What is there to know about Giacomo Casanova, one of history’s most intriguing figures? Author Angela Berquist wrote a book about him titled “Twice across the Bridge of Sighs: Based on the True Story of Casanova’s Escape From Prison” (ReadersMagnet; 2022).

Who is Casanova? Casanova was an Italian adventurer and author who was known for his autobiography and memoir in which he describes his observations of customs and norms of 18th-century European social life. He was, however, notorious for his many romantic affairs, thus his name became synonymous with womanizing.

The book title refers to Casanova’s two attempts to escape imprisonment from the Piombi (The Leads in English) or the Old Prisons inside the Doge’s Palace, which is connected to the New Prison by the Bridge of Sighs.

“Twice across the Bridge of Sighs” centers around Casanova’s imprisonment and subsequent escape. Although there are some fictional elements, much of the story contains actual events in his life Including his storied exploits with women. His was like no other, he was an attractive man who understood women and what they wanted, but love eluded him. When he met the woman who was his perfect complement, he fell deeply in love. He was devastated when she left him, and he carried that pain with him for the rest of his life.

“We have to give thanks that Casanova kept a detailed diary of everything that happened to him,” Berquist wrote in the preface of “Twice across the Bridge of Sighs.” “As a result, we know the young Casanova went through quite a bit that we don’t hear much about.

“He wrote so much that we don’t take the trouble to know why his name is associated with someone who ‘loves women and leaves them.’ It is little known that he learned this technique of abandonment from a woman who left him and that he spent some time in jail for dissolute behavior, connected with gambling (not with the woman).

“No, he was not royalty; he just learned how to pretend he was royal. It is curious to see how much we don’t know before we make judgments.”

Get a copy of “Twice across the Bridge of Sighs: Based on the True Story of Casanova’s Escape From Prison” by Angela Berquist today on Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.

“Twice across the Bridge of Sighs: Based on the True Story of Casanova’s Escape From Prison” will be displayed by self-publishing and book marketing company ReadersMagnet at their exhibit at booth 208 for the 2022 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on April 23-24, 2022, at the USC Campus, Los Angeles, CA.

Twice across the Bridge of Sighs: Based on the True Story of Casanova’s Escape From Prison

Author | Angela Berquist

Published date | March 2022

Publisher | ReadersMagnet

Book retail price | $10.42

Author Bio

Angela Berquist is a philosopher and free thinker. She is a former professional ballet dancer with Frankfurt Ballet. She had lived in Germany for 13 years. She has a BA in Clinical Psychology and a PhD in East/West Psychology with Emphasis on Women’s Consciousness. She has written thirteen books so far (with a fourteenth on the way) and numerous articles.