To have courage to resist, to have courage to escape…

Synopsis

‘A rich and engaging vision of life gone by and a lust for one woman’s future, rolled into one. And now I want to move to Italy!’ Mandy Robotham

A gripping and moving debut novel about two women, decades apart, whose fates converge in Florence, Italy. Perfect for fans of Patricia Wilson, Mandy Robotham and Lucinda Riley.

Only fourteen, Stella Infuriati is the youngest member of her town’s resistance network during World War II. Risking imprisonment and death, she relays messages, supplies, and weapons to partisan groups in the Tuscan Hills. Her parents have no idea, consumed instead by love and fear for their beloved son, Achille, a courier and unofficial mechanic for a communist brigade fighting the fascists.

Then, after 1945, Stella seemingly vanishes from the records, her name and story overshadowed by the tragic death of her brother – until a young writer arrives in Tuscany in the spring of 2019, uncovering long-buried secrets.

Fleeing an emotionally abusive marriage and a lonely life on an isolated estate, Tori McNair has come to Florence, the beautiful city her grandmother, Margaret, taught her to love, to build a new life. As she digs into her family history with the help of Marco, a handsome lawyer, Tori starts to uncover secrets of the past – truths that stretch back decades, to a young woman who risked everything to save her world….

‘A glorious read full of rich detail that made me ache to be back in Italy. I loved the characters and the story.’ Liz Fenwick

‘Conjures Tuscany so beautifully that I felt I was taking a holiday there whilst reading it. The spirit and atmosphere of Italy simply sizzle from its pages. A true escape!’ Fiona Walker

‘This moving page-turner is a love letter to Florence – past and present – and filled with all the juicy elements that hist-fic lovers will celebrate: love, passion, history, courage, secrets and second chances.’ Lisa Barr, New York Times bestselling author of Woman on Fire

‘A poignant, emotional novel about love, loss, and new beginnings.’ Christine Wells, author of Sisters of the Resistance

My review

Tori MacNair has had enough of her emotional abusive marriage and flees to the place she loved spending time with her grandmother. As having left her home, that means also that the plans for her latest book are thrown out of the window. But that also means a new opportunity, as the new plans are to write about her stay in Florence.
Digging into her family history, she discovers the story about a young woman, Stella Infuriati. Stella is a member of the resistance network during the Second World War. She works together with her brother Achille to pas on messages, supplies and even more to the partisans.
But once the war is over, Stella disappears, and nobody knows what happened to her.
And Tori is determined to discover what happened to that young girl, related to famous auto racer Achille Infuriati. 

Being an Italian, I know the stories about the resistance and Partigiani in Italy during the war. Obviously I wasn’t there during those hard times, but I always admired the people who fought against the monstrosities that were taking place. 

I liked how this book has dual timelines, as it didn’t carry all the heaviness of the war, but also shows how strong people can be. 

I truly felt sorry for Tori, as her marriage made her unhappy. Even if Duncan doesn’t take a lot of room in the book, we see how his behaviour towards Tori affected her. And how selfish and mean he is…
I completely understood why Tori had the need to escape, especially after Duncan’s latest mean trick. And I completely agreed with Tori that she had to go to a place that held so many happy memories for her.
But it broke my heart to see how even her own sister won’t side with her, and was pushing Tori to just back.
It’s not because we don’t see things ourselves, that they aren’t true. And I felt that siblings should always stick together…  

Obviously Tori totally opened up in Florence, how could she not in such a wonderful place. Not only can she do what she wants herself, but she finds joy again in her life, and is slowly becoming herself again, and not the person that Duncan wants her to be, a small and insignificant person. 

It was great to see how the Italian hospitality sparked from the pages too, as quickly Tori makes new friends and even the restaurant and bar owners are looking after the latest Scottish arrival. With all their big mouths and gestures, the author also manages to show the big heart Italians have… 

Just like Tori, I was intrigued by Stella’s story. first of all, I admired her courage, especially at her young age. It only shows that even the smallest person, with the smallest gesture can make a great difference. 

We see Stella growing up (too fast unfortunately) during war. She for sure sees atrocities that not only a teenager but no one should ever see…
But we also see her taking her responsibilities and see injustice.
And injustice is something she grew up with, as her parents always favoured her brother Achille. It saddened me to read those bits, as it is clear that both her parents see her more as a nuisance or even a maid instead of the loving and caring person Stella is. 

I was also very curious to see how these two apparently separate stories would be linked together. And while I got all my questions answered, I would have liked to see more of that link in the book. But that is just my opinion, and it doesn’t take away any pleasure I had while reading this book. 

The author wrote a story about two strong women in their darkest moments. While their stories couldn’t be more different, the courage they have is equal. Because it takes a lot of courage to help the resistance during war.
But it also takes courage to escape an abusive marriage and start over again, trying to find happiness.
And in the end, that is what both our main characters are seeking, happiness…