Book Description

Albert Stafford is a University of Bologna lecturer who has written a journal at his home in the Valtiberina, a region of Italy shared by Tuscans and Umbrians. The theft of his mobile telephone, an unfortunate accident and a chance encounter with the circus performer Ettore sends his life of respectability and predictability into free fall. Life becomes "all too Fellini: dwarfs, hysterical spinsters, buxom red-headed women, theft and intrigue, cemetery flower-peddlers, fat ladies, mutes". Meanwhile, unusual happenings that have occurred in the nearby towns of Arezzo, Sansepolcro, Città di Castello, and Caprese Michaelangelo come together in Albert's garden and the "deceits and abandonments" of Albert's life start to unfold. Why did Albert come to Italy over forty years ago? In 1967, Toronto was shocked by incidents surrounding the death of a young woman which made headlines and dominated the front pages of the national newspapers. Two young British students have become involved in a bizarre series of twisted deeds which come to haunt their family for four generations. Terrifying as events become, Albert is central to everything going on, yet his voice can only be heard through a group of narrators and their compelling, yet disturbing, accounts. Three elderly siblings and a life-long Italian friend recount their most vivid recollections from 1967 until the present. Albert and Ettore is a family chronicle of "deceit and abandonment", a story that unravels the nefarious deeds of a dark and sinister world, leading toward a harrowing conclusion.