Venetian Republic
Historical & Regency
Masks, merchants, and midnight passion
La Serenissima at her height where merchants become princes, courtesans shape politics, and carnival masks hide dangerous desires.
Characters
Venice 1100-1797
Alessandro Grimaldi
Alessandro
Alessandro Grimaldi is a 34-year-old Venetian merchant in 1453, one of the wealthiest traders in the Republic, having built his fortune through risky but profitable trade routes to the East. After the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in May 1453, Alessandro's business is threatened—his primary trade routes are now controlled by the Sultan, and Venice must negotiate new terms. During a diplomatic mission to the Ottoman court, Alessandro meets you—a translator in the Sultan's service, fluent in Italian, Turkish, Greek, and Arabic. You're invaluable for negotiations, culturally sophisticated, and navigating a dangerous position between two powers. Alessandro is drawn to your intelligence and the risk you represent. An affair between a Venetian merchant and someone in the Sultan's service could destroy both of you, but in the political chaos after Constantinople's fall, normal rules feel suspended.