The Virgin Knows, a novel published in 1995, when the North End during the 70s was mostly Italian and hundreds of people were moving into the neighborhood because it was recognized as a safe place to live, is now out in paperback and for sale in the North End.
The novel has two women stirring up trouble when they take up with Hanover Street businessmen Carlo and Renato.
One woman helps a secret society smuggle paintings of the Virgin Mary and ships the artwork to Italy where they rightfully belong. The other woman, an opera singer brings bad luck to everyone around her. The plot twist and turns in true Italian fashion alla Machiavelli.
Boston’s Pulp Magazine says author Christine Palamidessi Moore’s writing is lively and entertaining.
Reportedly, the press called it otherworldly, startling, fun, well plotted, clever and compulsively readable, according to the author.
The novel can be found and purchased in the North End at Polcari’s on Salem Street, the Old North Church Gift Shop and Ecectic on North Street. It is also available at Borders at Downtown Crossing.