She becomes fascinated by Claudio and the two of them eventually strike up a relationship that has a certain innocence to it. Giovanna is the sister to Claudio’s postman and has started to help him with his postal duties once a week. He’s a stubborn man though and he’s determined to protect the unicorn until it’s given birth, even though his life and livelihood are under threat.Īt the same time Claudio strikes up a tentative and unexpected relationship with a young woman called Giovanna.

Helicopters buzz overhead in a constant search and on top of that it seems that La Signora has come to the attention of a criminal element, the Ndrangheta, who make Claudio an offer for his farm – and offer that they expect him to accept.Īnd so, Claudio’s world has been turned upside down whether he wanted it to or not. Pretty soon, Claudio finds his farm overrun by Paparazzi with long lens cameras all desperate for a sighting.

Unfortunately, secrets have a way of finding the light no matter how deeply you might try to bury them and this case is no exception. Of course, once Claudio realises that La Signora (the name he adopts for the unicorn) is about to give birth he promises to protect her and keep her existence a secret. That is until he realises that his visitor keeps returning on a regular basis and it seems has chosen Claudio’s farm to nest down and give birth. I think if I was living such a solitary life and a unicorn turned up on my property I would probably think I’d gone insane and I think at first there is an element of that in Claudio’s reaction. That is until a unicorn literally arrives on his property one day. Claudio is definitely becoming fixed in his ways and a little cantankerous. He values his privacy and rarely sees anyone else, other than his animals (which are almost as grumpy as he is) and the postman who regularly visits. Claudio is a forty something year old man living on a remote farm in Southern Italy. It’s quite beautifully written and the fantasy elements are very ‘quiet’ almost like an aside.Īnyway, at the start of the story we are introduced to Claudio Bianchi. This book has a different feel in that it’s got an earthy realism to it that was unexpected, especially when picking up a book that is clearly going to feature a unicorn. In Calabria is my second book by the author Peter S Beagle, my first being Summerlong. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thanks to Tachyon Publications for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Summerlong by Peter S. Beagle