In this novel the reader is transported into a captivating narrative that gracefully alternates between the past and the present, unfolding the life of Emilia, a woman who has endured a harrowing fourteen-year prison sentence for a mysterious murder. Upon her release, Emilia, now thirty years old, embarks on a poignant journey back to her semi-abandoned childhood village, Sassaia, nestled among the picturesque mountains of Piedmont. It’s a place she chooses to call home, despite her options to return to her native Ravenna, the city where her devoted father, Riccardo, still resides, or the bustling metropolises of Bologna and Milan.
Emilia’s decision to settle in Sassaia is not a simple one. It’s a reflection of her inability to find a starting point in life, a way to face the world, and the village offers her the perfect cloak of isolation. In Sassaia, she encounters two other inhabitants, each harboring their own secrets. Basilio, an elderly man, initially a talented artist, settled for a life as a housepainter and occasional restoration worker. The other is Bruno, a solitary schoolteacher in the local elementary school, who also happens to be the narrator of this intriguing tale.
The story commences on November 2nd, as Riccardo bids farewell to Emilia after helping her settle into her new abode. Emilia, having been incarcerated since the tender age of sixteen, remains a teenager at heart, grappling with the abrupt transition to the outside world. Her first act of newfound freedom is to indulge in a night of excessive drinking at the local pub, exposing herself to the prying eyes of the villagers. It is here that she crosses paths with Bruno, a serendipitous encounter that changes both of their lives irrevocably. Emilia, in a moment of vulnerability, requests Bruno’s presence to help her fall asleep, leading to an unexpected and passionate liaison.
The novel employs a narrative style that shifts between the present and the past. Through glimpses into Emilia’s life before and during her incarceration, the reader is gradually exposed to the events leading up to her imprisonment. We discover that Emilia lost her mother on December 31, 1997, and that something sinister occurred on June 23, 2001, a day that became synonymous with her descent into darkness. However, the novel tantalizingly withholds crucial details, such as the identity of the victim, the circumstances of the crime, and the motive, until its dramatic conclusion.
In the present day, set in late 2015, Emilia and Bruno’s relationship deepens, evolving into a profound and passionate love, despite the weight of unspoken secrets that both of them bear. They share two idyllic months in Sassaia, embracing the simplicity and beauty of their shared life. Emilia, armed with a degree in fine arts earned during her prison term, becomes Basilio’s assistant in the painstaking restoration of a Last Judgment fresco in a nearby church, a testament to her talent and artistic skill. Meanwhile, Bruno diligently teaches thirteen students of various ages, all hailing from the valley, including Martino Fiume, a twelve-year-old with a troubled family history, destined to follow in his father’s footsteps as a shepherd.
As their love deepens, Bruno confides in Emilia, revealing his own painful secret: the tragic loss of his parents in a cable car accident on a nearby mountain when he was just ten. Bruno and his older sister, Valeria, miraculously survived as Valeria had forgotten her backpack, leading them to exit the cable car moments before it met its tragic fate. Their lives as orphans proved to be a painful and turbulent journey. Valeria’s departure when Bruno turned eighteen strained their relationship, with no communication between the siblings for many years. Bruno, despite sharing his secret, remains ignorant of the dark truth that Emilia conceals, despite the facade of a loving couple they present to Riccardo and the villagers during the Christmas season.
The story takes a dramatic turn on January 7th when Bruno, following the Christmas break, is confronted by a jealous colleague, Patrizia, who has always been infatuated with him. She presents him with printed evidence detailing Emilia’s murder case. Shocked and horrified, Bruno is forced to confront the chilling reality that the woman he loves is a convicted murderer. Unable to bear the weight of this revelation, Bruno abandons Emilia. Upon her return home, he coldly instructs her to leave Sassaia forever. Emilia complies, packing her belongings in a matter of minutes and boarding a bus headed for Milan, where her childhood friend Marta, now a successful medical scientist working for a prominent pharmaceutical company, helps her pick up the pieces of her shattered life.
Emilia’s time in Milan, intertwined with flashbacks of her incarceration, provides the reader with a deeper understanding of her life. Marta, her friend from juvenile detention, stands as a testament to resilience, becoming the first female juvenile convict in Bologna to graduate from university during her time behind bars. Marta’s crime involved the murder of her abusive father, marking her and Emilia as the only two girls in their facility with murder convictions. Simultaneously, in Sassaia, Martino Fiume finds himself in trouble after setting fire to the school. Bruno steps in to support the troubled boy, whose mother has suffered at the hands of her alcoholic husband. Bruno becomes Martino’s guardian, hosting him in his own home and ensuring that Martino’s mother reports her husband’s abuse to the authorities. During this time, Bruno recognizes that his love for Emilia transcends her past. He reaches out to her, and on March 21st, Emilia returns to Sassaia, ready to disclose the long-buried truth about the day in 2001 when she killed her best friend, Angela Massia.
The story of Angela and Emilia unfolds, showcasing a complex and tumultuous friendship. Angela, beautiful, popular, and confident, contrasts sharply with the introverted and struggling Emilia. Despite their differences, the two were inseparable, and Emilia harbored both admiration and complex feelings for her friend. However, Angela’s entanglement with a much older, married man marked the beginning of the end for their friendship. Angela’s disregard for Emilia in the presence of her lover and her subsequent abandonment of their planned end-of-school-year celebration ignited a storm of rage within Emilia. In a fit of fury, she lured Angela to a desolate beach, armed with a knife, and unleashed a brutal and fatal attack.
The narrative remains shrouded in suspense until the book’s climax, where Emilia’s confession to her crime is laid bare, revealing the harrowing truth behind the murder that has haunted her for so long.
Fast-forward to June 22, 2016, and Emilia and Bruno embark on a road trip, marking the culmination of their profound journey. Over the past three months, Emilia and Basilio have successfully completed the restoration of the Last Judgment fresco, Martino Fiume has triumphantly passed his year-end exam, and Bruno has reunited with his estranged sister, Valeria. Their journey leads them to Ravenna, where Emilia stands before her mother’s grave and Angela’s, symbolizing the closure of a painful chapter