12 March 2024

#Review - Three Fires by Denise Mina

Three Fires
Cover for book "There Fires" by Denise Mina. A red background, three stylised bonfires in black and a figure in white robes standing between.
Denise Mina (Narrated by Jonathan Keeble)
Polygon, 3 August 2023
Available as: HB, 128pp,  audio, e   
Source: Audio subscription
ISBN(HB): 9781846976384

I have to say, I never expected to find myself reading a biographical account of a medieval Italian friar who became the populist leader of Florence in the 15th century. Such is the talent of Denise Mina, at not point did I find myself thinking, hang on, what IS this?

Girolamo Savonarola was a Dominican friar who had a vision of the world as corrupt, unjust and fixated on fripperies. His was the hand behind the original "bonfire of the vanities", when "trash" such as fine Renaissance paintings were burned as irreligious, irrelevant distractions. (This is one of the three fires referred to in the title). It's hard to argue that society, and the Church, of the time were not corrupt and Savonarola had a fine line in denouncing Popes and secular leaders alike, including speaking up for the poor. He also preached antisemitism and homophobia, whether from conviction or to provide scapegoats to ease his way to power, is hard to tell. Perhaps that distinction doesn't matter, but it does I think beg comparisons with authoritarian populists of our own day, a comparison that Mina makes explicitly towards the end of the story. Less explicitly we have by then already seen Girolamo exploit the communications technology of the day - the church pulpit, but also, the new art of printing which meant that his message, unlike that of earlier firebrands, was preserved for posterity.

Mina makes an excellent job of putting this divisive and consequential figure into his historical context, happily using anachronistic reference points such as referring to him as an "intel" in the episode where he clumsily fails to court an heiress marriage to whom his family relied on for future prosperity. She also depicts the times that Savonarola lived in, and some of the awful things he saw and experienced in the fractious Italy of the 15th century. It is clear that it was an age apt to produce hellfire preachers and millennialist sects - while these had hitherto been repressed or co-opted by the Roman Catholic Church, the coming of printing would end its ability to do that.

All in all a fascinating is often horrific story (it does have its moments of humour, too!) The audio is excellently delivered by Jonathan Keeble whose, who I last heard narrating a thriller about climate change so his career seems to be focussing on apocalypses and fires - but it has just the gravitas needed for such topics.

I would recommend this book, even if you think you have no interest in medieval Italy. 

For more information about Three Fires, see the publisher's website here.

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