A review by ejl2623
The Unraveling of Julia by Lisa Scottoline

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I decided to read the audio version of The Unraveling of Julia. Julia is a few years into married life to Mike, a new lawyer. They live in Philadelphia and are happy. Walking home from dinner after a celebratory evening, Julia suddenly senses danger, just as a mugger tries to grab her purse. As Mike moves in front of her to protect her, the mugger kills him. Julia's adoptive mother died when she was quite young and her father was, at a minimum, not very attentive. The police are getting nowhere with the murder investigation. Her grief has left her prostrated. Her best friend stays in close touch, but she lives far away. And then, Julia finds out that she has inherited a villa, vineyard and large amount of money from a woman she never heard of. She comes to believe this might be someone related to her, possibly her biological grandmother given her age.

Ultimately, Julia decides to go to Tuscany and try to learn about the woman. She turns out to have been a recluse with in a small town that actively disliked her. Julia must consider whether to sell the property, stay in Tuscany, and overall to figure out what to do next in her life. Along the way, she gets assistance from a variety of people such as her benefactors' housekeeper and handyman, a lawyer handling the estate, a real estate agent and eventually, a nice guy who helps her out of a jam near the Uffizi in Florence. However, she experiences nightmares that are terrifying and connected to her benefactor's believe she descends from a famous woman Italian ruler. She believes she is being followed and has no idea why. She has smarts in many ways, but she has become hooked on horoscopes and these things happening to her seem foreshadowed at times. Little by little, she finds evidence that she looks a lot like her benefactor and that there is almost certainly something being kept from her, possibly about her biological family.

Scottoline takes us through a well-plotted mystery and a story of how one woman comes to terms with loss and with finding direction in a world that seems menacing for perfectly good reasons. I loved the writing and the characters, particularly Julia. The Tuscan setting was fun too. The friendship with Julia's childhood friend is great. Maria Marquis did an EXCELLENT job as narrator in this novel.