Martin is convinced that he has murdered his wife. In a delirium of guilt and grief, he wanders through a forest until he comes across an isolated farm run by Vitoria - an indomitable spinster who is 'afraid to live', and her flighty, obsessive cousin Ermelinda, who is terrified of death. As Martin works on Vitoria's land he is both haunted and comforted by memories of his wife and son. In the intense heat of the Brazilian summer, drought threatens both the farm and its inhabitants, and these three very different but equally domineering characters provoke each other into a realisation of their individual psychological isolation.
- ISBN10 1906598452
- ISBN13 9781906598457
- Publish Date 1 October 2009 (first published December 1985)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 24 May 2021
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Haus Publishing
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 445
- Language English
- URL http://hauspublishing.com/product/273