From Domenico Starnone, the Strega-prize winning author of Ties (2017), a stylish metaphysical novel about the art of teaching, the fear of terrorism, the sinuous paths that self-delusion lead us down, and the travails of growing old.

Mild-mannered retired teacher Domenico Stasi learns that Nina, a former student of his, is being held as a suspected terrorist. His first thought is to contact her–only her innocence can reassure him that his teachings have not contributed to the creation of a monster. But instead of the comforting proclamations of innocence Stasi was hoping to hear, Nina coolly alludes to her guilt. She then entrusts him with a simple task that soon turns deadly serious. A lethal game has now been put into play and nothing can stop its course.

Yet matters may not be entirely as they appear. Into the story steps Domenico Starnone–author, retired teacher himself, character in his own fictional world–and First Execution becomes an exhilarating voyage to that murky terrain where fiction and real life mix. Central to this novel is one of history's most enduring philosophical dilemmas: to what extent do we bear the responsibility for actions taken or not taken? Domenico Starnone will discover through his encounter with Domenico Stasi that even a lifetime of commitment to firm principles cannot provide an unassailable answer to this question, nor can it appease a man's guilty conscience. Indeed, in this electrifying literary novel, only one thing appears certain: no one is innocent.

Domenico Starnone
Domenico Starnone is considered by many to be Italy’s greatest living author. He is the author of fifteen best-selling works of fiction, including: Ties, a New York Times Editors’ Pick and Notable Book of the Year, and a Sunday Times and Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year; Trick, a Finalist for the 2018 National Book Award and the 2019 PEN Translation Prize; and, Trust, “a short, sharp novel that cuts like a scalpel to the core of its characters” (LA Times). All three of these novels were translated by Pulitzer Prize-winner, Jhumpa Lahiri. His short stories have appeared in the Paris Review, the New Yorker, and the Georgia Review.  Starnone’s Strega Prize-winning novel, The House on Via Gemito (Europa, 2023), translated by Oonagh Stransky, was named a Washington Post and Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year and a New York Times Editors’ Choice, and was long-listed for the 2024 International Booker Prize. In 2024, again in Stransky’s translation, Europa released The Mortal and Immortal Life of the Girl from Milan, which the New Yorker described as “wonderfully off-kilter.” Starnone is the recipient of many of Italy’s major literary prizes, including: the Strega prize, the Napoli prize, and the Campiello prize.

• Jul 13 2015
  Reading Matters: "The Execution is a brilliant novel brimful of ideas and theories about politics, education, terrorism, war and justice — among others — and I came away from it feeling as if my mind was slightly blown.”
  
• Oct 7 2009
  Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: (4 star review) "An excellent reading experience for those who don’t insist all questions be answered definitely."
  
• May 16 2009
  International Noir: "The writing is gorgeous!"
  
• Apr 16 2009
  Mostly Fiction: "By turns exciting, absurd, and ironic."
  
• Apr 7 2009
  Globe and Mail: "Europa brings us some of the best European crime literature in excellent translations, and this novel, by Italian master Starnone, is one of the best short books you'll find this year."
  
• Apr 6 2009
  New Pages: "Be prepared to unpack the layers in this gem of European noir. For those desiring a bit more depth to their standard crime fiction, this intelligent thriller is worth checking out."