A delicious novel that charms the senses as well as the mind. A love story full of passion, angst and eroticism, this is another triumph from Mr Capella.
July 2010 Guest Editor Louise Candlish on Anthony Capella...
I am a big fan of Anthony Capella. His elegant novels are self-contained treats to be saved for a special occasion. This is the story of turn-of-the-(20th)-century dandy Robert Wallis, who sets out to make his fortune in the coffee trade in Abyssinia. There are laugh-out-loud parts that made me think of Waugh’s Black Mischief.
It is 1895. Robert Wallis, would-be poet, bohemian and impoverished dandy, accepts a commission from coffee merchant Samuel Pinker to categorise the different tastes of coffee - and encounters Pinker's free-thinking daughters, Philomenia, Ada and Emily. As romance blossoms with Emily, Robert realises that the Muse and marriage may not be incompatible after all. Sent to Abyssinia to make his fortune in the coffee trade, he becomes obsessed with a negro slave girl, Fikre. He decides to use the money he has saved to buy her from her owner - a decision that will change not only his own life, but the lives of the three Pinker sisters ...
'An erotic, exotic story set at the turn of the 20th century, which builds upon Mr Capella's reputation as a writer of gourmet fiction ... [an] imaginative storyline and boldly descriptive prose' Economist
'The surprising plot twists and authentic love story will make this a crowd-pleaser' Publishers Weekly
'A fast-paced narrative propelled by Capella's masterful characterizations of his principals, Wallis and Emily' Kirkus Review
'A fruity, full-bodied story' Good Housekeeping
Author
About Anthony Capella
Anthony Capella spends part of each year travelling in Italy.
