Review of Giovanni Chronicles IV: Nuova Malattia

Giovanni Chronicles IV: Nuova Malattia is the epilogue to the Giovanni Chronicles, White Wolf's first attempt at a grand Chronicle spanning centuries of vampiric existence. The characters were people from all walks of life, Embraced in 1444 by the members of a vampiric conspiracy (the Conspiracy of Isaac) to destroy the Cappadocian Japheth (Giovanni Chronicles I), witnessed the diablerie of the Cappadocian Antediluvian by Augustus Giovanni, and travelled the world – from Basel to Cairo, from London to Rome – to hinder the schemes of one Ambrogino Giovanni, a Necromancer bent on achieving godhood through the power of the Sargon Fragment, na ancient Chaldean codex containing a powerful ritual that would allow him to do just that.

In Giovanni Chronicles IV (GC4), the point of view changes from the Children of Isaac (the childer of the conspirators in GC1) to a coterie of Giovanni ghouls and neonates in Boston. The characters start out as plain vanilla mortals, becoming ghouls to the don of Boston in the beginning of the first Act. If they are skilled, savvy and lucky enough, they earn the Embrace.

MAJOR SPOILER ALERT: If you don't want to know the true fate of the Cappadocian Antediluvian, skip the end of the next paragraph.

The chronicle has four Acts, set in 1929, 1959, 1972 and 1999. The characters will fight to carve their place in the underworld, in vampiric society and in Clan Giovanni proper. Their opponents include everything from rival gangsters and the judicial system, to the Camarilla, the Sabbat, the Inquisition, the Children of Isaac and the Cappadocian Antediluvian himself, returned as a vengeful Spectre.

The book is superb; it presents a truly "adult" World of Darkness, i.e., yes, there's the whole Black Dog smut and gore thing, but this time (unlike some Black Dog material I could name) there is a point. Theme, mood, setting, plot, characters and scenarios all intertwine smoothly to produce a great Chronicle, superior to all previous installments of the Giovanni Chronicles and to some 80% of the stuff White Wolf puts in the market. The Mass scene in Act I is superb! This is the World of Darkness as it should have always been; few other books take the White Wolf motto, "Games for Mature Minds", so seriously. Kudos to Heather Grove and Matthew McFarland for a masterpiece.

Style: 5 (Excellent!)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)