QUANTUM MYSTERY OR QUANTUM COMEDY? Chilling, surreal occurrences-starting with a monstrous creature on an arch-seize the interest of shy twenty-six-year-old Italian-American scholar Rich Travella and his high-strung Venetian girlfriend, Simonetta. Curiously, the historical Venetian surname "Tron" is coincident with each puzzling event. Could these strange happenings be a series of pranks by Simonetta's wealthy uncle, noted for his elaborate games? Or are they connected to a mysterious book formerly in his library-a 16th-Century "how-to" manual by Leonardo Tron, an author lost to history? Tron's subject is outlandish: the creation and prevention of coincidences. It's a work that seems to prefigure-and even exceed-the mysterious and seemingly supernatural 20th-Century science of quantum physics. And who are the peculiar, murderous people seeking the book for the powerful knowledge it supposedly contains? They draw Rich and Simonetta deeper and deeper into the dark and dangerous quest for the secret, mystical volume. Elegantly written, with a strong sense of place, One Week in Venice brings a wondrous city to life, at times in almost travelogue fashion. It's an unusual, exhilarating escapade with appealing central characters and the foulest of villains, a compact literary novel filled with humor (from highbrow to farcical), thought-provoking concepts, mystery, and murder. Also by Peter Lucia: "The Murder at Asbury Park"