Tranquil life in a Tuscan villa and vineyard ends abruptly as a malevolent plot unfolds, targeting regional vintners. Caught in the crossfire are diverse international guests, each seeking solitude for personal reasons.

Erik Swanson, a crime reporter, hopes to leave his emotional demons behind in America and find a muse to inspire a book. Iliana, a beautiful cellist, seeks respite from both her hectic orchestra schedule and an abusive relationship. Maria, the owner of the villa and vineyard, is mourning the unexpected death of her husband while striving to maintain a robust enterprise. Dieter, a quarrelsome climate scientist from Heidelberg, pursues time to sharpen his lectures and manuscripts to convince nonbelievers.

The guests' ideas often clash with the challenging social forces emerging in Italy, but some share their surprising talents to assist a local police inspector in addressing the nefarious plot—though at life-altering costs to all at the villa.

Richard P. Wenzel Richard P. Wenzel is an internationally recognized infectious diseases specialist and Editor-at-Large for The New England Journal of Medicine . An Emeritus Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University, he has penned numerous critical OpEds in the New York Times, Boston Globe, LA Times, and more recently several insightful essays on the Covid-19 pandemic in The Hill. A graduate of Haverford College, Jefferson Medical School, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, he has written a nonfiction work, Stalking Microbes , and two medical thrillers, Labyrinth of Terror and Dreams of Troy. He performed on VCU Theatre’s center stage as Vince Fontaine in Grease and as Andrew Makepeace Ladd III in Love Letters. He and his wife live in Virginia.