope for. Intrigue is steeped in its soil. It’s been a crossroads of civilizations for millennia. Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Spaniards, and others have all left their mark on the island. Each culture brought its own myths, legends, and mysteries, creating a rich tapestry of history that still captivates people today. When I tell locals that I am writing about my family’s secrets in Sicily they laugh and then usually tell me their own legends. Storytelling remains king and when I returned to Caltabellotta to try to solve the real life murder of Lorenza (which I have documented in a true crime podcast also called The Sicilian Inheritance) I managed to get the entire small village excited about solving this century-old crime. We aren’t there yet, but we keep getting closer. Some things may always remain a mystery. The island is good at keeping her secrets.

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The Sicilian Inheritance is your summer escape. "Here, Sicily shimmers off the page, utterly enticing — azure waters for swimming, hunky Italian chefs . . .. It was a joy to read about Piazza’s heroines loving hard, eating well and blowing themselves kisses in the mirror,” says New York Times. Better yet, we say that’s the kind of book that will probably make you shout “minchia” while ignoring everything and everyone around you. Buy it on Amazon now!