| 1 | Hugo | R. Langley | A bomber pilot. One of the narrators. Aka: Ugo. |
| | Phipps | | Hugo's navigator. A flight lieutenant. |
| | Blackburn | | Hugo's ally. The gunner. |
| 2 | Joanna | Langley | Hugo's daughter. One of the narrators. |
| | Adrian | | Joanna's ex-boyfriend. |
| | Edward | Langley | An ancestor of the Langleys. |
| | King | Henry VIII | Former King of England. |
| | Miss | Honeywell | The head mistress at Langley Hall School. |
| 3 | Miss | Snode | One of the mistresses at Langley Hall School. |
| | Alice | | Miss Honeywell's assistant. |
| | Bertie | | Miss Honeywell's cocker spaniel. |
| | Miss | Pritchard | The history mistress. |
| | Toby | Langley | Hugo's father. Joanna's grandmother. |
| 4 | Josh | | A horse groomer. |
| | Brenda | Langley | Hugo's wife. |
| | Teddy | Langley | Hugo's son. Joanna's half-brother. Aka: Teddy Schulz. |
| 5 | Billy | Overton | Owner of a bakery shop. Joanna's childhood friend. |
| | Pauline | Hodgkiss | Billy's wife. |
| | Dr. | Freeman | Hugo's doctor. |
| | Josiah | Langley | A baronet. An ancestor of the Langleys. |
| | Eleanor | Langley | An ancestor of the Langleys. |
| 6 | Sofia | Bartoli | The girl who finds Hugo wounded. Hugo's lover. |
| 7 | Nigel | Barton | The Langley solicitor. |
| | Scarlet | | Joanna's former college roommate. |
| 8 | Sandra | | The receptionist at Barton and Holcroft's office. |
| | Robert | Langley | A master of hounds. |
| 9 | Mr. | Aston-Smith | An appraiser. Nigel's acquaitance. |
| 10 | Benito | | Sofia's neighbor. |
| | Signora | Gucci | Hugo's friend. |
| | Signor | Pucci | The mayor. |
| | Filippo | | The parish priest. |
| 11 | Guido | Bartoli | Sophia's husband. |
| | Paola | Rossini | Owner of guest house where Joanna stays in San Salvatore. |
| 12 | Bruno | | Paola's dog. |
| | Angelina | Rossini | Paola's daughter. |
| | Gianfranco | Rossini | Paola's husband. Deceased. |
| | Marcella | | Paola's granddaughter. |
| 13 | Ellison | | The old gamekeeper of the Langleys. |
| 14 | Cosimo | Di Girgio | The richest man in San Salvatore. Adopted Sophia's son. |
| | Renzo | Bartoli | Sophia and Guido's son. |
| 15 | Gianni | Martinelli | Paola's neighbor. Murdered. |
| | Alberto | | Joanna's new friend. |
| 16 | Dr. | Martini | A doctor. |
| | Brenda | Langley | Hugo's first wife. Teddy's mother. |
| 22 | Mario | | Angelina's husband. |
| | Mr. | Dotelli | A police inspector in the department of Lucca. |
| 25 | Nonna | | Guido's mother. |
| 28 | Maria | Donatelli | A woman who's having a party in Lucca. |
| 29 | Francesca | Martinelli | Gianni's widow. |
| 40 | Anna | | The nurse at the hospital near Rome. |
| | Elsie | Williams | The housekeeper of the Langleys. |
