Description

The book of the summer
The instant bestseller from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Less
‘If you’re looking for the ultimate dose of escapism, it doesn’t get better than Villa Coco’ COSMOPOLITAN
‘An enchantment threaded through with hope’
GUARDIAN

‘A gorgeous, sun-soaked novel that feels tailor-made for holiday reading’
I NEWSPAPER

‘A mad tangle of houseguests, handymen and other quirky characters’
NEW YORK TIMES, The Novels Everyone Will Be Reading This Summer

‘No one writing in English is funnier or more charming than Andrew Greer’
DAVID SEDARIS

‘Villa Coco is such a sunny book’
KATE ATKINSON

‘Absolute joy’
SARAH WINMAN, AUTHOR OF STILL LIFE

A coming-of-age novel, a love story and a tale of life-enhancing friendship: Pulitzer Prize winner Andrew Sean Greer showcases his wit and warmth in this magical tale set amidst the Tuscan hills.

Broke and directionless, our young protagonist takes a job in the Italian countryside as the assistant to Lisabetta – better known to her friends as Coco – a strong-willed, wealthy aristocrat of great local renown.

Trained as an archivist, he thinks he’s been hired to catalogue the contents of the beautiful, crumbling mansion nestled in the green Tuscan hills. But what are his actual duties? Days are spent in a series of increasingly eccentric pursuits: entertaining an endless carousel of guests (from bohemian painters to elderly princesses to unnervingly handsome nephews), attending a funeral in order to make off with the urn, and aiding and abetting Coco’s great and final plan – to reunite with the lost love of her life before it’s too late.

As summer turns into autumn and the Italian countryside begins to work its magic, the secrets of Villa Coco and its inhabitants are slowly brought to light – and with them, an unforgettable story of the enduring power of friendship.

A ‘charm novel’ for our times, Villa Coco is a sun-drenched paean to youth, to age and to the fulfilment of love – filled with great wisdom and a spirit of unadulterated joy.

One of the most anticipated books of 2026 for The Times, BBC Culture, People, Time, Oprah Daily, Seattle Times, Bookseller, Waterstones and Barnes and Noble
‘An absolute delight’
ELIF BATUMAN, AUTHOR OF THE IDIOT AND EITHER/OR

‘A great treasure’
KATHERINE HEINY, AUTHOR OF STANDARD DEVIATION

‘Eccentric, funny, touching: I adored it’
NINA STIBBE, AUTHOR OF MAN AT THE HELM

‘Warm and humane . . . Hidden inside the novel’s charming universe is a story with a good deal of perspective and soul’
NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

Praise for Andrew Sean Greer
‘Bedazzling, bewitching and be-wonderful’ New York Times
‘I recommend it with my whole heart’ Ann Patchett
‘Brilliant’ Guardian
‘Basically perfect’ Dolly Alderton
‘Unforgettable’ Independent

Publisher Review

What, at first, appears to be a gloriously bonkers escapade amidst the Tuscan landscape gradually transforms into the most beautiful paean to youth, to age and to the fulfilment of love. Absolute joy. — Sarah Winman, author of STILL LIFE Eccentric, funny, touching: I adored it. — Nina Stibbe, author of LOVE, NINA and MAN AT THE HELM In prose as expert and precise as the steps of a Balinese dancer, Andrew Sean Greer has written a tale of a young American man who spends a season in Tuscany working as an archivist for an endlessly demanding, supremely disorganized, and very charismatic Baronessa. It’s a lyrical and witty reminder that the most meaningful life – and certainly the one with the best stories – can emerge from the deepest chaos. Villa Coco, the Baronessa’s crumbling mansion, is referred to by all as ‘a great treasure.’ Villa Coco, the novel, is one, too. * Katherine Heiny, author of Standard Deviation and Games and Rituals * PRAISE FOR ANDREW SEAN GREER
‘Bedazzling, bewitching and be-wonderful’ New York Times
‘I recommend it with my whole heart’ Ann Patchett
‘Brilliant’ Guardian
‘Basically perfect’ Dolly Alderton
‘Unforgettable’ Independent