MEET two unusual detectives. Ludovico - a young man who has had his testicles cut off for the sake of opera. And Monsieur Arouet - a fraudster, or just possibly the philosopher Voltaire. VISIT the setting. Carnival time in mid-18th century Venice, a city of winter mists, and the season of masquerade and decadence. ENCOUNTER a Venetian underworld of pimps, harlots, gamblers, forgers and charlatans. BEWARE of a mysterious coterie of aristocrats, Jesuits, Freemasons and magicians. DISCOVER a murder: that of the nobleman, Sgr Alessandro Molin, found swinging from a bridge with his innards hanging out and a message in code from his killer. Scherzo is a murder mystery of sparkling vivacity and an historical novel of stunning originality told with a wit and style highly praised by critics and nominated for the Booker Prize.