I was excited to read this book as it had been billed as Ripley-esque and I loved the Ripley books. It’s the tale of Ada who grew up in an, albeit shabby, country pile which was sold off after her father died. Now living in urban London after being in the leafy countryside of Wales she wants to find her way back to what she wants to be her ‘people’ ie the wealthier set. She gets the chance to go on a kind of mini Grand Tour of Italy, mainly undertaken by wealthy students, after being gifted a substantial amount of money by her Godmother. It then documents her trying to fit in with the rest of the students.
I must say I didn’t really get the Ripley comparison but I did enjoy it and read it quite quickly. It’s well written, nicely paced and having been to the three Italian cities visited in the books I could picture all the locations that were visited. Having experienced it personally I thought the description of the Venice thunderstorm was spot on. However, I found the ‘twist’ a bit of a let down which is why I only give this 3 stars.
I must say I didn’t really get the Ripley comparison but I did enjoy it and read it quite quickly. It’s well written, nicely paced and having been to the three Italian cities visited in the books I could picture all the locations that were visited. Having experienced it personally I thought the description of the Venice thunderstorm was spot on. However, I found the ‘twist’ a bit of a let down which is why I only give this 3 stars.