In a gloomy Bourbon fortress that stands on a ghostly island, the last night passes, before their execution, of four people convicted of attempting to kill the king. Throughout the hours, to deceive the wait, the conspirators, a student, an aristocrat, a soldier and a poet each tell a story, the "most memorable one that can give meaning to their life." They have been offered one last possibility: each one must deposit a card in an urn. If one of them writes the name of the leader of the conspiracy, the mysterious Father Father, everyone will be saved and no one will know who the informer is... The novel culminates with an unexpected coup de théâtre as the reader's suspicions grow, subtly guided by Bufalino: have those stories been nothing more than a mystification, all shadows and misunderstandings, a labyrinth of mirrors? Is life itself nothing more than a sequel of lies, at the bott...read more
