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Table of Contents
About the Book
A NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS' CHOICE
AN OTHERPPL AUGUST BOOK CLUB PICK
Three generations of the Ansaldo family grapple with the aftermath of a tragic murder in this sweeping, cinematic debut set in 1980s Rome, for fans of Elena Ferrante and Liz Moore.
It’s a sultry August night when sixteen-year-old Betta Ansaldo convinces her cousin Miriam to sneak out to the local beach for a party. Only Miriam returns. Traumatized by the violence she’s witnessed, she remains silent. The small community is riven with grief, none more so than the Ansaldos, who search for answers they cannot find. Who did Betta cross paths with on that fateful night? What was she doing there? And how could such a horrific crime happen in such a peaceful place?
As the years pass, and Betta’s murder goes unsolved, the Ansaldo family fractures under the weight of their loss. When Miriam meets Leo, a sweet-natured young man with a dark past, their romance seems to turn her life around. But when Leo starts to pull loose the threads of Betta’s story, determined to find out what really happened, his search for the truth risks unraveling everything.
With more than 200,000 copies already sold in Italy, All That Is Left of Life is a deeply atmospheric and unputdownable family saga that explores love, loss, and the secrets we carry, from a riveting new voice in international fiction.
AN OTHERPPL AUGUST BOOK CLUB PICK
Three generations of the Ansaldo family grapple with the aftermath of a tragic murder in this sweeping, cinematic debut set in 1980s Rome, for fans of Elena Ferrante and Liz Moore.
It’s a sultry August night when sixteen-year-old Betta Ansaldo convinces her cousin Miriam to sneak out to the local beach for a party. Only Miriam returns. Traumatized by the violence she’s witnessed, she remains silent. The small community is riven with grief, none more so than the Ansaldos, who search for answers they cannot find. Who did Betta cross paths with on that fateful night? What was she doing there? And how could such a horrific crime happen in such a peaceful place?
As the years pass, and Betta’s murder goes unsolved, the Ansaldo family fractures under the weight of their loss. When Miriam meets Leo, a sweet-natured young man with a dark past, their romance seems to turn her life around. But when Leo starts to pull loose the threads of Betta’s story, determined to find out what really happened, his search for the truth risks unraveling everything.
With more than 200,000 copies already sold in Italy, All That Is Left of Life is a deeply atmospheric and unputdownable family saga that explores love, loss, and the secrets we carry, from a riveting new voice in international fiction.
Reading Group Guide
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This reading group guide for ALL THAT IS LEFT OF LIFE includes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.
Introduction
It’s a sultry August night when sixteen-year-old Betta Ansaldo convinces her cousin Miriam to sneak out to the local beach for a party. Only Miriam returns. Traumatized by the violence she’s witnessed, she remains silent. Their small community is riven with grief, none more so than the Ansaldos, who search for answers they cannot find. Who did Betta cross paths with on that fateful night? What was she doing there? And how could such a horrific crime happen in such a peaceful place?
As the years pass, and Betta’s murder goes unsolved, the Ansaldo family fractures under the weight of their loss. When Miriam meets Leo, a sweet-natured young man with a dark past, their romance seems to turn her life around. But when Leo starts to pull loose the threads of Betta’s story, determined to find out what really happened, his search for the truth risks unraveling everything.
Topics & Questions for Discussion
1. Reflect on the title, All That Is Left of Life. What does the phrase suggest about grief and what remains after devastating loss? By the end of the novel, does the title feel tragic, hopeful, or both?
2. “All that violence smacked of retaliation,” the narrator tells us on page 134, “of subduing a woman you could not forgive for being too much.” Discuss some instances of women in the book being “too much” and the consequences that come of it.
3. On page 163, Stelvio says, “We’re here, talking, debating whether [Betta] was respectable or not . . . What difference does it make? Why do you care?” In what ways are respectability and justice at odds with each other in the book? Which side does each character take, and what informs their stance?
4. What draws Miriam to Leo, and Leo to Miriam?
5. Corallina takes an instant liking to Miriam. What does Corallina see in her? What does their relationship look like over the course of the story?
6. On page 389, the men responsible for Betta’s death “agree that there are so many girls who should be put in their place without much fuss, that men should be able to act like men.” How do gendered expectations drive violence throughout the book?
7. Throughout the book, we see narration from the perspective of parents whose children have done monstrous things. Why do you think Recchia chooses to show this? What significance do parents have in the book?
8. When the truth about the night of Betta’s death is finally revealed, the details are graphic and difficult to read. Why do you think the author chose not to have the reader look away from the violence? How does this scene change your understanding of Betta and Miriam?
9. The novel follows several characters as they carry and confront trauma. Which characters seem most transformed by the end, and what does the book suggest about what healing requires?
10. On page 406, Emma Bassevi says, “Without sacrifice, love is nothing.” How does this line illuminate the choices made by Miriam, Leo, Betta’s family, and other central characters?
11. Sister Bertilla plays a significant role in the novel’s emotional and spiritual landscape. What does she represent to the characters, and why do you think Recchia chooses to end the book with her? How does that final focus shape the novel’s themes?
12. All That Is Left of Life is deeply atmospheric, from its 1980s Rome setting to the coastal heat, family homes, and charged silences. Which descriptions, lines of dialogue, or sensory details most immersed you in the world of the novel? How does the setting intensify the book’s emotional stakes?
Enhance Your Book Club
1. Read another work of literary fiction set in Italy. How does its portrayal of family, place, secrecy, grief, or social change compare with All That Is Left of Life? In what ways do the two novels use Italy not just as a setting but as a force that shapes the characters’ lives?
2. What does violence against women look like in your own country? What parallels do you see in your own country or culture, and how have public attitudes, laws, or conversations changed over time?
Introduction
It’s a sultry August night when sixteen-year-old Betta Ansaldo convinces her cousin Miriam to sneak out to the local beach for a party. Only Miriam returns. Traumatized by the violence she’s witnessed, she remains silent. Their small community is riven with grief, none more so than the Ansaldos, who search for answers they cannot find. Who did Betta cross paths with on that fateful night? What was she doing there? And how could such a horrific crime happen in such a peaceful place?
As the years pass, and Betta’s murder goes unsolved, the Ansaldo family fractures under the weight of their loss. When Miriam meets Leo, a sweet-natured young man with a dark past, their romance seems to turn her life around. But when Leo starts to pull loose the threads of Betta’s story, determined to find out what really happened, his search for the truth risks unraveling everything.
Topics & Questions for Discussion
1. Reflect on the title, All That Is Left of Life. What does the phrase suggest about grief and what remains after devastating loss? By the end of the novel, does the title feel tragic, hopeful, or both?
2. “All that violence smacked of retaliation,” the narrator tells us on page 134, “of subduing a woman you could not forgive for being too much.” Discuss some instances of women in the book being “too much” and the consequences that come of it.
3. On page 163, Stelvio says, “We’re here, talking, debating whether [Betta] was respectable or not . . . What difference does it make? Why do you care?” In what ways are respectability and justice at odds with each other in the book? Which side does each character take, and what informs their stance?
4. What draws Miriam to Leo, and Leo to Miriam?
5. Corallina takes an instant liking to Miriam. What does Corallina see in her? What does their relationship look like over the course of the story?
6. On page 389, the men responsible for Betta’s death “agree that there are so many girls who should be put in their place without much fuss, that men should be able to act like men.” How do gendered expectations drive violence throughout the book?
7. Throughout the book, we see narration from the perspective of parents whose children have done monstrous things. Why do you think Recchia chooses to show this? What significance do parents have in the book?
8. When the truth about the night of Betta’s death is finally revealed, the details are graphic and difficult to read. Why do you think the author chose not to have the reader look away from the violence? How does this scene change your understanding of Betta and Miriam?
9. The novel follows several characters as they carry and confront trauma. Which characters seem most transformed by the end, and what does the book suggest about what healing requires?
10. On page 406, Emma Bassevi says, “Without sacrifice, love is nothing.” How does this line illuminate the choices made by Miriam, Leo, Betta’s family, and other central characters?
11. Sister Bertilla plays a significant role in the novel’s emotional and spiritual landscape. What does she represent to the characters, and why do you think Recchia chooses to end the book with her? How does that final focus shape the novel’s themes?
12. All That Is Left of Life is deeply atmospheric, from its 1980s Rome setting to the coastal heat, family homes, and charged silences. Which descriptions, lines of dialogue, or sensory details most immersed you in the world of the novel? How does the setting intensify the book’s emotional stakes?
Enhance Your Book Club
1. Read another work of literary fiction set in Italy. How does its portrayal of family, place, secrecy, grief, or social change compare with All That Is Left of Life? In what ways do the two novels use Italy not just as a setting but as a force that shapes the characters’ lives?
2. What does violence against women look like in your own country? What parallels do you see in your own country or culture, and how have public attitudes, laws, or conversations changed over time?
About the Author
Vito Corvasce
Born in Rome in 1972, Roberta Rossella Recchia lived for a time in Lille, France, where she earned a master’s degree in international relations and cultures. She worked for ten years for a big company and then quit office work to devote herself to teaching. She currently teaches English in a high school in Rome. She is passionate about film and literature, especially Russian and French. She lives with her chihuahua, Claudio, in a small town on the coast of Lazio, Italy.
Product Details
- Publisher: Scribner (August 4, 2026)
- Length: 464 pages
- ISBN13: 9781668226063
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Raves and Reviews
Praise for All That is Left of Life:
“All That is Left of Life is packed with difficult subject matter: substance abuse, disordered eating, suicide, a hate crime and multiple instances of sexual violence. Recchia treats all this not as tawdry fodder, but as the painful lived experience of her characters, which she excavates with an honesty and precision that counter the operatic nature of her material...Antonella Lettieri’s translation is fluid and captivating...Recchia is less interested in shocking the reader with a twisty solution to this horrific crime than in exploring the questions it raises for those close to it...I suspect all will be glued to these riveting pages from start to finish."—Alexis Schaitkin, New York Times Book Review
“Irresistible…Recchia depicts with devastating astuteness how grief hollows out Betta’s family and whittles away at Miriam, and her captivating storytelling transcends the plot’s well-worn trope of a young man with a checkered past who intuits exactly what a woman needs. Cinematic in pacing and scope, this is nearly impossible to put down.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Recchia weaves together two threads for much of the novel. One psychologically explores how the people around Betta struggle to survive the aftermath of catastrophic trauma, while the other, almost a police procedural, is an intense investigation in what happened to Betta and why. Fans of propulsive, psychologically complex fiction will be drawn to this novel.”—Booklist
“From the first page, readers will be immersed in this suspenseful tale of family, love, and the worst violence a parent can imagine. Recchia skillfully depicts the emotions and feelings of her characters, capturing their feelings in a raw, honest way. This is an international bestselling debut novel of a vibrant young beauty snatched from life with remarkable sensitivity and incredibly believable characters. Lettieri’s translation is exquisite. Reading this spellbinding novel feels like a contest of how quickly one can turn the pages.”—Library Journal, starred review
“All That Is Left of Life is just mesmerizing, and Roberta Recchia is a master storyteller. I’ll read everything she ever writes.”—Mary Beth Keane, New York Times bestselling author of Ask Again, Yes
“Italians are obsessed with Roberta Recchia’s All That Is Left of Life, and now English-language readers get to enjoy Antonella Lettieri’s translation. The novel’s got everything—a vibrant Italian setting, a murder mystery, and not just one but two remarkable love stories. Recchia gives us a richly layered family drama that unspools over two generations and is infused with enough love, longing, and regret to keep us reading late into the night. I loved this book.”—Rachel Beanland, award-winning author of Florence Adler Swims Forever
“Every book club will want to discuss this novel. Urgent and affecting, All That is Left of Life is an epic story that holds violence up to the light, where its isolating devastation is shown—but where tenderness and hope are revealed to be just as powerful. Recchia masterfully demonstrates how complicated it can be to survive, yet how worthwhile. This is a sharp-eyed, soft-hearted exploration of the human experience, and I will never forget it.”—Sarah Damoff, bestselling author of The Bright Years
“One of the best books I've read in 2024 . . . will soon become a classic.”—Elle España
“One of the most beautiful Italian novels of recent years, difficult to fit into a single genre. Roberta Recchia's book is a vast family saga spanning three generations, combining elements of thriller, romance and Bildungsroman.”—The Hollywood Reporter Roma
“Captivating.”—Tiscali
“A universal and timeless story.”—Corriere di Puglia e Lucania
“A gripping family novel.”—Alles für die Frau
“An emotional rollercoaster."—Kleine Zeitung
“As if you can feel the Italian sun on your skin. Captivating . . . and very profound.”—Neue Freizeit
“Splendid, distressing, superb.”—ActuaLitté
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