Knight-errant

"Knight-errant" by Edna Lyall is a novel written in the late 19th century. Set chiefly in Naples with strong Anglo-Italian ties, it follows the idealistic young lawyer and gifted baritone Carlo Donati, whose joyful betrothal to Francesca Britton is soon tested by family disgrace and the intrigues of the opera world. Love, honor, patriotism, art, and faith drive the story’s conflicts and choices. The opening of the novel presents Carlo exulting in his new status as avvocato, contrasted with his sardonic friend Enrico, and pricked by an overheard English remark about the cost of true Christian living. He rides home, wins Francesca’s consent in a radiant betrothal, and we learn his heritage of patriotic sacrifice, his country upbringing, his turn from Romanism to the English Church under Clare’s gentle influence, and the old wound of his sister Nita’s elopement with the singer Merlino. A cloud forms when notices announce Merlino’s company will open at the Mercadante; Carlo shields his fragile mother while Piale, his exacting maestro, laments the “waste” of a great stage voice. Seeking news, Carlo visits the troupe’s lodgings and, through the English tenor Sardoni, hears that Nita—now Madame Merlino—is in peril under the sway of the baritone Comerio. He writes to her and steels himself to tell his mother, as the lovers’ bliss gives way to an approaching storm.

Knight-errant, by Edna Lyall. Republished by OpenStories from Project Gutenberg eBook #78660.