Rosaura A Las Diez

Rosaura a las diez (English: Rosa at Ten O’Clock) is a 1955 mystery novel by the Argentinian lawyer, journalist, and novelist Marco Denevi (1920-1998). It follows the enigmatic affair between Camilo Canegato, an unassuming painting restorer, and his beautiful lover Rosa, which culminates in Rosa’s murder following their wedding. The story is delivered through five witness testimonies to the local police inspector. The first witness is Mrs. Milagros, the owner of Canegato’s boarding house. The second and fourth witnesses are David Réguel and Eufrasia Morales, residents of the boarding house. The third testimony is given by Canegato himself, who has been accused of murdering Rosa. The fifth part of the book resolves both the mysteries of Rosa’s identity and her murderer’s identity. Rosaura a las diez was awarded the Kraft Prize in 1955 and was adapted into a film by director Mario Soffici three years later. It has been interpreted as an early piece of LGBTQ+ Argentinian literature and is notable for its use of misdirection to explore the nature of perspective and perception.

This guide refers to the first English edition, published in 1964 by Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, translated by Donald A. Yates, which is accessible via the Internet Archive.

Content Warning: Rosaura a las diez contains instances of domestic violence, sex trafficking, anti-gay bias, and ableism, which this guide references.  

Plot Summary

The book begins with the testimony of Mrs. Milagros, the owner of a boarding house called La Madrileña, where Camilo Canegato lives. She claims to consider Camilo family, calling him a “bachelor uncle” to her three daughters, Matilda, Clotilda, and Enilda. She characterizes him as a lonely figure whose world revolves around his work in painting restoration. After years of watching Camilo’s loneliness, she is startled when mysterious perfumed letters on pink paper begin to arrive at the house every week. It quickly becomes clear that Camilo is having a romantic affair, and all of the residents become obsessed with learning more about it. Mrs. Milargos and her daughters read the letters in secret, and they are filled with romantic confessions and confidences from a woman named Rosa.

One day, a letter arrives that is clearly intended for Camilo but is misaddressed. One of the nosy boarders, a retired schoolteacher named Eufrasia Morales, convinces Mrs. Milagros that the mistaken address is reason enough to open it. Tempted, Mrs. Milagros reads it aloud, revealing Camilo’s secrets to the whole house. Everyone begins to speculate about his and Rosa’s relationship, and when he arrives home, Mrs. Milagros convinces him to confide in her the love story. He claims that Rosa is the daughter of one of his clients, who lives in a large, mysterious mansion with very little company. The pair fell in love while Rosa sat for a portrait that her father commissioned from Camilo, and Rosa began to send him letters since they were under constant supervision in her home.

Matilda is notably derisive and speculates that Rosa must not be as beautiful or young as Camilo claims. Mrs. Milagros persuades Camilo to bring a miniature version of her portrait to La Madrileña so that she and her daughters can see what she looks like. Although Camilo is wary of the other boarders’ prying eyes, especially David Réguel’s, he acquiesces, and the portrait proves all of his claims about Rosa’s beauty. The other residents learn about the portrait and find ways to see it against Camilo’s wishes. The daughters remain unconvinced that everything is as it seems, especially once Camilo reveals that he does not know Rosa’s last name or phone number. Their romance is jeopardized by Rosa’s father’s plan to marry her off to a wealthy cousin. Mrs. Milagros is convinced that Camilo should take action to save his relationship, but Camilo is resolute in remaining passive.

Soon enough, the portrait is finished, and Camilo no longer has a reason to see Rosa. She eventually sends a letter informing Camilo that she could not convince her father to let them be together. Camilo is forlorn but resigned, even saying that Rosa will be better off married to her wealthy cousin. Mrs. Milagros is baffled but also agrees not to take any action herself. One night, while the household is having dinner, the doorbell rings. Mrs. Milagros is delighted to see Rosa standing outside and welcomes her in, assuming that she has run away from her restrictive father. Strangely, Camilo and Rosa behave coldly with one another.

The distance between Camilo and Rosa does not resolve itself as her time at La Madrileña progresses, though they do plan to marry. Instead, she grows close to Réguel, and Mrs. Milagros is forced to intervene in an altercation between Camilo and Réguel over Rosa. Around the same time, police arrive and search the house for an unspecified female tenant. Mrs. Milagros hides Rosa away in the attic. With the wedding approaching, Rosa reveals to Mrs. Milagros that her real name is Marta. Rosa is a false name she and Camilo chose, and she shows her ID card to prove this. The evening after the wedding, Mrs. Milagros is shocked to hear David Réguel come into the house and pronounce that Camilo murdered Rosa.

Part 2 is Réguel’s testimony. He claims that he has suspected Camilo to be a sinister character for quite some time and that he only enjoyed his relationship with Rosa because of the power it gave him over her. Sensing something dishonest about their relationship, Réguel began observing him very closely. He sees Rosa on the street one night and intentionally tells Camilo about it in front of everyone else to gauge his reaction. When Rosa arrived at La Madrileña, Réguel was disturbed by how coldly Camilo treated her. His assumptions that Camilo might behave violently towards her were confirmed when he overheard Camilo berating her and telling her to leave the house. This prompted Réguel to attack him, initiating the fight that Mrs. Milagros broke up. The night of the wedding, Réguel followed the couple in a taxi cab to their hotel. He was surprised that instead of going to the nice hotel Mrs. Milagros booked for them, they instead went to a sketchy establishment in a dangerous part of town. Some time later, Réguel saw Camilo stumble out without Rosa. Assuming Camilo killed her, Réguel went inside to try to save her. Inside, Réguel encountered the violent proprietor, a Turkish man referred to in the text as “the Turk”, and was forced to leave again to find the police. He and the police returned to find Rosa strangled on the bed, prompting Camilo’s arrest.

In Part 3, the police inspector has a conversation with Camilo. Camilo admits that he has never truly been a painter; he only paints on top of photographs. He also has an unhealthy habit of becoming absorbed in his dreams. He claims that Rosa was one of these dreams and that he made her real by forging her letters, creating a painting of her, and showing these things to the other residents. He was shocked when a woman who looked just like his portrait arrived on the doorstep and was convinced that he dreamed her into reality. As the wedding approached, his experience of reality became increasingly hazy, up until the moment he found himself strangling Rosa on a hotel bed. However, he claims that Rosa was still alive when he left her in the hotel room.

In Part 4, Eufrasia Morales reveals to the policemen that she observed La Madrileña’s housemaid, Elsa, stealing a letter from Rosa and that she believes this letter contains crucial information. In Part 5, the police confiscate this letter from Elsa, which reveals Rosa’s true identity. Rosa was, in fact, Marta, the niece of Camilo’s former laundress, with whom he previously had a transactional sexual relationship. In her letter, Marta reveals that she was released from prison and was trafficked by her friend into sex work under the supervision of the hotel owner. After a particularly violent night, she escaped and recalled that Camilo might be a compassionate soul who would help her. She went to La Madrileña, at which point she was assumed to be Rosa. Based on this information, the police convict the hotel owner of Rosa’s murder.