Immortal, by Traci L. Slatton
Delta Trade Paperbacks, 2008
One of the top reasons people read fiction is to lose themselves in someone else’s life for awhile. One of the worst things to happen to a reader is to purchase a book and never really “get into it” or have to slog their way through just to finish it. Some folks will even give up halfway through a book they’re not enjoying. So, it is with great pleasure that I can say that Immortal, by Traci L. Slatton, is the kind of book that will compel you to pick it up and read every spare second you get.
Immortal is set in 14th Century Florence, where a young boy –Luca Bastardo – was separated from his parents and subjected to a horrific life as one of the child prostitutes owned by the evil Bernardo Silvano. But Luca proves to be special, he doesn’t age the way others do. After decades of service, he still looks no older than a teenager. His secret, immortality, is soon guessed at by others, whose suspicions lead to accusations that Luca is a witch, a devil, or at least possessed.
But, even after escaping his life of prostitution, Luca cannot seem to dodge the progeny of Silvano, who have all sworn vengeance on Luca for Bernardo’s death. This decades-long vendetta at times becomes improbable, but Slatton is able to plot the various convenient intersections of the antagonists’ lives to keep things interesting over the course of Luca’s 180-year lifespan.
The setting of Florence is quite perfect for this novel as it allows Luca to meet a variety of historic figures – from Leonardo da Vinci to Botticelli, and even the great Medici family. Luca’s is quite a charmed life – if one can suspend one’s doubt that a single person could become friends so easily with so many of the world’s great thinkers. But, this is a work of fiction about an immortal being, so some amount of desire for “realism” must be cast aside to begin with.
Immortal raises important, life-directing questions as Luca travels not only a physical journey but psychological quest to discover who he really is. These are important questions we should always have in our own minds, and I thank Slatton for reminding us to always be vigilant in the search for our own reasons for being.
515 pp.
