Amazon.com description: Product Description: By Ann Radcliffe The Italian (1796) The Confessional of the Black Penitents, a Gothic romance novel by British author Ann Racliffe. The themes include love, devotion and persecution by the Holy Inquisition, with the historical backdrop of the French Revolution. The tone is dark, mysterious and sombre. The themes revolve around love, devotion and persecution, in addition to religion, aristocracy, and nationality. Radcliffe's renowned use of veiled imagery is considered to have reached its height of sophistication and complexity in The Italian; concealment and disguise are central motifs of the novel. The book is noted for its extremely effective antagonist, Father Schedoni.