The Betrothed

In a small village near Lake Como, two young lovers—the silk-weaver Renzo and the gentle Lucia—prepare for their wedding. But the powerful and cruel Don Rodrigo has his own designs, and when the cowardly priest Don Abbondio refuses to officiate, their lives are shattered. Forced to flee separately, Renzo and Lucia are swept into the chaos of seventeenth-century Milan: bread riots, the terror of the plague, and the shadow of a mysterious bandit known only as the Unnamed. Their journey becomes a test of faith, courage, and the bonds that tie lovers across peril and distance. At once a gripping love story and a vivid portrait of a society in crisis, this masterwork of Italian literature has been freshly rendered for today’s readers—inviting you to experience its passion, suspense, and enduring wisdom without the barrier of archaic language. Part of Timeless Classics.