Here are two of the books I recently read. The first one, The Venetian Mask, I absolutely loved! I was interested in reading it right away just by its title. A couple of years ago (like 4 or 5) I went to Italy for a month with the ANG. Mainly I was there to do post office work but during the evenings and weekends I got to enjoy Italy (specifically gelato, Verona, and Venice). This first book brought me back to my days in Italy.
It is about Marietta and Elena. They are both singers at the Ospedale della Pieta orphanage and music school for girls in Venice. This book is about real friendship and true love. What I love about this book is that it takes place in a time when woman were valued and respected.....but what also made me mad as I read it was how woman had nearly no control over their own future and were forced into marriages they did not want any part of.
This second book, Courting Trouble, I thought was pretty good. It's about Essie who lives in the late 1800's. She just turned 30 years old and is considered the town's "old maid". The book grew on me more towards the second half. The first half I just couldn't get over being 30 and called the "old maid"! Essie is a strong believer in God and is tested throughout the next year of her life. She decides that she's sick of waiting for God to bring her a husband and she decides to go find one herself. Her dad is the town judge and her uncle is the sheriff....so you can imagine how scared any man in town is to even talk to this girl.
Both of these books are worth reading! Goodness in school I always hated having to do book reports....and look at me now. Ha!
Great reviews! You made me want to read the first novel. I love Italy. I also love historical fiction and always dreamed I would write one one day...alas,I discovered that too much research was required to do that genre justice :}
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