In 1203, the ships of the Fourth Crusade, instead of traveling to the Holy Land, show up outside the walls of Constantinople and besiege the city. Within the walls, the jester couple Theophilos and Viola, agents of the Fools' Guild (and working under the names Feste and Aglaia), are on a mission to avert catastrophe.

With disaster looming, the death of one silk merchant in the city's Venetian Quarter seems insignificant. The merchant, however, was not what he appeared to be and, if Constantionple is to have any hope of surviving the armies massed outside its gates, Feste must quickly uncover what forces were at work when the merchant lost his life.

Appearing for the first time in paperback, and including the story "The Jester and the Thieves", A Death in the Venetian Quarter is Alan Gordon and his marvelous creation of the Fools' Guild at its very best.