When three friends return to their small hometown of Casalfranco in southern Italy to honor a longstanding pact, their friend Art doesn’t show ... Always one for drama, Art has left a trail of mysterious stories in his wake. He’s growing and selling weed. He healed the daughter of a Mafia king. Even in his absence, Art’s alluring antics have a strong pull on his friends ... Through multiple perspectives, Dimitri weaves a tale of adventure, mystery, friendship and heart-wrenching beauty that will make you re-examine what is holy, what is true and what is beyond the realm of possibility.
Four childhood friends make a pact to meet in their home village every year on the same date. Fabio, a photographer, lawyer Marco, and Tony, a doctor, arrive as usual. When Art, the originator of the pact, doesn’t show, the friends worry ... Making his debut writing in English, Italian author Dimitri crafts an emotional tale that is less about hidden supernatural things and more about the things we hide from our friends and from ourselves.
...Set in the far south of Italy, in the small town of Casalfranco, almost but not quite too small for tourist attention. Four friends, on graduating high school, pledge to meet at the same pizzeria once a year, no matter what else may be going on in their lives. Fabio, Tony, and Mauro all arrive on time, but their peculiar friend Art does not. Art...leaves behind a manuscript, the titular Book of Hidden Things, and the supernatural explanation it suggests for his absences is not one his friends are readily prepared to entertain.
