The Tenor is a sweeping tale of historical fiction in the style of Ann Patchett's Bel Canto and De Burniere's Captain Corelli's Mandolin. It swiftly moves from Pino Vaggi's youth in pre-war Italy, to his coming of age as a soldier in war-torn Greece, before ending in a shattering surprise finale at Maria Callas' historic final performance ever on the stage of New York's Metropolitan Opera House in 1965. It is based loosely on the stories and anecdotes that the author learned from several of Maria Callas' personal friends and from nearly a dozen trips to Italy and Greece to research the subject.