What was in it for him, she wondered Why had wealthy Fausto Cabrini been willing to bail her father out of his financial problems? Tanya knew she should be grateful, but she didn't trust the man. Sure enough, when the family's treasured icon, which her father had handed over as a pledge of his debt, proved a fake, the ruthless industrialist demanded Tanya instead. She found herself a virtual prisoner in the wilds of Northern Italy, at ransom to a man who claimed he had neither heart, soul nor conscience--even in matters of love.
Severity reflects intensity, not value — “central theme” means a warning is a core part of the book, not that the book is bad.