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reikista's review against another edition
3.0
Isabella Berotti was the naive wife of one of Mussolini’s blackshirts when the fascists were only beginning to come into power. Her husband was killed and she was maimed in a strange event that she hasn’t fully clarified. Now, she is a respected architect, oblivious to what happens around her, until a mysterious woman asks her to watch her child momentarily. Although the reading didn’t flow as much as I would like, the plot was good enough to keep me interested and the historical material was intriguing, particularly in these times.
myza's review against another edition
DNF @ 30%, I wasn’t engaged with the characters enough to finish it
lindseysparks's review
3.0
I have read a LOT of WWII literature but I don't think any of it has been about Italy. I think to some extent we want forget that Italy partnered with Hitler. This takes places before the war, mostly in 1932. Mussolini appears as a character and the story centers around the widow of one if his followers. There's quite a bit of adventure here along with the history. It get a little crazy but overall was an enjoyable read.
kiwikazz's review
3.0
3 1/2 stars ....Well, I feel like I know a bit more about Mussolini's Italy of the 1930's. Good story, definitely readable, I enjoyed it.
karenmr1601's review against another edition
4.0
A Good Story
I love stories set in Italy and this is really good. Set before the war the characters are interesting with a good twist. Will definitely read more by Kate Furnivallx
I love stories set in Italy and this is really good. Set before the war the characters are interesting with a good twist. Will definitely read more by Kate Furnivallx
eigendecomp's review
3.0
This is a nice book and it held my interest steadily till its rather unrealistic happyendish conclusion. Some suspension of disbelief is necessary, but it's worthwhile. Chick-lit meets historical fiction here and inherits some of the better features of both.
nocto's review
emotional
informative
medium-paced
3.0
It took me a while to get through this, I'm not entirely sure why. The setting is an interesting historical one: Italy under Mussolini, I think it was 1933. The main character is a woman doing something different: Isabella is an architect playing a part in building a new city on drained marshlands. The background has some mystery going on: Isabella's husband was a blackshirt who was shot a decade ago in an incident that also left Isabella injured. There's a good hook at the beginning of the story: An unknown woman leaves her ten year old daughter with Isabella supposedly just for a moment, but then throws herself to her death from a tower Isabella built. There are a lot of intriguing minor characters here too - the evil nuns are pretty much a stereotype nowadays but there's more depth to some of the others. And I didn't think the plot was terrible. But somehow the whole book just didn't come together for me. When the pace picked up near the end I began to enjoy it more, I guess it was just lacking a good middle.
I've just realised this was my "Read a random pick" choice for the Storygraph onboarding challenge. And that's fine, I didn't think it was a brilliant book but I think it was a good recommendation for me all the same.
I've just realised this was my "Read a random pick" choice for the Storygraph onboarding challenge. And that's fine, I didn't think it was a brilliant book but I think it was a good recommendation for me all the same.
msbookworld's review
5.0
I've been a fan of Kate Furnivall's work ever since reading The Jewel of St. Petersburg and this book does not disappoint. I loved Isabella and Roberto and Rosa and couldn't bring myself to put the book down until I knew their fates.