This book helped me leave my husband... Portrait of a Lady helped too - but it was D'Annunzio's book that really hit home and gave me the courage to get off my backside and walk out. I was 10,000 miles from home, in a foreign country with no family and few friends - not an easy move. But his story of a cruel husband and loving wife was so rich and poignant - I could not help but to recognize my own situation in it... and it was not a situation I wanted to indentify with. It took all my strength, but I left. Now that's good writing!

I found D'Annunzio when I was 16 - I saw a spreadin a magazine about his house - I believe it's still in it's orginal condition (a la Duke of Windsor). I have some quotes of his written in a journal from that time - I'll dig them out.