An absorbing tale of political intrigue set in the 15th-century Ottoman empire and throughout the Mediterranean. It's volume three of Dunnett's masterful "House of Niccolo" series, the story of Nicholas vander Poele of Bruges, a young dyer's apprentice who gets caught up in the rivalry for the throne of Cyprus. The characters may be fictitious but the historical footing is solid and the setting credible.  (MED33, $15.95)

House of Niccolo