Michael and Scottie have just arrived in Siena, Italy. It is the 1950's, eleven years after the war. The pair are newlyweds and both have big secrets. Michael is there to open a Ford dealership in tractors, but the real reason he is there is that he is working for the CIA. Scottie, not really the young innocent she seems, is secretly pregnant with another man's baby and hoping to fool Michael into thinking it is his.
The two start their marriage and start to know each other a bit. Besides working for the CIA, Michael is also living a lie as he is gay but cannot let anyone know as he would lose his job and face disdain from society. Scottie, who needs affection, soon finds it in the men around her. Michael has been told his job is to insure the Communists don't win the mayoral election so that he can save Italy, and the world, from extinction. That puts pressure on him and he has little time for Scottie. He hires a young teenager to accompany Scottie during the days and teach her Italian. All is moving along when Robertino disappears. As Scottie tries to find him, she meets police and noblemen, aristocratic expatriates and many people of the town. Did he run away? Has he been killed for the secrets he knows?
This novel is an interesting one. It delves into Italian society after World War II but it also exposes the dangers of secrets and how a relationship can only be founded on honesty. As the couple's secrets emerge, they start to grow closer. Scottie is a joy and through her, Michael begins to shed some of his reclusiveness and secrecy. This book is recommended for readers of literary and historical fiction.
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