Tom Ripley, a young man with no particular occupation, meets the wealthy businessman Herbert Greenleaf, who hires him for a delicate job: to bring his son Dick back from Italy, where the boy has been staying for quite long, captivated by the Mediterranean climate and by the charms of his companion. With some hesitation, Tom agrees.
But this assignment turns out to be surprisingly complicated, because Tom himself also really likes Italy. What’s more, he comes to appreciate the lifestyle Dick is living. The deeper Tom gets into Dick’s world, the more he develops a taste for a rich and refined life—and he understands that, at any cost, Dick Greenleaf must become his…
“Talented Mr. Ripley” is the first novel in the series of psychological detective stories about Tom Ripley. In 1999 it was brilliantly adapted for film by director Anthony Minghella, starring Matt Damon, Jude Law, and Gwyneth Paltrow.