The author skillfully used the riveting elements of opera music and the beauty of multiple languages to engage the reader’s own emotions. The New Yorker called this a tragicomic novel and I concur. However, as I kept reading I realized this added a subtle comic element to the story. Written in the third person omniscient narrative, I was frustrated when the actions and reactions of the hostages or terrorists were described collectively as all having the exact same emotional and physical reactions to a particular situation, which of course is impossible. As negotiations fire back and forth between the terrorists and the government through the Red Cross, weeks turn into months and unexpected bonds form between the hostages and the terrorists within the walls of the home. But then a band of terrorists invades the home and takes the entire party hostage. She mesmerizes the crowd of about 200 guests at the home of the vice-president of a South American country that remains unnamed throughout the novel. Hosokawa, a powerful Japanese businessman whose only reason for attending is Roxane Coss, opera’s most revered soprano. But first let me tell you the premise of this book, which attracted me like a bee to a flower.Ī lavish birthday party is being given in honor of Mr. Is that possible? After much thought I realized why this was so. Initially, when I began reading it, I was simultaneously annoyed and fascinated. That’s the word that comes to mind when I think of this book. Published July 2005 (first published 2001)
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