Damian Dibben is a best-selling British author. His novels have been translated into 27 languages, in over 40 countries. His latest, THE COLOUR STORM, a love story and thriller set in the art world of the renaissance, is published by MichaelJoseph/Penguin in the UK in June 2022 and HarperCollins in the US this September. Listed in the Visual Arts category on Art In Fiction, The Color Storm (2022) is a novel of Renaissance Venice by Damian Dibben. This is a compelling and spellbinding story set in Renaissance Venice and centered around a great painter who is searching for a new colour to make his mark upon history.

The very end gutted me and I held out hope that it would end differently. Not sure how I feel about it- it works for the story, but I personally wanted something different. I saw some of it coming and The Color Storm was based on history so there wasn’t a big surprise even though I was unfamiliar with the real Giorgio Barbarelli’s career until now and I could Google his art. The world's greatest artists gather to enjoy fame, fortune, and colour. When a wealthy merchant discovers a mysterious new pigment, he knows it would create a masterpiece in the right hands. I was captivated from the beginning. Ornate, vivid, deeply coloured, and so precise I could smell and taste the world Rachel Joyce I first heard of this book from a wonderful friend of mine, whom I met on Bookstagram but can now say is a true friend after meeting her in real life. I can’t deny that the first thing which attracted me to this book was the cover, I mean seriously, look at it. It is a work of art in its own right. But, after reading the blurb and discovering it was set in Italy, I was further drawn to it. When one of my favourite authors, Stephanie Storey, gushed about this novel, I knew I had to read it ASAP. It featured one of my favourite cities and historical periods, focused on art, was extremely well written and re-ignited my passion for historical fiction. Dibben expertly explores art, ambition, love and obsession during the Renaissance. I loved Leda’s wisdom about the importance of the marks we leave behind and could understand clearly the author’s purpose in sharing Giorgione’s drive to make a mark upon history. I’m still reflecting on the paradox the characters highlighted - that they were able to buy anything except a guarantee of life. As the plague reached Venice, this became a reality for the wealthy. In weak parallel, the last few years have taught us that our recent ‘plague’, too, is no respecter of persons nor health status.The new spellbinding and enchanting story set in Renaissance Venice, from the internationally acclaimed author of Tomorrow When applicable, warnings will include information on why a warning has been updated. What do the colours mean? As the water levels rise and the plague creeps ever closer, an increasingly desperate Zorzo isn't sure whom he can trust . . . An engaging thriller and a compelling exploration of an artist's obsession with love and colour". THE SUNDAY TIMES

Another thing that I want to mention is how surprised I was by some of the plot twists of the story. Some of them had me reeling, they were so unexpected. But I do love being surprised by stories! Also need to shout out the character of Leda. Another surprise because I hadn’t expected to end up loving her as much when I first met her in the book but she was incredible. A self-made woman in 16th century Italy with her own growing business, how could I not admire and love that. When painters were so charged with purpose, so voracious, so rebellious against everything that had gone before, that they described the age as a colour storm.’ What should I do – this section links to advice and guidance from our partners on how to stay safe in severe weather Amber Warning: There is an increased likelihood of impacts from severe weather, which could potentially disrupt your plans. This means there is the possibility of travel delays, road and rail closures, power cuts and the potential risk to life and property. You should think about changing your plans and taking action to protect yourself and your property. You may want to consider the impact of the weather on your family and your community and whether there is anything you need to do ahead of the severe weather to minimise the impact.Winning a commission to paint a portrait of the man's wife, Sybille, Zorzo thinks he has found a way into the merchant's favour. Instead he finds himself caught up in a conspiracy that stretches across Europe and a marriage coming apart inside one of the floating city's most illustrious palazzos. Zorzo is an interesting character, I like how passionate he is for his art and how far he is willing to go to reach his goals. However, we are shown his weaknesses which often betray him and gets him into trouble at times. He is a complex character, brought to life with monologues which at time feel almost Shakespearean in their manner and tone.

These impacts can include damage to property, travel delays and cancellations, loss of water supplies, power cuts and, in the most severe cases, bring a danger to life.Damian Dibben’s previous novel, Tomorrow, was a fascinating and unusual story of an immortal dog searching for his master across two centuries (it was better than it sounds, honestly!). I was curious to see what his next book, The Colour Storm, would be like, but it turns out that it’s a much more conventional historical novel this time. It's also a very good one! This book is set in Renaissance Venice during the height of the art movement. We follow the art circle in the quest for jobs and certain paints. While money and fame is important, it is the Renaissance and certain colours that drive artists here. Our main characters, Zorzo, does not seem to be making any wealth and his career is in danger. Rumours are racing through the city about this new color. Zorzo, sets his sights on it and believes that it could be the very thing to save, does not seem to be making any quest to find the color, he comes to realize that things are not what they seem and now has no idea who to put his trust in. Atmospheric and suspenseful and filled with the famous artists of the era, The Color Storm is an intoxicating story of art and ambition, love and obsession. Enter the world of Renaissance Venice, where the competition for fame and fortune can mean life or death...

There are quite a few words in a synopsis where when I see them I just can’t resist reading the book and one of those words is Renaissance, especially when it’s set in Italy. So when I found out about The Color Storm by Damian Dibben there was no question. I just had to read it and I’m so glad that I did because I loved it so much and could hardly put the book down. Color. It's all color," says Zorzo. "That's where it begins and ends. Venetians understand. Color is mood, love, sorrow, life. Color is what the world is built of." This summary is what pulled me into the book. I have no read many fiction books set during the Renaissance and certainly none set in the art world. I thought that these things would make this book a great fit for me. However, it wasn’t. I had a really difficult time forming any kind of connection with both the plot and the characters. I felt a times that the plot wasn’t fleshed out as well as it should have been. There were times that it felt bulky and other times were the flow was great. This unevenness pulled me out of the story. It also made for a difficult read at times. I thought that there were many times were the plot did not feel like it was moving as it should. I would have liked to have a little bit more depth as well.An] opulent tale, with elements of both love story and thriller, featuring some of Venice's most admired High Renaissance artists hunting desperately for a dazzling new pigment that will transform their work and fortunes Metro At the beginning of the novel, Barbarelli – or ‘Zorzo’ as he is called throughout the book – is finding life difficult. Work is becoming hard to find, the competition from other artists is fierce and Zorzo’s debts are increasing. He’s responsible not only for himself, but also for his team of young apprentices and assistants, so he urgently needs to find some way of gaining commissions from rich clients. An opportunity arises when a wealthy German merchant, Jakob Fugger, arrives in Venice and is said to be looking for an artist to paint an altarpiece for St Peter’s Basilica. When Zorzo hears that Fugger also possesses a new colour, a pigment known as ‘prince orient’, he becomes even more determined to bring himself to the merchant’s attention. The Colour Storm is the story of the Italian painter Giorgio Barbarelli, who lived and worked in Venice during the Renaissance. He was a real person, as are many of the other characters in the novel, and you may already be familiar with his paintings – if not, you can easily find images online of some of the pieces attributed to him which will give you an idea of the quality of his work.