Adulthood comes all too quickly when the baker's son sets his sights on fifteen-year-old Oliva Denaro. Offered a blood orange, Oliva spurns the fruit. Yet, this act sets into motion an unwanted courtship that will force Oliva to fight for the right to choose her own path. Sicily fiercely clings to its rigid traditions, including the custom of fuitina - by which kidnappings could be disguised as elopements - which is accepted and enshrined in law. Oliva's battle for independence is based on the real-life story that would ultimately rock Italy.
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