Villa Coco – Andrew Sean Greer

I’ve been a ride-or-die fan of Andrew Sean Greer ever since I read his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Less, so I was beyond thrilled to receive a copy of his latest novel, Villa Coco, from my friends at Hachette Australia for review.

It begins with a young American man – alternately described as “broke and directionless”, and “poor, gay, and bookish” – accepting a job in Italy, archiving the art collection of a 92-year-old Baronessa. A few celibate months in a Tuscan villa, putting his degree in archiving and records management to good use, sounds like just what he needs after discovering the joys of gay sex and four years of debauchery at university.

Of course, when he arrives, he finds it’s far from the opulent escape he envisaged. Picked up in the “Mitsu-bitchy” by a groundskeeper confusingly called “Ghazel” (even though that’s not his name), he’s immediately flung into the world of Villa Coco, complete with blocked septic tanks (which contain “the most glamourous shit in Southern Europe”), a visiting princess (who claims she can only understand the “King’s English” and requires translation of American dialogue), and two pugs (Gorky and Pushkin) who follow their mistress everywhere. The young man’s duties seem to have less to do with archiving and more to do with pruning roses, finding the Baronessa’s cane when her vertigo threatens to overcome her, and learning how to be “less American”.

It’s all very kooky and fun, but there’s a hint of a mystery throughout Villa Coco. As our narrator slowly begins cataloguing the contents of the house, he finds many objects are moved, replaced, or simply disappear at the whim of the Baronessa. She takes him on strange trips. There are visitors who allude to past hijinks, and a lost love that the Baronessa hopes to someday reclaim. Is it all in good fun? Is he simply being too American? Or is there something truly odd going on here?

Villa Coco lost me a little at times – especially during the long love affair with the Baronessa’s closeted cousin (“Giacomo Giacomo”) – but I should have known that Greer would never let me down. This charming novel has a truly superb ending, one that brings every element together beautifully. It’s worth sticking with, and you’ll finish Villa Coco feeling like you’ve just spent the afternoon in the Italian sunshine sipping gin.

Read Villa Coco on audiobook via Libro.fm here. (affiliate link)