Empty Bed Blues
Empty Bed Blues
by William Wall
In a gorgeous new novel, William Wall conjures the colours, tastes and scents of Liguria, exploring the intersection of friendship, love, language, debt and politics.
Paperback | 216pp | ISBN: 9781848408838 | Release Date: 11th April 2023
When Kate Holohan’s husband dies suddenly, the extent of his disastrous financial speculation is revealed – together with a mistress and a secret love-nest in the small Italian fishing port of Camogli. Unwilling to take on the ocean of debt and deceit she has inherited, Kate abandons her home and teaching job and flees to Italy in the hope of making a new life.
Her new neighbour, Anna Ferrara, is a formidable and mysterious older lady who takes Kate under her wing, teaching her Italian, finding her work and offering her friendship and more. But it will be Anna’s past – as a journalist, writer, former Resistance fighter and a committed communist – that will also challenge Kate and force her to reconsider her responsibilities back home and the values she truly wants to represent.
Over three seasons, William Wall conjures the colours, tastes and scents of Liguria, as Empty Bed Blues explores the intersection of friendship, love, language, debt and politics, all told with humour, sensitivity and gold standard storytelling.
“‘The author’s love for Italy imbues his latest novel, EMPTY BED BLUES, with a wonderful sense of place.’ ”
“‘A sensuous love letter to La Dolce Vita for the middle-aged … A quietly devastating expression of his strength – the precision of a poet’s world view elegantly extended to achieve a meaningful narrative … Delicate storytelling that elevates the trivialities of life to something significant.’ ”
“‘Wall has infused his tale with lyricism and true compassion.’”
“‘At the peak of his powers.’”
“‘Wall has an admirable power of poignant description.’”
“‘EMPTY BED BLUES is a novel with great depth. There are multiple layers and many literary references scattered throughout that add a richness to the narrative but at no point overwhelm it.’ ”
