Where do you go to when you only have a pittance for a home away from home for a huge family? Ian Ross realises that his small inheritance won’t get him a place in France or even Spain, so he heads for southern Italy where he remembers the Blue Guide describing long empty sandy beaches in southern Calabria.

When he arrives in Southern Italy he finds the house prices are encouragingly low. Why does no one go there? It’s inaccessible and it’s beloved of the Mafia. Not to be put off Ross stumbles on the perfect beach on a crystal-clear bay in the deeply southern province of Reggio Calabria, an area he is soon advised is ‘Bandit Country’.

And the fact that there is a house right on the beach big enough for all the family at a price he can afford overcomes all fears and to a large extent all common sense. Buying it was only the beginning.

Disaster follows disaster, but this travelogue encompasses tales of the friendships Ross makes on the way in this forgotten corner of Old Italy where the food and the 326 days of sunshine a year make for a perfect setting to a triumphant escapade.

‘An amusing and charming read…Ross is the champion of the impulsive explorer…If you are interested in Italy, in travel writing and the tales of a decent raconteur then this is for you.’ - Paul Burke, NB Magazine