I am delighted once more to be hosting DEBORAH SWIFT on a Coffee Pot Book Club blog tour to bring news of her latest release, The Cameo Keeper, the fourth book in her Italian Renaissance series, set in seventeenth century Venice, and based on the life and legend of Giulia Tofana, the famous poisoner.
You can find out more about The Cameo Keeper below, and read a fascinating article from Deborah about the historical background to the book.
What is the book about?
Rome 1644: A Novel of Love, Power, and Poison
Remember tonight… for it is the beginning of always ― Dante Alighieri
In the heart of Rome, the conclave is choosing a new Pope, and whoever wins will determine the fate of the Eternal City.
Astrologer Mia and her fiancé Jacopo, a physician at the Santo Spirito Hospital, plan to marry, but the election result is a shock and changes everything.
As Pope Innocent X takes the throne, he brings along his sister-in-law, the formidable Donna Olimpia Maidalchini, known as La Papessa – the female Pope. When Mia is offered a position as her personal astrologer, she and Jacopo find themselves on opposite sides of the most powerful family in Rome.
Mia is determined to protect her mother, Giulia Tofana, a renowned poisoner. But with La Papessa obsessed with bringing Giulia to justice, Mia and Jacopo’s love is put to the ultimate test.
As the new dawn of Renaissance medicine emerges, Mia must navigate the dangerous political landscape of Rome while trying to protect her family and her heart. Will she be able to save her mother, or will she lose everything she holds dear?
For fans of “The Borgias” and “The Crown,” this gripping tale of love, power, and poison will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end.
‘Historical fiction that is brisk, fresh and bristling with intrigue’
~ Bookmarked Reviews ★★★★★
The Historical Background to The Cameo Keeper
Politically, Rome was under direct rule of the Pope, who functioned as the spiritual leader of the Catholic Church. The papacy in the early seventeenth century was still recovering from the aftershocks of the Protestant Reformation which had reshaped religious life across Europe. So by the 1640s, the Church was keenly focused on consolidating its authority, defending Catholic ideals, and projecting its own power.
Pope Urban VIII, who reigned from 1623 to 1644, was a central figure during the early part of the decade. A member of the influential Barberini family, Urban VIII was known for his patronage of the arts and his ambitious building projects, which aimed to glorify both God and the position the Pope. In the previous books in this series (The Poison Keeper) we see that he became vastly unpopular with the citizens of Rome because of his nepotism, i.e., favouring his family in key appointments. The use of city taxes to fund his personal grandiose works of art also stirred unrest. He commissioned masterpieces from rival sculptors Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Francesco Borromini, and Bernini became the Vatican’s sculptor of choice. Bernini’s work on St Peter’s Basilica, the Fountain of the Four Rivers in Piazza Navona, and numerous sculptures and chapels transformed the urban landscape of Rome with its theatrical splendour.
Following Urban VIII’s death in 1644, the papal conclave elected Pope Innocent X, a member of the Pamphili family. Determined to punish the Barberinis for their excesses, he launched investigations into their financial dealings, which triggered a dramatic power struggle, leading to the exile of several Barberini family members. In this novel, The Cameo Keeper, Mia Caiozzi the main character, comes under the pernicious influence of the Pope’s sister-in-law, a woman they nicknamed La Papessa, the female Pope, because of the fact she wielded so much power. She was not only the Pope’s adviser but a skilled politician with her own networks of particular interest. One of her interests was in the courtesans of the city and their health – an interest that was unpopular with the status quo.
Social tensions simmered as Rome’s population, swollen by migrants and pilgrims, coped with economic hardship and outbreaks of plague. Poverty and crime were persistent issues, and the city’s authorities struggled to maintain order amid the shifting tides of fortune and favour.
Culturally, the Jesuit order played a key role in education and missionary activity, with Athanasius Kircher opening his museum of artefacts from all over the world. Rome was at the centre of scientific exploration, with research at the Santo Spirito Hospital and the Collegio Romano making advances in philosophy and medicine. Yet, beneath the surface of splendour and ceremony, Rome grappled with uncertainty. The spectre of war, the instability of papal succession, and the shifting alliances of European powers created an atmosphere of anxiety and expectation.
What attracted me to this period of 1640s Rome was the fact it was a hotbed of contrasts—between traditional herbal medicine and scientific inquiry, ancient Roman ideas and innovation, splendour and poverty.
© Deborah Swift
Book details
The Cameo Keeper , the fourth book in the Giulia Tofana series, was published on 11th November 2025 by Quire Books, and is available as an eBook and in paperback.
It can be read on Kindle Unlimited.
The audiobook, read by Diana Croft, is currently available on Kobo, and will also be on Audible.
Buy links
About the author
Deborah Swift is the author of twenty novels of historical fiction.
Her Renaissance novel in this series, The Poison Keeper, was recently voted Best Book of the Decade by the Wishing Shelf Readers Award. Her WW2 novel Past Encounters was the winner of the BookViral Millennium Award, and is one of seven books set in the WW2 era.
Deborah lives in the North of England close to the mountains and the sea.
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Thanks so much for hosting Deborah Swift today, with such an interesting post linked to her intriguing new release, The Cameo Keeper.
Take care,
Cathie xx
The Coffee Pot Book Club