The Bishop's Bedroom - Paperback
by Piero Chiara (Author), Jill Foulston (Translator)
"Piero Chiara's novel is at once a murder mystery and a lyrical study of desire, greed, and deception. The ending is simply stunning."--André Aciman, author of Call Me by Your Name
"A strong, well-written and weirdly seductive little novel about enjoying the small pleasures of life."--New York Times Book Review
Summer 1946. World War Two has just come to an end and there's a yearning for renewal. A man in his thirties is sailing on Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, hoping to put off the inevitable return to work. Dropping anchor in a small, fashionable port, he meets the enigmatic owner of a nearby villa who invites him home for dinner with his older wife and beautiful widowed sister-in-law. The sailor is intrigued by the elegant waterside mansion, staffed with servants and imbued with mystery, and stays in a guest room previously occupied by a now deceased bishop related to his host. The two men form an uneasy bond, recognizing in each other a shared taste for idling and erotic adventure. But tragedy puts an abrupt halt to their revels and shatters the tranquility of the villa. A sultry, stylish psychological thriller executed with supreme literary finesse.
Piero Chiara (1913-1986) was a leading Italian author of the 20th century who won over a dozen literary prizes and whose work is marked by psychological depth, melancholy humor and a grasp of the essence of everyday life. The Bishop's Bedroom is the most celebrated of his many acclaimed novels.
Jill Foulston is the translator of novels by Erri de Luca, Augusto de Angelis and Piero Chiara. She lives in London.
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