Libretto

by Ann Wadsworth

Journalist Allyn Crosbie, who travels the globe to write about the esoteric world of opera, comes to central Italy in pursuit of a quick story about a production that's in danger of falling apart. In the ancient city of Perugia, she becomes entangled with the lives of Elaine Bishop, a brilliantly inventive stage director who's trying to save the production, and Vincent Norrie, a composer battling a life-threatening illness, who's struggling to complete his first operatic score. The three of them join forces to prevent an ill-intentioned librettist from sabotaging Elaine's premiere, but they are distracted by the mysteries of the city—and by one another.

About the Author
Ann Wadsworth's first novel, Light, Coming Back (Alyson, 2002), was short-listed for the Ferro-Grumley Prize, the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction, and the Stephen Crane First Fiction Award. German and French translations are available with the title Mrs. Medina. She has been a MacDowell Colony Fellow and the recipient of a Wellspring Grant from the Boston Athenaeum. She lives in Boston. Follow her on annwadsworth.net.

Endorsements
"A leisurely, moving tale of intimacy and art, with a lovingly drawn Italian setting."--Kirkus Reviews
"Ann Wadsworth writes forcefully, gracefully of characters in the ineluctable grip of passion—whether for love, art, or place." —Dori Hale, author of Disorientation and the Weather
"The sheer beauty of Wadsworth's spare and elegant placement of words, and their telling impact, is striking and awe-inspiring." —Dia Tsung, The Ink Brain
"Ann Wadsworth is a masterful stylist of intelligence, subtlety, and grace." —Helen Eisenbach, author of Loonglow

362 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 28, 2022

About the author

Ann Wadsworth was born and raised in St. Louis, and now lives in Boston. She has degrees in English from Berea College, the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, and a certificate of proficiency in Italian language and literature from the Italian University for Foreigners in Perugia, Italy.

Her first novel, Light, Coming Back, was shortlisted for the Ferro-Grumley Prize, the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction, and the Stephen Crane First Fiction Award, and was a Book of the Month Club selection. Her most recent novel, Ferragosto, was supported by the MacDowell Colony and the Boston Athenaeum. Her short stories have appeared in Christopher Street Magazine (including its anthology Aphrodisiac), and Blithe House Quarterly. She currently lives in Boston.

Reviews

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved her first novel and had high hopes for this one as well, but it fell a little flat. The dialogue felt repetitive and the narrator was at times insufferable. The romance and the relationships between the characters was quite nice.