Villa Coco

<p>''Absolute joy'' <b>Sarah Winman, author of <i>Still Life</i><br><br></b>''I adored it'' <b>Nina Stibbe, author of <i>Man at the Helm</i><br><br></b>''A great treasure'' <b>Katherine Heiny, author of <i>Standard Deviation</i><br></b><br>Broke and directionless, our young protagonist takes a job in the Italian countryside as the all-purpose assistant to Lisabetta, known to her friends as Coco - a strong-willed, wealthy aristocrat of great local renown.<br><br>Trained as an archivist, he thinks he''s been hired to catalogue the contents of the beautiful, crumbling mansion nestled in the green Tuscan hills... but what <i>are</i> his actual duties? Days are spent ridding the house of a marten - whatever that is - locating the antediluvian septic system, entertaining an endless carousel of guests (from bohemian painters to elderly princesses to unnervingly handsome nephews), attending a funeral in order to make off with the urn, and not inadvertently sabotaging Coco''s great and final plan: to locate the lost love of her life and be reunited before it''s too late.<br><br>As summer turns into autumn and the Italian countryside begins to work its magic, the secrets of Villa Coco and its inhabitants are slowly brought to light - and with them, an unforgettable story of the enduring power of friendship.</p>