The minute he saw the boat with the red sails moving into the harbor, Michele knew that something exciting was going to happen. But how could anyone know that three strangers—one searching for beauty, one for adventure, and one for "something difficult to explain"—would find the secret of the mysterious cove (the Blue Grotto) and so change the whole life of the island? A crisply told, exciting story, sparkling with good talk and the sunshine and color of its romantic setting.

The story is part true and part fiction, and it is unusual in its way of telling, as Mrs. Weil explained in a letter to the publishers:
"For a long time I've been interested in the fact that children are attracted to almost any kind of dialogue, and I thought it would be fun—just once—to give them a book that was almost all...

From the dust jacket

The minute he saw the boat with the red sails moving into the harbor, Michele knew that something exciting was going to happen.

It was the biggest and most beautiful ship fourteen-year-old Michele had ever seen. Sailing on the ship were three men who would come to stay at Michele's parents' inn. The men said they were searching—one for beauty, one for adventure, and one for "something difficult to explain." What they brought with them was a mystery and adventure that would change Michele's life—and all of Capri—forever.

From the back of the Puffin Books reprint