When Strangers Marry

In a single battle in World War One, Tony Perrino was the only survivor in his regiment of twenty-five hundred men. He never understood why he lived when so many died and he spent the rest of his life trying to find the answer.

At the same time in Naples, Maria Sommerso's husband died in a construction accident, leaving her with two small children under five years old. Life became increasingly difficult, and in desperation, she applied to be a mail-order bride. In time, she received a letter from Tony Perrino and, after a brief courtship by mail, Maria met Tony for the first time in the harbor where her boat docked, and they married the following day.

To find their meaning in life, Tony and Maria follow different paths. Tony searched for his answers in religion, while Maria chose witchcraft and the occult. While they remained true to each other, they spent the next thirty years grappling with each other's conflicting ideas.