I SPOKE OF LOVE : THE SECRET OF THE PENDANT

Characters and Roles in the Story

Setting of "I SPOKE OF LOVE "

• Location: Turin, Kingdom of Sardinia
• Year: 1850
• Historical Context: Following the abdication of Charles Albert (1849), Victor Emmanuel II ascended the throne. With Cavour as Prime Minister, Turin became the centre of reforms foreshadowing the unification of Italy. The city is a mosaic of aristocratic luxury and the daily struggles of the working classes, with a rigid social divide.

Main Characters

Amalia Crepuett

• Year of Birth: 1831
• Age: 19
• Role: Lady-in-waiting to the Queen
• Appearance: Beautiful, with blue eyes and long blonde hair often adorned with a blue ribbon.
• Character: Rebellious, romantic, intelligent, torn between freedom and duty.
• Desire: To love Pietro, a humble baker, without social restrictions.
• Conflict: The pressure of an arranged marriage versus her love for Pietro.

Pietro

• Year of Birth: 1829
• Age: 21
• Role: Young baker
• Appearance: Young, with dark brown hair, brown eyes, extraordinarily handsome and intelligent.
• Character: Cultured, self-taught, courageous, loyal.
• Desire: To create a life with Amalia outside of societal conventions.
• Conflict: The risks of eloping versus the norms of his class.

Countess Matilde

• Year of Birth: 1802
• Role: Amalia's mother
• Appearance: Noble, austere, with a strong sense of authority.
• Character: Authoritative, traditionalist, practical.
• Desire: To maintain the family's reputation.
• Conflict: Balancing maternal love and rigid social codes.

Alessandro Crepuett

• Year of Birth: 1825
• Age: 25
• Role: Amalia's elder brother, rebellious noble, Deputy at Palazzo Carignano. Opposed to reforms in the penal code and to penalties for acts against nature, including homosexuality.
• Appearance: Elegant, strikingly handsome, athletic, with blue eyes and chestnut hair with honey-blonde streaks, exuding a dishevelled and rebellious air.
• Character: Idealistic, rebellious, supportive of Amalia, disillusioned by aristocratic conventions.
• Desire: A more just world free from aristocratic impositions and to live his love with Michael, a young friend of his cousin Robert.
• Conflict: Secretly supporting his sister against family loyalty and societal expectations.
• Relationships: Has a mutual respect with Victor Emmanuel II but is critical of court conventions and aristocratic expectations. At Palazzo Carignano, he fights for reforms and social change.
• Personal Pain: Suffers greatly from not being able to love Michael freely, living a double life between duties and desires.

Secondary Characters

The State Official

• Year of Birth: 1805
• Age: 45
• Role: Amalia's betrothed, a Marquis
• Character: Reserved, ambitious, pragmatic, skilled in diplomacy and social relations, distant and calculating in personal relationships.
• Desire: To pursue his goals and maintain loyalty to the Royal House.
• Conflict: The rigidity of adhering to protocol versus the inability to understand Amalia's spontaneity and passion.

Amalia's Role at Court

Amalia, a young countess of 19, serves as a lady-in-waiting to the Queen, destined for a ceremonial and representative role at the court in Turin. As a member of the aristocracy, her presence is required at official and social events, where she must embody the grace and elegance of the nobility. Educated in the arts, music, and dance, Amalia is prepared to perform accompaniment duties at receptions and follow strict social protocols. Her life at court entails adherence to palace traditions and etiquette, maintaining appearances, and strengthening her family's political and social alliances. However, her inclination towards freedom and passion for Pietro contrasts sharply with the expectations of a life centred on etiquette and formal relations.

The Noble English Family - The Halls

1. Status and Prestige
• The family holds a high rank, regularly attending events at Buckingham Palace and participating in significant social and political decisions. Even Queen Victoria visits their residence.
2. Habits and Social Life
• The cousins engage in typical aristocratic activities such as hunting, gala evenings, and luxurious receptions. Their residence is a gathering place for intellectuals, artists, and nobility.
3. Role and Influence
• The family serves as a liaison between Italian and English aristocracies, facilitating cultural and social exchanges. They are known for supporting the arts and promoting new ideas while maintaining a strong connection to British traditions.
4. Family Members
• Anna: Matilde's sister, married the Duke of Hall in 1825, becoming Duchess of Hall.
• Year of Birth: 1804
• Character: Unlike her sister, less rigid, open to unconventional friendships for her children. She truly married for love, having fallen for the Duke of Hall at a ball in Turin.
• Robert and Peter: Anna's sons, closely aligned with Alessandro's thinking.
• Robert: Born in 1826
• Peter: Born in 1828
• Michael: A strikingly handsome young man of 23, with blonde hair, blue eyes, athletic, elegant, friend of Robert, not an aristocrat but the son of a wealthy merchant from the Indies.
• Year of Birth: 1827
• Meeting Alessandro: Alessandro met Michael during a hunt at Hall Park in 1847.

Hall Park

Hall Park is a grand estate located in the countryside just outside London. It is famous for its ancient trees, vast avenues, a picturesque lake, and an imposing mansion with a small court. The estate offers breathtaking views and a sense of peace and majesty.

When Countess Amalia saw Hall Park for the first time as an adult, her heart pounded in her chest. The estate was a place of extraordinary beauty and tranquillity, with ancient trees that seemed to tell stories of a distant past. The vast avenues, picturesque lake, and imposing mansion with a small court exuded a sense of peace and majesty that took her breath away. Even though she had seen it only as a child and remembered nothing, the estate appeared as a new, fascinating world full of emotions.

Before leaving Turin, Alessandro had given Amalia his pendant, a gesture of love and protection for his sister. She held the pendant tightly, feeling the strength of her bond with her brother and the hope that everything would turn out for the best. Meanwhile, in Turin, Countess Matilde reassured the Marquis, assuring him that her daughter's frivolous and rebellious thoughts would fade in the light rain likely grazing Hall Park on that late morning of October 20, 1850.

Amalia gazed at the breathtaking panorama of Hall Park, feeling a mix of melancholy and hope. The distance from Turin gave her a sense of freedom she had never known, but at the same time, the thought of Pietro and their impossible love gripped her heart. Alessandro's words echoed in her mind, "Find my path too, Amalia. Let's not allow others to decide for us. As soon as I can, I'll join you and bring Pietro." She felt that this place, so far from the aristocratic conventions of Turin, could be the beginning of a new life.

In the first chapter, you will discover the story through Alessandro's eyes, his narrative voice, immersing yourself in his deepest thoughts and inner struggles as he fights for a fairer world and his forbidden but wonderful love for Michael and his sister.