In the heart of Florence, a mysterious door leads to the top of a tower, where Mercury, an old man with a long nose and slender fingers, resides.
One day, Nina, a curious and brave young girl, knocks on his door. What could this strange character want from her? Without hesitation, courageous Nina accepts the dangerous mission Mercury offers: to discover and solve the mysteries hidden in the world of art!
But she won’t face this adventure alone—her inseparable friends, Jamal and Lorenzo, are by her side. On a stormy night, the three friends find themselves embarking on a journey through time, at the end of which they will discover that they have landed in the era of the great masters of Italian art.
Among intrigues, envy, and unexpected twists, they will live alongside the greatest painters and sculptors and must solve dark riddles before they can return home.
The Mercury Mysteries series blends adventure, mystery, and time travel. Nina, Jamal, and Lorenzo are transported to 14th, 15th, and 16th-century Italy, where readers can relive an era populated by great artists.
A series of thrilling adventures filled with surprises and great mysteries, revolving around encounters with Italy’s great masters of art, depicted at key moments in their careers while working on masterpieces that would forever change the history of art.
From Giorgione to Michelangelo, from Leonardo to Artemisia Gentileschi and Giotto, each book focuses on a different great artist and their works.
The Storm
Pierdomenico Baccalario
In a dark room at the Palatine Gallery, the raven Mercury gives Nina, Jamal, and Lorenzo a scroll with a dark enigma. When a lightning bolt splits the sky, the three friends find themselves lost in the Venetian countryside, in a very distant time. Nearby is Giorgione’s farmhouse, but the famous painter has disappeared. Among angry merchants, dangerous soldiers, and other sinister threats, the three friends must find the artist and uncover his secret before they can return to Florence.
The Prisoner in the Stone
Daniele Nicastro
Who is trying to frame Michelangelo and prevent him from completing his David? In Renaissance Florence, Nina, Lorenzo, and Jamal find themselves serving the famous artist. Pushed by Mercury’s riddles, the three friends investigate the lively city to dismantle the murder accusation against the genius sculptor. Rivalries among colleagues and plots by shady characters await them, and they’ll even discover some very dark sides of the great master.
Love Conquers All
Manlio Castagna
For Nina, Caravaggio is the greatest painter of all. She can hardly believe her eyes when she, Lori, and Jamal discover him, the Master, under an overturned boat on the beach at Feniglia. But the artist is feverish and battered, murmuring disconnected words. What happened to him? What secret is hidden in the precious cargo he was traveling with? Once again, Mercury’s riddles will guide the three friends in their exciting adventure through 17th-century Maremma.
Reaching the Stars
Davide Morosinotto
This time, Nina, Jamal, and Lorenzo find themselves in medieval Padua, where Giotto is working on the Scrovegni Chapel. With him is a famous Florentine exile on a secret mission… the poet Dante Alighieri (who, inspired by his friend, decides to start a new literary work: The Inferno). Meanwhile, the kids face a more pressing problem: their friend Mercury, the raven who allowed them to travel through time, was struck by an arrow upon arrival in the past. If he dies, they will be trapped in the Middle Ages forever.
The Light of the Muses
Giada Pavesi
Nina, Jamal, and Lori travel back in time for the fifth time, and they must help Artemisia Gentileschi. Her friend and assistant, Ciecherella, has disappeared—she was the only one who knew the secret formula for the yellow dye that characterizes Artemisia’s paintings. Following the clues in the form of riddles from the magical raven Mercury, the three friends trace Ciecherella, a young dyer. The investigation takes them through hidden details in the painter’s works and a yellow cloth worn by servants in wealthy Roman families, navigating between the city’s slums and noble palaces.
The River of Time
Fiore Manni
Nina, Lori, and Jamal find themselves in Urbino during the Renaissance, just as Leonardo has decided to offer his genius to Valentino, the feared Cesare Borgia. However, the great inventor realizes he has made a grave mistake: Cesare Borgia’s lust for power is dangerous, and he could unleash a new war across Italy. The three friends must help the Tuscan genius destroy a dangerous invention he’s hidden in a safe place. The only clue to find this secret location is hidden inside Leonardo’s Virgin of the Rocks painting. The kids will face a great temporal paradox to destroy the invention and prevent Cesare Borgia and Machiavelli from gaining control of Leonardo’s most dangerous creation: the tank.
Tiziano and the Forest of Shadows
Guido Sgardoli
Who is the young son of the Captain of the Guard of Pieve di Cadore? Where has Lorenzo gone? Has he truly vanished forever in the forests of the Dolomites? Nina and Jamal fear they won’t be able to bring their great friend back to the present. And Mercury? Even Mercury can’t help them with his magic—unless they solve one of his incredible riddles.
Palladio and the Secret of the Face
Elena Peduzzi
On September 7th, Florence prepares for one of the most anticipated celebrations in the city, the Rificolona, when the streets are filled with people carrying handmade paper lanterns during the parade. It’s a great celebration! Nina, Jamal, and Lorenzo are ready to join in when Mercury drags them into a new adventure, this time to uncover the great mystery of architect Andrea Palladio’s face. Amid ambushes by brigands on the Venetian hills and thrilling chases through the canals of Venice, the three friends will face great artists in search of the truth.
