On March 28, 2014, Florence Inferno published its first English eBook with an audio version, entitled “A Guide to Florence per Dan Brown’s Inferno”. It is currently available for purchase on Amazon.
Ourfirst eBook: the realization
This eBook is divided into 11 chapters and subchapters, for a total of 77 pages, and contains an audio version for discovering Florence, Italy, in the footsteps of Robert Langdon, the main character in American author Dan Brown’s latest work, the thrilling novel Inferno.
The realization of the eBook required the collaboration of various writers, who usually publish weekly on Florence Inferno, the blog about mysteries, symbols, and places in Florence, mentioned in Brown’s Inferno. It also involved the participation of an editor and a graphic designer, who have both worked on it for an extended period of time (three months).
Sean Harvey is the editor for this eBook. He holds a Master’s Degree in Classical Studies, resides in Eastern Ontario, Canada, and works as a freelance editor for our blog.
The graphic designer is Simone Montanari, a graduate in Industrial Design at the University of Rome with a specialization in interaction and web design. Simone presently works in Berlin.
The audio version of the eBook, recorded by Canadian Phil Desroches, allows readers to visit the sites accompanied by an audio description from a portable device, such as a smartphone, tablet, or MP3 player.
A Guide to Florence per Dan Brown’s Inferno: the content
The eBook is essentially a small travel guide in which readers can find historical information, anecdotes, as well as curiosities about every Florentine place mentioned in the Dan Brown’s novel. It also contains pratical information for visiting the attractions such as the visiting hours and days of Florentine museums, advice on how to get to the sites mentioned, official websites, and much more.
Florence is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It attracts millions of tourists every year who come to soak in its history, culture, Renaissance art and architecture, monuments, museums, art galleries, palaces, and gardens. As such, this city is the perfect location for the setting of Inferno.
Naturally, this travel guide has been arranged to follow in the footsteps of Robert Langdon and Sienna Brooks. Their journey begins in Florence at Torregalli Florence Hospital, where Robert awakens with no recollection of how he got there, and ends at Santa Maria Novella Train Station, where Robert and Sienna depart for Venice.
The places that the characters visit in their escape through Florence reflect centuries of history, politics, and art. The eBook contains references to the Badia Fiorentina, the Torregalli Florence Hospital, Viale Machiavelli, the Boboli Gardens, Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Vecchio, Dante’s House, Dante’s Church, the Baptistry of Florence, and the Santa Maria Novella Train Station.
The story begins when the mysterious shade hurls himself from the top of Badia Fiorentina. Then, after escaping Torregalli Florence Hospital, Robert and his new companion Sienna ride a trike on Viale Machiavelli toward Porta Romana and escape the Boboli Gardens via the Vasari Corridor to reach Palazzo Vecchio, located in the old part of Florence, where Langdon hopes to solve the mystery of Botticelli’s modified Map of Hell. They then visit the Hall of the Five Hundred, in which is displayed the Battle of Marciano painting, and subsequently find a secret passage in the Studiolo of Francesco I to escape from their pursuers.
To solve the mystery Langdon hopes to find a copy of The Divine Comedy at the Casa di Dante, but since it is closed that Monday, he enters the Church of Dante where he meets a helpful couple.
Finally, the protagonists reach the Baptistry of Florence, where they find Dante’s death mask and the clues needed to begin their journey to Venice.
While this guide provides a general overview, we recommend that you visit www.florenceinferno.com/related-books to find books on the subjects mentioned in each chapter.
The eBook “A Guide to Florence per Dan Brown’s Inferno” is available on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B00JATDFWM
An enormous thank you to all those who have contributed to the realization of this eBook!
We hope you like it!
Picture by FlorenceInferno