Shadow of Madness is the next instalment in D. V. Bishop’s Cesare Aldo series, where Aldo finds himself trapped with a killer in blizzardy 16th century Tuscany. We spoke to D. V. Bishop to learn more about the series and his summer reading plans.

Shadow of Madness
by D. V. Bishop
Published by Macmillan

• Congratulations on the publication of your latest novel, Shadow of Madness. Can you tell our readers what you wanted to explore in this book?

 Each Aldo novel adds a different flavour to its mix of genres and Shadow of Madness is my Gothic book. It sends Aldo into a crumbling asylum high in the Tuscan hills above Florence during the worst of winter, seeking answers about his own past. But trouble seems to follow Aldo everywhere and, sure enough, death claims someone within a few hours. Was it an accident or murder? A blizzard traps Aldo at the asylum while he hunts for answers…

Shadow of Madness is about past mistakes, the price of faith and the stigma attached to mental illness. It takes Aldo to some dark places, both literally and figuratively!

• You’re pausing the Cesare Aldo series after this book. What made you decide to do that here? Did you always plan this to be a six-book arc?

 As you say, the Aldo books are taking a short pause after Shadow of Madness. I’m writing something else for publication in 2027 (more details on that below!), but Aldo is definitely returning. He has to as Shadow of Madness ends with a very ominous suggestion that one of his deadliest foes may be back. Whether that’s true will be revealed in 2028.

This book brings back a couple of characters from an earlier novel in the series and includes some shocking revelations most readers won’t see coming. It’s the end of one strand in my series, but also the springboard for what’s to come. I’m excited to write the next Aldo novel!

• Will you miss Cesare? What has been most enjoyable about writing him?

 I’ve been missing Aldo since I finished writing Shadow of Madness last year. Since the start of 2026 I’ve been writing a new standalone which doesn’t even mention Aldo’s name. It is still a historical thriller set in Renaissance Italy and it features a prominent character from the Aldo series as the star of the novel. Frankly, she’s been dying to take centre page all her life!

• Why did you decide to set your series in Renaissance Italy?

 I’ve always been fascinated by Florence (blame seeing the Merchant Ivory adaptation of E. M. Forster’s A Room With a View at a formative age), and how it was the cradle for the Renaissance, giving birth to humanism and sciences while reviving classicism in philosophy and architecture and art. Throw in Machiavelli’s The Prince and you’ve got a heady brew of politics, backstabbing and brilliance – what’s not to love for a storyteller?

• Why do you think historical fiction resonates with readers so much just now?

 Historical fiction is popular because it examines many of the problems we face today but through the prism of the past. These kinds of stories reassure because they show us that even five hundred years ago, people still lived and loved much as we do today. Yet a great novel of historical fiction also has us escape the here and now by immersing us in the past. It turns the reader’s imagination into a time machine!

• What writers have influenced your writing of this series?

 Any contemporary writer of historical thrillers inevitably owes a debt to C. J. Sansom. Ellis Peters’ Brother Cadfael mysteries and The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco helped invent historical mystery fiction, but it was Sansom who showed there was a modern readership for intelligent and immersive novels set in the past that spoke to our concerns today. There’s so many brilliant authors of historical fiction – Shona Maclean, Abir Mukherjee, Sarah Waters, Andrew Taylor, S. J. Parris, Vaseem Khan, Anna Mazzola, A. J. West – the list goes on!

• What are your writing plans now?

 I’m finishing up my 2027 book, the standalone historical thriller mentioned above. If readers subscribe to my free author newsletter – https://dvbishop.substack.com/ – they get sent a PDF of an exclusive, unpublished short story featuring the main character of my 2027 novel!

• What will you be reading this summer?

 After finishing my work in progress I have several TBR stacks to read that best resemble the Himalayas. Towards the top of those are Consider the Ravens by Cressida Downing (out this month, I believe), Winterbourne by Elisabeth Wolf, Thornby Manor by Stephanie Bramwell-Lawes, The Assassin’s Mark by G. J. Williams, The Cromarty Library Circle by Shona MacLean and many, many more! The new Miss Hortense by Mel Pennant, The Shark by Emma Styles, the list goes on and on and on…

Shadow of Madness by D. V. Bishop is published by Macmillan and is available now, priced £20.00