Fall of the Florios
A Novel
Published on 10. October 2024
Book
Paperback/Softback
416 pages
978-0-06-338915-1 (ISBN)
Description
The epic saga behind the Disney-produced Hulu series The Lions of Sicily
The magnificent third installment of the Florio story-a sweeping, decadent, and romantic finale that tells the story of Italy's most powerful and notorious family as it faces its dramatic end.
After triumph and brilliance, the Sicilian Lions enter their fall . . .
Glory is fleeting, fate sometimes cruel. For more than sixty years, the Florios have reigned supreme, establishing the city of Palermo as a European beacon of commerce, and making Sicily one of Italy's most powerful regions. But now fate has taken a turn. As social and economic pressures erode the stability of a young Italy, the Florios-despite their wealth and power-must watch as their iron grip over the South begins to weaken.
Following in the steps of the father he idolized, Ignazzidu, now Don Ignazio, finds himself commanding the Florio family's interests and enterprises. Negligent, impetuous, and headstrong, he is everything his industrious father was not. But while he struggles to live up to the family name, his charming and loyal wife Franca rises to the occasion. A gracious and formidable host, Franca's hospitality becomes unmatched across Europe, informally crowned the "Queen of Palermo" as she holds court with an esteemed coterie of luminaries from the womanizing Puccini to the scandalous Boldini.
Yet as the tides of fortune change- economic hardships, war, and human loss- their relationship will be put to the test and Franca will find that even a love as devoted as hers may falter. But the biggest threat to their survival is the death of an heir. In losing the flesh of his flesh, Ignazio-who succeeded his father without the strength or conviction to do so-will ultimately oversee the collapse of an empire built by his family's ambition, cunning, and sweat.
What kind of future will the Florios have now? Will anything remain of their greatness?
Translated from the Italian by Katherine Gregor and Howard Curtis.
The magnificent third installment of the Florio story-a sweeping, decadent, and romantic finale that tells the story of Italy's most powerful and notorious family as it faces its dramatic end.
After triumph and brilliance, the Sicilian Lions enter their fall . . .
Glory is fleeting, fate sometimes cruel. For more than sixty years, the Florios have reigned supreme, establishing the city of Palermo as a European beacon of commerce, and making Sicily one of Italy's most powerful regions. But now fate has taken a turn. As social and economic pressures erode the stability of a young Italy, the Florios-despite their wealth and power-must watch as their iron grip over the South begins to weaken.
Following in the steps of the father he idolized, Ignazzidu, now Don Ignazio, finds himself commanding the Florio family's interests and enterprises. Negligent, impetuous, and headstrong, he is everything his industrious father was not. But while he struggles to live up to the family name, his charming and loyal wife Franca rises to the occasion. A gracious and formidable host, Franca's hospitality becomes unmatched across Europe, informally crowned the "Queen of Palermo" as she holds court with an esteemed coterie of luminaries from the womanizing Puccini to the scandalous Boldini.
Yet as the tides of fortune change- economic hardships, war, and human loss- their relationship will be put to the test and Franca will find that even a love as devoted as hers may falter. But the biggest threat to their survival is the death of an heir. In losing the flesh of his flesh, Ignazio-who succeeded his father without the strength or conviction to do so-will ultimately oversee the collapse of an empire built by his family's ambition, cunning, and sweat.
What kind of future will the Florios have now? Will anything remain of their greatness?
Translated from the Italian by Katherine Gregor and Howard Curtis.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
HarperCollins Publishers Inc
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 131 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
284 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-06-338915-1 (9780063389151)
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Other editions
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Persons
Stefania Auci, a Trapani-born, Palermo-adopted teacher, is author of The Florios of Sicily, a literary sensation that went on to sell over 1,500,000 copies in Italy alone before being published in over 40 countries and forming the basis of The Lions of Sicily, a successful series available on Disney+ and Hulu.
Katherine Gregor translates from Italian and French. Recent credits include Caroline Lamarche's The Memory of the Air and Oriana Ramunno's Ashes in the Snow.
Katherine Gregor translates from Italian and French. Recent credits include Caroline Lamarche's The Memory of the Air and Oriana Ramunno's Ashes in the Snow.