The opening was interesting, and I liked the setting of Italy during Mussolini's reign, but the basic premise quickly lost me.
I never connected to Isabella and her cause. Her quest to find answers about the murder of a wife-beating fascist? Who's supposed to care about that? Not me!
I felt the story dragged to fill its pages and many parts were largely skimmable, with a bland romance to boot. In the end there were several reveals - secrets, betrayals, twists and turns - but for me it was too little too late.
Though well researched, I felt overall that The Italian Wife read like it was 2-3 revisions away from a completed manuscript. I can't recommend it over Kate Furnivall's The Jewel of St. Petersburg. Now that's one hell of a read! I appreciate she likes to explore varied settings, but having read several of her novels to date, I feel the author's writing shines best in Russian settings.
I never connected to Isabella and her cause. Her quest to find answers about the murder of a wife-beating fascist? Who's supposed to care about that? Not me!
I felt the story dragged to fill its pages and many parts were largely skimmable, with a bland romance to boot. In the end there were several reveals - secrets, betrayals, twists and turns - but for me it was too little too late.
Though well researched, I felt overall that The Italian Wife read like it was 2-3 revisions away from a completed manuscript. I can't recommend it over Kate Furnivall's The Jewel of St. Petersburg. Now that's one hell of a read! I appreciate she likes to explore varied settings, but having read several of her novels to date, I feel the author's writing shines best in Russian settings.
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