Lenù has loved him since she was a girl, and now, after many twists and turns, including Nino's tortured affair with her best friend, Lila (Gaia Gerace), he finally seems ready. Lila, for her part, will always be Lila, as inflexible as Gerace's shoulders, and preternaturally correct in her critiques of power - not just of the brutal Solaras, but of the upwardly mobile Lenù too. Even Lenù's telephone, her most consistent connection to Lila, is a cheerful yellow, a subtle contrast to Lila's violent red one. [Extracted from the article]