And when they meet up again, in unlikely circumstances, both are smitten. Prejudice against Italians is rampant, but Jack has worked himself into a respected position on the force.Īs the book opens, Jack and Anna cross paths while helping a group of Italian orphans who are being shepherded into the care of a Catholic charitable organization. He’s deeply in love with Sophie, but he’s dying of tuberculosis, which limits the development of Cap’s character, though we do get a sense of him.Īnd finally, there is Jack Mezzanotte, an Italian police detective. One of these friends, Cap Verhoeven, is a scion of New York old money families.
These women are fortunate to be well off financially with strong family connections and many friends. Savard, an OB/GYN with similar convictions and similar interests, but even more constraints.
(One gets the sense that male condom use was ignored by the authorities chasing down culprits.) As a surgeon who witnessed the consequences of back alley abortion, and who worked in enough charity hospitals to see the devastating effects of poverty, Anna is very well aware of the dire situation of too many women.Īnna’s cousin, Sophie, a "free woman of color," is another Dr. Anyone who provided any type of advice or instruction on contraceptive practices to women would also be fined and imprisoned. Women who tried to prevent their pregnancies were subject to imprisonment. Not only abortion was illegal, but also contraceptive use. One of the most divisive issues is women’s reproductive rights. Although opportunities are expanding, as evidenced by Anna’s own role, there are also powerful social and economic forces aligned to hold them back. It’s a frightening time for women of all social strata. Anna Savard, a female surgeon (who, as I understand it, is descended from characters populating Donati’s previous novels) dedicated to women’s health and women’s rights.
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