Joseph Orbi

The Lives of Felix V

Beginning at the closing of World War II, The Lives of Felix V weaves romance with little known history into an epic tale of international intrigue and political manipulation spanning seventy-five years, and two continents.

World War II’s forgotten fuhrer, Ante Pavelić, the great tenor Beniamino Gigli, and Pope Pius XII are among the historical figures described in The Lives of Felix V.

The Implacable Nestor Picol

A violent, and unexpected death one cold autumn day, in a suburb of present day New York, sets a story that rewinds to Malta, 1956, where Nestor Picol’s proud mama observes that, "he will be a serious man."

At the same time, in a small apartment in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village, Enrico Monticelli, just arrived from Germany after a stint in the US Army, dreams of becoming a great operatic star.

Two totally disparate lives, separated by more than the waters of the Atlantic, are, unknowingly, on a collision course with each other.

Set in Malta, New York, France, Buenos Aires, Rome, and the Holy See, The Implacable Nestor Picol is one of the funniest, most entertaining books of recent times.

-- Maestro Monticelli "tells a story" from Solace in the Pampas --

Cenacolo

Cenacolo, a refectory or, dining-hall and the principal setting for the historical fiction novel about three dangerous, and frantic weeks in the life of Leonardo da Vinci, while he worked on his famous mural, at Santa Maria delle Grazie, in Milan.

A story of suspense and court intrigue, Cenacolo employs drawings by Leonardo that reveal the real “artist;” a man with only three things in mind, none of them a brush.

Beside Leonardo, the cast of characters in Cenacolo include Niccolo Machiavelli, Duke Ludovico Sforza of Milan, Pope Alexander VI, Çesare Borgia, and his sister Lucrezia; men and women struggling to survive the extraordinary, but unforgiving times of the Italian Renaissance.

NOT a Matter of Faith

Not a Matter of Faith is a call to arms; a warning for parents to safeguard their children’s sense of critical appreciation and judgment so they do not become targets of charlatans and smooth-talking psychopaths eager to exploit their willingness to believe nonsense.

It is a book that describes how peddlers of divine snake oil pick peoples’ pockets, and what you, the reader, can do to fend them off.

Concise and focused, Not a Matter of Faith is a hole-puncher for religious arguments, fallacies and contradictions quoted by “those smiling others” who, empowered by psychotic belief, challenge our intelligence with: “It is a matter of faith.”

A Lady of Influence

A recent widower, and prominent US Senator, marries for a second time. Bennett Collingwood, former director of the CIA, reads about it in the papers, and being well acquainted with the bride, raises the alarm.

“Hence it is that which none in the whole army are more intimate relations to be maintained than with spies. None should be more liberally rewarded. In no other business should greater secrecy be preserved.” Sun Tzu – The Art of War.

Based on a true story, A Lady of Influence is an international thriller.

Beginning in 1947, the novel describes an investigation by FBI counterintelligence, as it follows former DCI Collingwood’s lead into 70 years of political operations by the CIA against the People’s Republic of China, and the unforseen consequences of a particular operation that turned out too good to be true.

by Joseph Orbi

NOVELS & BOOKS
The Lives of Felix V – Novel
Cenacolo – Novel
The Implacable Nestor Picol – Novel
A Lady of Influence – Novel (2025)
The Malediction of Petronila Márquez – Novel (2025)
McQuicker's Place – Children’s Book Serial
¿Por qué se reía la gente? Biography (Spanish)
The Bet – Novel (2026)

THEATER
El Tremendo Hotel – (Spanish)
Cenacolo – (English/Spanish) Showcased - Lincoln Center
Pendejo (Showcased - NY Public Theater
McQuicker's Place (Musical)
Murder a Cappella

FILMS
1963 -- The Perfect Game
A Lady of Influence
Los Hermanos Gómez
Murder a Cappella
The Bet
The Dragon and the Wolfe

SHORT STORIES & Essays
Greyhound at 2 a.m.
Not a Matter of Faith – Essay
Breakfast in Amarillo
Two Degrees from Göring
Chichi, Maki Take a Trip
Have You Seen the Mona Lisa?
Charlie & the Bridge
Hot Noon at the Orange bowl
Westchester Opera Presents
A Perfect Game
Path to Hell . . .
Blow Out at the Vanderbilt

About Joseph Orbi

It has been said that either Joseph Orbi has led a very interesting life, or he suffers from delusions.

Truth is, no one else can claim he performed as a clown in a circus, met Argentina's Juan Perón for breakfast, sold his first TV script to Columbia Pictures when he was 18 years old, tweaked Johnny Carson's forehand, played "fetch" with Rin-Tin-Tin, predicted Israel's raid on Entebbe, warned a DoD spokesman against selling F-14s to pre-Islamic Iran, appeared twice as principal guest on the Phil Donahue show, before trying to acquire the entire Air Force of the Dominican Republic, and becoming consigliere to an opera company in New York.

It is those unconventional life experiences that shaped Joseph Orbi's unpredictable, genre-defying style that somersaults between historical drama, comedy, and political thrillers in novels, plays -- including a musical -- and films.

Joseph Orbi attended schools in Switzerland, and university in California, where he developed a passion for history, philosophy, deviant psychology, and international politics, themes he combines with remarkable flair in his writings.