Lilliet Berne is a sensation of the Paris Opera, a legendary soprano with every accolade except an original role, every singers' chance at immortality. When one is finally offered to her, she realizes with alarm that the libretto is based on a hidden piece of her past. Only four could have betrayed her: one is dead, one loves her, one wants to own her. And one, she hopes, never thinks of her at all. As she mines her memories for clues, she recalls...

A young woman in flight from her past, and an old woman whose secrets are contained in the grave ... With this configuration Kathryn Davis, the acclaimed author of Labrador, begins a novel of true bravura - about opera, Denmark, adultery, and murder. In upstate New York, Frances Thorn waits tables in a diner, despite her privileged, educated background, and raises her twin daughters without the presence or even a memory of their father. But these...

Somewhere in South America, at the home of the country's vice president, a lavish birthday party is being held in honor of Mr. Hosokawa, a powerful Japanese businessman. Roxanne Coss, opera's most revered soprano, has mesmerized the international guests with her singing. It is a perfect evening -- until a band of gun-wielding terrorists breaks in through the air-conditioning vents and takes the entire party hostage. But what begins as a panicked,...