(Reviewed by JD Jung)
This novella immediately drew me in with its quiet emotional depth and evocative Italian setting. Starting over after divorce captures what it really means to rebuild a life. —messy, uncertain, and deeply personal.
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Lara used almost all her settlement money to renovate a house in a little-known village in southern Italy. While she still owns an apartment in Rome, this rural escape represents something more meaningful: a chance to rediscover herself after losing her identity in a nine-year marriage. The questions she faces feel real and immediate: How will she financially support herself? Where does she belong? Can she truly begin again?
She struggles to connect with the older, traditional residents as she is seen as devaluing those traditions. She takes actions to ease this perception, one of which is befriending an elderly seamstress, Mina. But just as Lara begins to find footing, the arrival of her estranged brother Leo and American actor Ben Jackson, threaten the fragile emotional progress she’s made. What makes this story so effective is how subtly it unfolds. The author doesn’t over-explain; instead, Lara’s actions reveal her conflicts and subtle transformations.
The Presence of Men is a thoughtful, introspective work of women’s fiction that captures the messy, deeply personal nature of reinvention. For readers drawn to stories about life in Italy, emotional healing, and nuanced character studies, this novella is a rewarding read. It also left me eager to explore more from the author, especially the collection, The Other Language, from which this story originally appeared.