Emeralds Among the Sand

Set in a small fishing town in southern Italy called Termoli and centred around, and narrated by, the ancient castle at the heart of the town that views the stories and lives of the towns’ inhabitants. 


The novel revolves around Thomas (an English fisherman), his flatmate Roderigo and a mysterious woman, Mariella. Thomas and Roderigo both fall under Mariella’s spell, but as their relationships strengthen, friendships are destroyed, falsehoods are told, and dark pasts are revealed. 


Emeralds Among the Sand considers the subject of love in many forms, from conditional to unrequited love and shows how love can both trap us and set us free. Francesca Fratamico takes us to the heart of an Italian town full of intriguing characters and complex stories. 


Francesca Fratamico is twenty-one, and currently working as a waitress at West Dean College of Arts and Conservations near Chichester. She has always lived in West Sussex, and grew up in Midhurst, near Chichester. Emeralds Among the Sand is inspired by, and set in, a small fishing town in southern Italy called Termoli, where her grandparents live.