The Cypress Maze
The Cypress Maze is an intensely moving dual-timeline novel set in World War II and 2015, at a lovely villa in Tuscany. In 2015, Tess comes to stay at the villa to heal after the tragic death of her husband. She meets the caretaker, Beatrice, a childhood friend of her grandmother’s, who tells her the owner of the villa has been found at last. But the owner, Marco, wants to tear down the villa to build a golf course. Before she is forced to leave, Beatrice tells Tess about her experiences there during World War II. As a young British woman in Italy, Beatrice is trapped there when war breaks out, only to be rescued by Francesca, who brings her to her villa, which serves as a refuge to children whose homes were bombed. Among the children is a Jewish boy, Alfredo, who will become the father of Marco. There is danger from the local Fascist leader, who is aware of Alfredo’s identity.
Valpy’s writing is beautiful, and she makes this villa, with its spectacular garden and, especially, the cypress maze at the heart of it, come to life. The maze, which has become impenetrable in 2015, holds a terrible secret, and Valpy keeps up the reader’s suspense as we try to figure out what happened there. That is only one of the villa’s mysteries. We also wonder why Beatrice’s version of events is so different from Marco’s, or at least what he learned from his father, Alfredo. Beatrice says the children were happy and loved, while Marco says his father hated the place and wanted nothing to do with it. Above all, we see the courage of people like Francesca and Beatrice, who took in these children at considerable risk to their lives. I highly recommend this book.
