''Sharply written . . . takes readers on a thrillingly doomed journey amid the simmering heat of an Italian landscape - a captivating portrayal of self and want'' Christine Mangan, author of Sunday Times bestselling Tangerine
To cool-headed, fastidious Pricilla Messing, Italy will be an escape, a brief glimpse of freedom from a life that''s starting to feel like one long decline.
Rescued from the bedside of her difficult mother, forty-something Cilla finds herself called away to Rome to keep an eye on her wayward teenage niece, Hannah. But after years of caregiving, babysitting is the last thing Cilla wants to do. Instead she throws herself into Hannah''s youthful, heedless world - drinking, dancing, smoking - relishing the heady atmosphere of the Italian summer. After years of feeling used up and overlooked, Cilla feels like she''s coming back to life.
But being so close to Hannah brings up complica
