A second historical novel by the author of the mesmerizing The Birth of Venus. Dunant paints a vivid, earthy portrait of Renaissance Venice in this absorbing tale of intrigue, ambition and love. It's narrated by the wily dwarf Bucino Teodoldo, loyal companion of the courtesan of the title, Fiammetta Bianchini. Escaping the 1527 sacking of Rome, they connive and claw and cheat to resume a position of their former glory in Venice.  (ITL650, $13.95)