Farag Boswell, a Coptic from Egypt who speaks many languages, is an archeologist and has an Italian mother, join forces to discover where the earthly paradise is. Ottavia, Kasper and a third person, Prof. Is their theft linked to the book? Where is the earthly paradise? Is that where the thieves are? How can they find it? In the present day, it seems that holy relics, fragments of the true cross, have been gradually going missing from many Catholic churches around the world. These protectors of the true cross are known as 'Staurofilakes'. The codex ends at the start of the 13th century, when the last Cato writes about saving the 'true cross' or Lignum Crucis and making their way to an 'earthly paradise', the whereabouts of which are unknown.
#Matilde asensi series
Ottavia's involvement then seems to come to an end until she is summoned back to help decipher a book, or codex, written by a series of monks who each call themselves 'Cato', that Kasper has taken from a monastery that is the source of one of the crosses.
Eventually they work out that the symbols spell the word 'Stauros', and the crosses are those from different churches and monasteries around Europe. She is asked to work alongside a Swiss guard, Kasper Glauser-Roist, to solve the mystery. Besides being a nun, Ottavia also has a doctorate in palaeography and art history and works in the Vatican classified archives. The discovery of a body decorated with seven crosses and strange symbols leads to Ottavia, a nun in the Vatican, being asked to help decipher their meaning. The Last Cato Web site, (December 20, 2006).Asensi, Matilde - 'The Last Cato' (translated by Pamela Carmell)
Publishers Weekly, December 12, 2005, review of The Last Cato, p. Library Journal, March 1, 2006, Lisa O'Hara, review of The Last Cato, p. Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 2006, review of The Last Cato, p. BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES: PERIODICALSīooklist, February 1, 2006, John Green, review of The Last Cato, p. For instance, Booklist contributor John Green remarked that it is "in many ways more compelling, if a bit less accessible." He praised the fast-paced action, the well-researched background, and the intelligent writing. Because of its focus on secret societies within the Catholic Church, as well as the placement of clues in a classic work, The Last Cato has drawn comparisons to Dan Brown's best- selling The Da Vinci Code. The Last Cato is "a story worthy of Indiana Jones, although the adventurer here is a Catholic nun," according to Lisa O'Hara in Library Journal. As she attempts to solve the mystery, Ottavia is aided by a handsome and intelligent member of the Swiss Guard and a quirky archaeologist.Ī Kirkus Reviews writer called Ottavia Salina "an ecclesiastical Jane Bond," and described the author's take on early church history as "riveting," while noting that her writing is somewhat weak in other areas. Critical information to the puzzle is contained in Dante's Divine Comedy. It seems, however, that the order may also have been stealing slivers of the sacred relic. Her investigations lead her to uncover dark secrets related to the Staurofilakes, an ancient and secret organization dedicated to protecting the cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified. Ottavia is asked to determine the meaning of tattoos that are found on the corpse of an Ethiopian man identified as an enemy of the church. Ottavia Salina, who works in the Vatican as a paleographer. Matilde Asensi's first novel to be translated into English is The Last Cato. Todo bajo el cielo, Planeta (Barcelona, Spain), 2006.
Peregrinatio, Planeta (Barcelona, Spain), 2004. Iacobus, Plaza & Janés (Barcelona, Spain), 2000.Įl último cató, Plaza & Janés (Barcelona, Spain), 2001, translated by Pamela Carmell as The Last Cato, Rayo ( New York, NY), 2006.Įl origen perdido, Planeta (Barcelona, Spain), 2003. WRITINGS: NOVELSĮl salón de ámbar, Plaza & Janés Editores (Barcelona, Spain), 1999. Has worked as an employee for the Valencian Service of Health, for local radio stations, and for Spanish national radio as a news reporter also freelance news reporter. Education: Attended Independent University of Barcelona.
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