The Bishop's Bedroom

Sultry. The cover of the late Piero Chiara’s novel titled, The Bishop’s Bedroom, announces the contents with clarity. Sailing around Lake Maggiore and seeing the fine houses invites a rise in sexual tension as a cast of sultry characters tack around each other supported or stalled by the winds of attraction. Set in 1946 in Northern Italy, the atmosphere that Chiara offers pulls readers into that place and time with great skill. The opaque characters lie to one another with ease, and readers are the observers of the loose bonds that new relationships provide. One can almost feel the rubbery nature of idleness that imbeds in their lives that summer following the world war. I read this novel in winter in Chicago and within these pages, everything was sultry. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase The Bishop’s Bedroom from amazon.com.