Vincent B. "Chip" Lococo

Tempesta's Dream: a Story of Love, Friendship and Opera Vincent B. "Chip" Lococo Revised edition

"I really enjoyed this beautiful novel. It's hard to say that it's a novel about a man's passion for the opera only... It really is a man's journey to realizing his dreams despite many obstacles" - Booknerd Blog Book Review                                                                                                                                                                                                                      "A Powerful novel . . . Tempesta's Dream is all about the music, it's all about the passion; and it's all about pursuing one's dream . . A moving, engrossing story..." Midwest Book Review                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          "An intelligent and entertaining lyrical journey...A rare, beautiful story with passion and opera pulsating through each page. LoCoco has woven a unique novel with exceptionally developed characters, realistic dialogue and a well-balanced narrative." Penn Book Review                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       "How many times can you say a book gave you goosebumps?...Goodreads Review    *                   *                     *                    *                       *                          *
  Tempesta's Dream - A Story of Love, Friendship and Opera, is a novel by New Orleans writer, Vincent B. "Chip" LoCoco. It is the inspirational story of an aspiring opera singer coming of age in Milan; a tender and moving love story; a testament to the bonds of friendship; and, at its core, a tribute to the beauty, majesty and miracle of opera.                                                       Giovanni Tempesta always dreamed of becoming an opera tenor and one day singing from the stage of the La Scala Opera House in his hometown of Milan, Italy. But with no real training, his dream has little chance for fulfillment . . . One day, he meets and immediately falls in love with Isabella Monterone, a dark-haired beauty, whose father, a very rich and powerful Milanese Judge, refuses to allow his daughter to date a penniless musician . . . At the lowest part of his life, Giovanni comes upon the Casa di Riposo, a rest home for musicians established by the great opera composer, Giuseppe Verdi . . . It is at the Casa Verdi that Giovanni meets Alfredo del Monte, a blind, retired opera singer with a secretive past who gradually becomes his mentor . . . Could Alfredo be the one person who could assist Giovanni in finding the break he needs? Or is Giovanni destined to be on the cusp of reaching his life long dream, only to find failure? . . . Tempesta's Dream, at its core, is an Italian opera love story. The author tells the story simply and swiftly with an ending that is both an emotional and poignant moment of both "amicizia e amore" (friendship and love.)