The government of a South American country believes they can convince a Japanese business to build a new factory in their country and boost their sagging economy. They invite him to celebrate his birthday in their capital, and have arranged a unique and personal gift for the occasion: his favorite opera singer will be in attendance and give a private performance for the occasion. Though Mr. Hosokawa has no intention of building the factory they want, he can’t turn down the chance to meet Roxanne Coss and hear her sing in such an intimate venue.
If the government are soon to be disappointed by Mr. Hosokawa’s decision, they are not alone. As Roxanne hits her final notes, a ragtag gang of rebel militants swarm the party, expecting to kidnap the country’s president and ransom him for some political prisoner friends of theirs. But the president has decided he’d rather stay home and watch his favorite soap opera, so the rebels wind up with just the party guests and the vice president.
From the situation becomes nearly farcical. Having nowhere near the leverage they’d hoped for, the rebels have no chance at getting anything they want. Yet they persist in continuing the hostage crisis. They left the staff and most of the women go, with the exception of the valuable opera singer. Roxanne and the thirty-nine men who remain for a sort of society in microcosm as they wait out the increasingly ridiculous situation. Fairly convinced that the rebels will not kill them, they become compliant but not fearful. As they bond, they find themselves coming together in unexpected ways and making use of talents and skills they had long since put aside in their real lives. The vice president takes to tending the house and garden and finding comfort in the routine of labor. An underling of Mr. Hosokawa’s turns out to be the only man present who can play the piano, and thus becomes accompanist to the world-famous soprano, who herself becomes a voice teacher to a quite surprising pupil.
The most valued member of the new society is Mr. Hosokawa’s interpreter, a polyglot named Gen who is essentially conscripted into service as everyone’s intermediary. In addition to his native Japanese, Gen speaks Spanish, the language of the rebels, English, the language of the singer, and even Russian, French and Italian, which all come in handy. Gen translates conversations between the generals and the red cross worker assigned to conduct negotiations, as well as conversations between Roxanne and her Japanese accompanist. While his skills may have been appreciated in the outside world, in the world of the hostage crisis he is indispensable.
As the situation drags on, the hostages begin to bond with each other and even with some of their captors in unusual ways. More than one romance blooms, even between people who can barely communicate at all due to the language barriers between them. Patchett does a remarkable job of establishing the reality of this absurd situation, such that rather than scoffing at the unlikeliness of what unfolds, the reader will be drawn in, breathlessly awaiting what comes next.