Savina in The Amalfi Curse: Character Analysis

Overview: A Mother Haunted by Her Own Denial

Savina is one of the most layered figures in The Amalfi Curse—a grieving mother, a reluctant witch, and a woman who believes she has spent a lifetime inviting tragedy by rejecting her inherited powers. She enters the story as Enzo's warm but “challenging” mother, yet by the novel's midpoint she is revealed as the force behind the yacht sinking that opens the narrative, and as a woman willing to manipulate her own son's love life to secure the future of her lineage. Her arc moves from denial to desperate action, and finally to a fragile acceptance of a truth that frees her from the curse she thought she carried.

Savina is not a simple villain. She is a woman who lost her daughter Bria to a sudden cardiac arrest, who lost her husband years earlier, and who has convinced herself that every misfortune—from burglaries to broken bones—was punishment for rejecting the stregheria her mother and grandmother tried to teach her. Her belief is so strong that she and her friend Renata have taken to performing sea spells to “make up for a lifetime of denial,” as she tells Haven in chapter 31. Her actions are cruel and reckless, but they spring from a mother's terror of losing her only remaining child.

Plot Role: From Grieving Mother to Hidden Antagonist

Savina first appears in chapter 16, when Enzo brings Haven to his mother's villa. She is warm, hospitable, and clearly lonely, but she also reveals a sharp edge: she is “not terribly disappointed” by the yacht sinking and the Vesuvius panic, because they have driven away tourists. She mentions Bria's death and her fear that Enzo will never marry. She becomes visibly upset when she learns Haven and Enzo dove at Li Galli, warning that it is not safe.

The novel slowly peels back her layers. In chapter 24, Haven spots Savina at a café with data tables and mentions of Asher Vice and the Amalfi Curse. In chapter 31, Haven confronts her directly, and Savina admits she and Renata are streghe who rejected their lineage, that they have been performing sea spells, and that they are responsible for the yacht sinking. She demonstrates her power by making the water swell and spin on command. She also reveals her plan: she wants Haven to marry Enzo and bear children to carry on the strega line.

In chapter 34, Savina tells Haven the story of Mari DeLuca, the strega who supposedly drowned herself after her mother abandoned her and her sister drowned. Savina believes she and Renata are the last living streghe, and that Enzo is the only hope for continuing the lineage. She offers to lead Haven to sunken treasure if Haven will embrace Enzo. When Haven refuses, Savina vows she will not quit.

The turning point comes in chapter 37, when Haven brings Savina a genealogy chart showing that Mari DeLuca had hundreds of descendants, that she did not drown, and that her mother did not abandon her. Savina is shaken, and she asks to speak with Lucille, the genealogist who compiled the chart. In the epilogue, we learn that Savina has become close with Lucille and is happier, suggesting she has found a new understanding of her heritage.

Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions

Savina's primary motivation is fear—fear of losing Enzo, fear of the curse she believes she brought upon her family, and fear of being the last of her line. She tells Haven, “I lost my daughter. She is dead because of me, her entire life cut short because I would not heed my mother's warnings. What about Enzo? I cannot lose him, too. I will do anything to keep him safe—even witchcraft.”

This fear drives her to extreme actions. She and Renata sink a yacht, killing eight people, because they believe the victims were intoxicated and would have escaped otherwise. She uses her powers to create maelstroms and eddies that terrorize the region, causing tourism to plummet and threatening Enzo's dive shop. She tries to manipulate Haven into a relationship with Enzo, offering her access to sunken treasure as a bribe. She is willing to sacrifice strangers to protect her son.

Yet Savina is also capable of vulnerability. She cries when she admits her guilt, and she apologizes to Haven. She is not evil in the way Conrad is; she is a grieving, fearful woman who has convinced herself that her witchcraft is the only way to undo a lifetime of misfortune. Haven reflects, “I didn't consider Savina an evil woman but certainly a grieving, fearful one.”

Her traits—manipulative, desperate, proud, secretive, but also capable of change—are shown through her actions. She lies to Enzo about her activities, she records incantations in a childhood diary, and she keeps her witchcraft hidden from her son. She is also shrewd: she recognizes Haven's skills and sees her as a means to an end. But when confronted with evidence that her beliefs are wrong, she is willing to listen.

Chronological Arc

Savina's arc can be traced through the novel's timeline:

Before the novel: She rejects her mother's teachings about stregheria, marries, has twins Enzo and Bria, and experiences a series of misfortunes—her husband's death, job losses, burglaries, and Bria's death. She becomes convinced these are punishments for her denial.
Chapter 16: She meets Haven and immediately sees her as a potential wife for Enzo. She is warm but reveals her grief and her fear that Enzo will never marry.
Chapter 24: Haven spots her at a café with data tables and mentions of Asher Vice and the Amalfi Curse, hinting at her involvement.
Chapter 31: Haven confronts her. Savina admits to being a strega, demonstrates her power, and confesses to sinking the yacht. She tries to recruit Haven.
Chapter 34: Savina tells Haven the story of Mari DeLuca and reveals her plan to have Haven marry Enzo and bear children. She offers to lead Haven to treasure.
Chapter 37: Haven shows Savina the genealogy chart proving Mari survived and had descendants. Savina is shaken and asks to speak with Lucille.
Epilogue: Savina has become close with Lucille and is happier, suggesting she has found peace and a new understanding of her lineage.

Relationships

With Enzo: Savina is fiercely protective of her son, but she also sees him as a means to continue the lineage. She is disappointed that he is not married and has not given her grandchildren. She tries to orchestrate a relationship between him and Haven, believing that Haven's skills and Enzo's dive shop make them a perfect match. She keeps her witchcraft a secret from him, telling Haven, “He would never suspect this. Never.”

With Bria: Bria is the source of Savina's deepest guilt. She believes that Bria's death was a direct result of her rejection of stregheria. She tells Haven that Bria was “our best hope at carrying on the line.” Bria's death is the catalyst for Savina's decision to embrace her powers.

With Renata: Renata is Savina's childhood friend and fellow strega. They both rejected their lineage, and both believe they have suffered misfortunes because of it. Renata could never conceive, and she joins Savina in performing sea spells. They work as a pair, with Renata often out on a Jet Ski while Savina directs her from the villa.

With Haven: Savina initially sees Haven as a potential daughter-in-law and a means to continue the lineage. She offers her treasure and tries to manipulate her into falling for Enzo. But as Haven reveals the truth about Mari, Savina's view shifts. She becomes vulnerable and asks to speak with Lucille, suggesting she is open to a new understanding.

Key Decisions and Consequences

Rejecting her lineage as a young woman: This decision, made against her mother's warnings, leads to a lifetime of perceived misfortune, culminating in Bria's death. It is the root of her guilt and her later desperation.
Embracing witchcraft after Bria's death: She and Renata begin performing sea spells, which leads to the yacht sinking and the terrorizing of the region. This decision has devastating consequences for innocent people and for Enzo's business.
Trying to recruit Haven: She offers Haven treasure and a future with Enzo, but Haven refuses. This failure forces Savina to confront the possibility that her plan will not work.
Accepting the truth about Mari: When Haven shows her the genealogy chart, Savina is forced to reconsider her beliefs. She asks to speak with Lucille, and by the epilogue, she has found a new connection to her heritage. This decision leads to her happiness and peace.

Theme and Symbol Connections

Savina embodies several of the novel's central themes. She is a living example of the tension between empirical science and supernatural belief: she rejects the supernatural for years, then embraces it with a fervor that leads to tragedy. Her story also explores maternal sacrifice and the burden of inherited power—she is willing to sacrifice strangers to protect her son, and she carries the weight of a lineage she never wanted.

The sea is a sentient, responsive force in her hands; she can make it swell, spin, and sink ships. Her use of the sea reflects her emotional state—when she is desperate, the sea becomes destructive. She also embodies deception and the erosion of trust, as she lies to Enzo and manipulates Haven. Finally, her arc points toward the theme of love as the true treasure: she learns that her obsession with treasure and lineage is misguided, and that connection with others—like Lucille—is what truly matters.

The hagstones she offers Haven are a symbol of her power and her desperation. They are tools of stregheria, but they also represent the weight of her lineage. When Haven hands them back, she is rejecting Savina's offer, but also the burden of that lineage.

Five Book-Specific Questions with Direct Answers

1. Why does Savina believe she caused Bria's death?

Savina believes that by rejecting her stregheria lineage, she brought a curse upon her family. She tells Haven that her mother warned her that rejecting her gift was “like cutting circulation from my limbs,” and that she would perish, including her children. When Bria died of cardiac arrest, Savina became convinced that this was the curse's fulfillment.

2. What is Savina's plan for Haven and Enzo?

Savina wants Haven to marry Enzo and bear children, so that the strega lineage can continue. She believes that Haven's diving skills and Enzo's dive shop make them a perfect match, and she offers to use her powers to lead Haven to sunken treasure as an incentive. She tells Haven, “Think how perfect it could be. My son, owner of a dive shop. You have the skill required to explore them, to search them for riches.”

3. How does Savina demonstrate her power over the sea?

In chapter 31, Savina calls Renata on the phone and instructs her to make the water swell and spin in a counterclockwise motion. Haven watches as the surf does exactly that. When Haven says “Make it stop,” Savina says “Fermate” into the phone, and the water grows still. This demonstration convinces Haven that Savina's witchcraft is real.

4. What truth does Haven reveal to Savina about Mari DeLuca?

Haven shows Savina a genealogy chart from Lucille Detti that proves Mari DeLuca did not drown herself. She also tells Savina that Mari's lover survived the Aquila's sinking, and that Mari's mother did not abandon her. Haven explains that there are streghe everywhere, and that Savina and Renata are not the end of the lineage.

5. How does Savina change by the end of the novel?

In the epilogue, we learn that Savina has become close with Lucille, the genealogist, and is happier. She has accepted that her lineage is not cursed, and that there are many streghe in the world. This new connection allows her to let go of her desperate need to control Enzo's future and to find peace.

Conclusion

Savina is a tragic figure whose fear and guilt drive her to terrible actions, but who ultimately finds redemption through the truth. She is a reminder that the greatest treasure is not sunken gold or magical power, but love and connection. Her arc from denial to acceptance mirrors the novel's larger themes, and she leaves readers with a complex portrait of a mother who would do anything to protect her child—even if that means losing herself.

For more on the novel's ending and its themes, see the ending explained and the questions and answers pages.