The Disappearing Duchess, by Imogen Rossi is an adventure story set in an imaginary city called La Luminosa – it all feels very Italian, apart from the magic and the different history. Determined and curious Bianca, helped by Marco a tumbler in an acting troupe, are trying to find out who killed Bianca’s painting master. They are up against some very villainous villains and will have to use their wits, brains and some magic to succeed.

The blurb:

Enter an enchanted city, where nothing is as it seems…

 

Bianca feels like the luckiest girl in all of La Luminosa. She lives in one of the greatest cities in the world, and is apprentice to the famous painter Annunzio di Lombardi. Her life could not be more perfect!

 

But when tragedy befalls her master, Bianca’s peaceful existence is thrown into disarray. Something sinister is afoot in the labyrinthine corridors of the Duchess’s palace and the great houses of the city – and Bianca will stop at nothing to find out what it is…

Even better? This is the first book in a new series.