Italian Fever is

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

novel by

Valerie Martin Valerie Martin (née Metcalf; born March 14, 1948) is an American novelist and short story writer. Her novel ''Property'' (2003) won the Orange Prize for Fiction. In 2012, ''The Observer'' named ''Property'' as one of "The 10 best historical no ...

Plot summary

Part

romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...

and part

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' Films * ''Mystery'' (2012 film), a 2012 Chinese drama film * ''Mystery'' ( ...

, it tells the story of

New Yorker New Yorker or ''variant'' primarily refers to: * A resident of the State of New York ** Demographics of New York (state) * A resident of New York City ** List of people from New York City * ''The New Yorker'', a magazine founded in 1925 * ''The New ...

Lucy Stark, who travels to

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

to wind up the affairs of her late boss – a writer named DV, who has died after falling down a well while staying at a remote villa. Lucy's job begins as a grim task, but a series of events and revelations during her stay in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

start to provide her with an insight into DV, and ultimately help her to gain a greater understanding of herself. Clever, pragmatic, capable Lucy Stark is the assistant to a bestselling but remarkably untalented writer named DV, who has spent the last several months in Tuscany searching for inspiration. One morning in Brooklyn, Lucy receives a startling phone call: DV is dead, and the circumstances are suspicious. Soon Lucy finds herself in Italy, surrounded by mysteries. Was DV murdered, or just the victim of his own stupidity? Was the ghost story he was writing pure fantasy, or did it hint at a darker reality? Is the devastating, married Massimo as dangerously in love with her as she is with him?

References

1999 American novels American romance novels Novels by Valerie Martin Alfred A. Knopf books Novels set in Tuscany Novels about writers {{1990s-romance-novel-stub