Navola: A novel

by Paolo Bacigalupi

From the New York Times best-selling author of The Windup Girl and The Water Knife comes a sweeping literary historical fantasy about the young scion from a ruling-class family who faces rebellion as he ascends to power.

"Steeped in poison, betrayal, and debauchery, reading Navola is like slipping into a luxurious bath full of blood." —Holly Black, #1 New York Times best-selling author

"You must be as sharp as a stilettotore’s dagger and as subtle as a fish beneath the waters. This is what it is to be Navolese, this is what it is to be di Regulai."

In Navola, a bustling city-state dominated by a handful of influential families, business is power, and power is everything. For generations, the di Regulai family—merchant bankers with a vast empire—has nurtured tendrils that stretch to the farthest reaches of the known world. And though they claim not to be political, their staggering wealth has bought cities and toppled kingdoms. Soon, Davico di Regulai will be expected to take the reins of power from his father and demonstrate his mastery of the games of Navolese diplomacy: knowing who to trust and who to doubt, and how to read what lies hidden behind a smile. But in Navola, strange and ancient undercurrents lurk behind the gilt and grandeur—like the fossilized dragon eye in the family’s possession, a potent symbol of their raw power and a talisman that seems to be summoning Davico to act.

As tensions rise and the events unfold, Davico will be tested to his limits. His fate depends on the eldritch dragon relic and on what lies buried in the heart of his adopted sister, Celia di Balcosi, whose own family was destroyed by Nalova’s twisted politics. With echoes of Renaissance Italy, The Godfather, and Game of Thrones, Navola is a stunning feat of world-building and a mesmerizing depiction of drive and will.

• ISBN10: 0593535057
• ISBN13: 9780593535059
• Publish Date: 9 July 2024 (first published 4 July 2024)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Knopf
• Format: Hardcover (Deckle Edge)
• Pages: 576
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780593535059

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Navola is a beautifully written immersive epic political fantasy(ish?) novel by Paolo Bacigalupi. Due out 9th July 2024 from Knopf Doubleday on their Knopf imprint, it's 576 pages and will be available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. 

Despite the dragon eye on the gorgeous cover, this feels a lot more like a historical political epic novel than a fantasy. There are fantasy *elements* but it's more evocative of Umberto Eco than GRR Martin. It's very lush and immersive and transportive, but also directly and realistically based on "real world" Italy. Readers are swept away to the Renaissance Italian city-states and enfolded in the political machinations and murky jockeying for power in the sumptuous palazzos and noble residences of Navola. 

For sensitive readers, there is quite a lot of graphic violence included which, while integral to the plot, is nevertheless disturbing. Typically of the subgenre, the author uses long descriptive passages to develop the plot and sometimes the pacing seems uneven, rushed in some places and very slow in others. 

Four stars. One for readers who are aware and accepting of graphic violence, murder, and political machinations. It's not clear what the author's overarching message is meant to be, might makes right, political juggernauts crush decency and humanity, or something else. Still not sure it was worth the very well written prose to get through nearly 600 pages of blood, rape, body horror, mutilation, murder, and conquest. 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes. 

[Metaphorosis Reviews]

3.5 stars, Metaphorosis reviews

Summary
In the city of Navola, Davico DiRegulai is the heir to the quiet power that controls the city and much of the region. But the DiRegulai legacy is one of trickery and violence, and Davico is a poor fit.

Review
For some years, I confused Paolo Bacigalupi and Christopher Paolini – for no reason other than that I knew nothing about either and both had Paol in their names. Gradually, though, it seeped through that they were different people, and that I kept hearing good things about Bacigalupi. So, I took this opportunity to read one of his books. It’s not what I expected. One of the mentions of Bacigalupi that I kept seeing mentioned his book, The Windup Girl. I still haven’t read it, but perhaps I should have started there.

Navola, rather to my surprise, relies heavily on Italianate language and references. On the one hand, that’s great – I can’t think of many other English language books that do this, and it was a fun chance to exercise my long-rusty Italian skills. On the other hand, it’s so heavily Italian inspired that it felt often like a Neapolitan alternate history rather than a third-world speculative story. That’s in part because there’s very little actual magic in this fantasy story; it’s much more on the Mary Stewart Crystal Cave line than, say, J.V. Jones’ Baker’s Boy. That’s fine in itself (sometimes a plus), but I frankly felt that if I knew more of the history of the Italian peninsula, I’d recognize a lot of what was happening. It seemed to me from very early on that there were echoes of Naples, Rome, the Borgias, Leonardo Da Vinci, and a host of other (not always contemporaneous) matters. For me, that real world similarity made the book much less interesting.

Bacigalupi is certainly a skilled writer. The prose is rich and flows smoothly. However, I would also have liked to feel much more engaged by his protagonist and other characters. There was a distance and almost clinical/mechanical feel to things that kept me from really investing as I’d have wanted to. Also, while the Italianate references were fun for me, I felt a non-Italian speaker would have been fairly confused at times.

The base story – person growing up to defy expectations – is a familiar one, but often here felt subsumed to the descriptions of Machiavellian intrigue and manipulations. I wish, honestly, that Bacigalupi had brought this personal element more to the fore. To my mind, that would have made a more engaging and involving story.

Overall, interesting, and obviously a help in properly identifying Bacigalupi. But I’m not sure that I feel a need to go on to his other books. I’m willing, but, on the basis of this one, will likely not search him out. If the opportunity does arise, I’ll look for a book that’s more firmly either fantasy or science fiction, and less alternate history. This one was well written, but not gripping.

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.