This is a gloriously dark novel full of secrets and intrigue which I have, quite literally, not put down today (apart from to pour a glass of Prosecco because I am nothing if not suggestible)!
Ada Howell is not a likeable character - after losing her father as a teenager she feels as though she missed out on the life of privilege and wealth she was entitled to, and when she spends a year in Italy with the kind of people she wants to be, she will stop at nothing to ingrain herself, even if that means covering up a murder...
Oh how I love to hate my characters sometimes - and none more so than Ada! Whilst the loss of her father is tragic, the sense of entitlement she has despite being in what many would consider a comfortable position is infuriating, although I do (resentfully) admire her determination and how oblivious she is to the distance the others clearly try to keep her at. The character development and interactions between Ada and these “friends” is brilliant - without ever hearing their narratives it’s up to us as the reader to work out how they really feel about her.
With this group of young privileged adults with their country homes and endless riches, and a year in Italy focused on art history, this is of course a wonderfully glamorous and romantic novel in some ways - from the clothes to the evenings spent drinking wine and discussing culture in Venice, Florence and Rome. Whilst I didn’t always understand the art references, I still found myself swept away by the beauty of it all and imagining evenings of my own back in Rome one day!
This is a thrilling story in every way - the characters are vile and manipulative, the locations exquisite, and it is a tale full of surprises which will make your jaws drop! Loved it.
Ada Howell is not a likeable character - after losing her father as a teenager she feels as though she missed out on the life of privilege and wealth she was entitled to, and when she spends a year in Italy with the kind of people she wants to be, she will stop at nothing to ingrain herself, even if that means covering up a murder...
Oh how I love to hate my characters sometimes - and none more so than Ada! Whilst the loss of her father is tragic, the sense of entitlement she has despite being in what many would consider a comfortable position is infuriating, although I do (resentfully) admire her determination and how oblivious she is to the distance the others clearly try to keep her at. The character development and interactions between Ada and these “friends” is brilliant - without ever hearing their narratives it’s up to us as the reader to work out how they really feel about her.
With this group of young privileged adults with their country homes and endless riches, and a year in Italy focused on art history, this is of course a wonderfully glamorous and romantic novel in some ways - from the clothes to the evenings spent drinking wine and discussing culture in Venice, Florence and Rome. Whilst I didn’t always understand the art references, I still found myself swept away by the beauty of it all and imagining evenings of my own back in Rome one day!
This is a thrilling story in every way - the characters are vile and manipulative, the locations exquisite, and it is a tale full of surprises which will make your jaws drop! Loved it.