Sometimes, the best dreams are the ones you stop putting off.
Sotto il cielo di Venezia ✨ is my very first single — a modern Italian pop song filled with summer, light, and the unique atmosphere of Venice.
The official music video is now available to watch for free on YouTube, complete with English subtitles. 🎬
🎧 Starting June 12, the song will also be available on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and wherever fine digital music is streamed.
I’m incredibly happy to finally share this project with you. Maybe it will remind someone that it’s never too late to start something new, pursue a dream, or finally follow a dream you’ve carried with you for years.
🎬 Official Music Video – Available Now on YouTube (with English subtitles) 🎧 Streaming Release: June 12, 2026
Mafalda and the Lost Turtles of Venice
Experienced housewife, passionate cook, faithful widow and devoted grandmother. Distinctively Venetian. Step into Mafalda’s world.
A fresh start—with a few surprises, lots of pasta, and a whole lot of Italian sunshine!
Mafalda Cinquetti never thought she’d leave her beloved Murano. But when life takes an unexpected turn, she finds herself living in a crumbling palazzo in Venice’s Castello district—alongside her two dearest friends, a stubborn turtle or two… and a growing mystery.
Her best friend Lucia promises the move will be a dream: charming neighbors, the best cafés in town, and the buzz of Via Garibaldi just outside their windows. Alma is seeking distance from a late-in-life romance, and Mafalda—well, maybe it’s time she opened the door to something new, too.
With mornings spent sipping espresso in the sun and evenings filled with hearty meals and laughter, life seems nearly perfect. Until Mafalda notices something strange: the turtles in the courtyard fountain are vanishing, one by one—and nobody else seems to care. Except for one other person. And what they uncover together may shake the quiet canals of Venice more than anyone could have imagined.
Friendship, food, and a mystery that bubbles just beneath the surface—this is Venice like you’ve never read it before.
Join Mafalda and her chosen Italian family—including Alma, Lucia, charming Pietro, and his witty husband Angelo—as they unravel a delightfully twisty puzzle at the heart of their neighborhood. Warm, whimsical, and full of heart, this cozy mystery skips the blood and bullets and dives straight into the dolce vita. One chapter in, and you’ll wish you lived on Via Garibaldi too.
Whether you’ve known Mafalda for years or are meeting her for the first time, this chapter welcomes you with the scent of roasted vegetables from the kitchen, the clinking of glasses at a waterside table, and the unmistakable rhythm of life in Venice. It’s a story about resilience, friendship, and the small moments that shape us.
Writing Mafalda has always been a joy. She is as flawed as she is fierce, as stubborn as she is kind. And while she may not see herself as brave, she continues to do what all great protagonists do: step forward, no matter the odds.
Pull up a chair. Pour yourself a glass of prosecco. The next chapter is about to begin.
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Bastian Richter
About me
After years of living and writing across Europe—from vibrant university towns to the cultural heart of Berlin and even a scenic chapter in Switzerland—I’ve finally dropped anchor in the northern Netherlands. Here, in a restored village bakery turned creative hideaway, I’ve written more than ten books and spend my free time exploring the surrounding waterways aboard my vintage barge. I also spent a long time living in Italy, a country that continues to inspire me—especially Venice, where the spirited amateur sleuth Mafalda Cinquetti first walked into my imagination.
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