Reviewer: Allie
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a love story about a woman named Venetia Ashton-Montague (quite the moniker!) and an Italian Don Juan, named Paolo Barone. The two meet during the Carnival in Venice, after Paolo rescues Venetia from an attacker. They are instantly intrigued by one another. Venetia has moved to Venice to work in her grandmother’s architectural firm. After she begins working on a beautiful home in Tuscany, Venetia stumbles upon a mystery. The romance of Venetia and Paolo is a tortured one, with both characters possessing deep scars from their past. There’s also a bit of suspense with an Italian count and a young rival.
The book is really not my style. First of all, it’s not chick lit – definitely more along the lines of a traditional romance, with some gothic undertones. I really didn’t care for the doom and gloom factor that hoovers over the story. The heroine, Venetia, was very hard to warm up too. I didn’t understand why she was so damaged after ten years, which was a long time to harbor hurt and anger over a young love. Even after she was supposedly in love with Paolo, she was unwilling to trust him. I needed more character devolvement sooner in the story. I also didn’t feel the chemistry between the two, so it was hard to be invested in the romance. The mystery was somewhat interesting. Fielding is technically a good writer, but she was way too detailed in descriptions of the architecture, scenery and food. The details were overwhelming. As I noted, it wasn’t my genre of choice, but it you like a suspenseful romance and are a fan of things Italian, this may be the story for you.
