In this captivating and intricate novel Laisha Rosnau introduces us to three women, each of whom is storied enough to have their own novel and who, together, make for an unforgettable tale. Based on the true story of the Caetanis, Italian nobility driven out of their home by the rise in fascism who chose exile in Vernon, BC, Rosnau brings to life Ofelia Caetani, her daughter Sveva Caetani and their personal secretary, Miss Juul. Miss Juul is the voice of the novel, a diminutive Danish woman who enters into employment with the Caetani family in Italy before the birth of Sveva, stays with them through twenty-five years of seclusion at their home in Vernon, and past the death of Ofelia. Little Fortress is a story of a shifting world, with the death of its age-old nobility, and of the intricacies of the lives of women caught up in these grand changes. It is a story of friendship, class, betrayal and love.
Canada, 1945
Could you call that singing? I suppose, though that might be overstatement. Ofelia has tried her voice at opera, to varying success. Once her voice was said to be lovely, but this sound is more like squalling. I try to ignore it, go about my morning. I am in the kitchen, rewashing china and silver, my hands pink and raw in scalding water. The window faces east and a blurred hem of sunlight has begun to saturate the top of the hills along the back of the property.
Ofelia asks that we do this – wash everything after it’s been used and once more before we drink or eat from it again. I suppose she wouldn’t know if we didn’t do so every time, yet I feel as though I should. There are larger things I keep from her. I can be truthful about fulfilling her smaller wishes. When she woke, she sounded so strange. I mean no disrespect to Ofelia. She’s still every part a lady, but grief moves through her as feral as a cat. Every few minutes, she lets o
