Villa Coco

<p>'Absolute joy' <b>Sarah Winman</b><br><br>'The funniest of writers. . . <i>Villa Coco </i>is such a sunny book' <b>Kate Atkinson</b><br><br>'A great treasure' <b>Katherine Heiny</b><br><br>Broke and directionless, our young protagonist takes a job in the Italian countryside as the assistant to Lisabetta - better 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 in a series of increasingly eccentric pursuits: 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 aiding and abetting Coco's great and final plan - to reunite with the lost love of her life 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.<br><br>A 'charm novel' for our times, <i>Villa Coco</i> is a sun-drenched paean to youth, to age and to the fulfilment of love - filled with great wisdom and a spirit of unadulterated joy.</p>