A child in war-torn Europe, Am lie Munk fled for her life with her mother, grandmother, and younger siblings on a packed train from Paris bound for the south of France. Eking out a tough daily existence, Am lie quickly matured into a young woman whose spirited beauty saved her from several sticky encounters. Life changed for Am lie after the war, when, still a teenager, she married the man destined to become the Chief Rabbi. Am lie transformed into that rare combination - sophisticated woman-of-the-world and Jewish revivalist - rubbing shoulders with royalty and the political elite. Her...

Loosely based on Bizet's opera, "Carmen," the novel deals with the mysticism of love and the subversion of sexual identity. It unfolds through the eyes of the opera's secondary female character, Michaela. Now settled in Britain, she recalls her youth spent in a Latin American oligarchy facing social and political unrest. Michaela is the artist daughter of one of the country's ruling families. She meets Jose, an enforced conscript, whose family work on a sugar plantation owned by one of the US-backed multi-national companies. A fugitive from the army, Jose is rescued and hidden by Michaela and...