THE RAPE OF ARCADIA

Mourning his Italian girlfriend, killed in a train accident caused by vandals, Desmond Whittaker starts life afresh after being sacked by the new American editor of the transport industry magazine for which he worked for years, having written an outspoken and politically incorrect editorial. Taken on by Magda, the enthusiastic editor of a new journal of similar type published in central Europe, he moves from Italy to northern Spain, to establish industry contacts there with potential advertisers. His choice of the Asturian fishing port of Les Arenes reflects the fact that the man whom he once believed to be his father has just donated him an 'inheritance' - a tract of coastal land which is now keenly sought after by local property developers. As is the finca belonging to Des's new neighbour, the elusive violinist and architect Oihana Argüelles. When his half-siblings learn that he is sitting on half a million euros of real estate - and refusing to do anything about it - the fur starts to fly.