This is definitely a case of don’t judge a book by its cover for me, as I was getting vibes of dreamy Italian escapism and romance, when in fact this is a fairly complex and political novel.
As the title suggests, this tells the story of two women in Rome - we have Lottie in the present who has just moved to Rome to be with her new husband and is working as an archivist when she uncovers a painting which leads her to the story of Nina, a spy murdered in 1978. Whilst Lottie is being warned away from the story by many people, including her new husband, she finds herself unable to let Nina go without finding out what happened to her. As we also see Nina’s side of the story, including an illicit affair, it soon becomes clear that she was involved in some dangerous work...
Let me begin with what I loved about this novel, and that is Rome, Rome, Rome. The author has captured the essence of Rome and the Italian people so beautifully that I just wanted to go back there immediately to immerse myself in the architecture, food and art. It’s an incredibly intriguing and mysterious story, involving the fascinating Vatican Church and some very devious characters who could easily be involved with Nina’s murder.
The romance between Nina and the man she calls Leo is one of those beautiful but doomed love affairs which I love to read, and I liked the reveal of Leo’s real identity later in the story.
I have to admit though, to finding parts of the story and dialogue a little stilted - it didn’t flow in a natural way to me, and I did find the level of detail about politics, the Church and even the art a little too much. It felt overly complicated at times, and I found my mind wandering because I wasn’t fully engrossed.
Anyone who is fascinated by art or politics will no doubt love this, but I’d say if you’re looking for the romance and escapism it may not suit so much - although it’s pretty likely that it’s just one of those I’m too daft for!
As the title suggests, this tells the story of two women in Rome - we have Lottie in the present who has just moved to Rome to be with her new husband and is working as an archivist when she uncovers a painting which leads her to the story of Nina, a spy murdered in 1978. Whilst Lottie is being warned away from the story by many people, including her new husband, she finds herself unable to let Nina go without finding out what happened to her. As we also see Nina’s side of the story, including an illicit affair, it soon becomes clear that she was involved in some dangerous work...
Let me begin with what I loved about this novel, and that is Rome, Rome, Rome. The author has captured the essence of Rome and the Italian people so beautifully that I just wanted to go back there immediately to immerse myself in the architecture, food and art. It’s an incredibly intriguing and mysterious story, involving the fascinating Vatican Church and some very devious characters who could easily be involved with Nina’s murder.
The romance between Nina and the man she calls Leo is one of those beautiful but doomed love affairs which I love to read, and I liked the reveal of Leo’s real identity later in the story.
I have to admit though, to finding parts of the story and dialogue a little stilted - it didn’t flow in a natural way to me, and I did find the level of detail about politics, the Church and even the art a little too much. It felt overly complicated at times, and I found my mind wandering because I wasn’t fully engrossed.
Anyone who is fascinated by art or politics will no doubt love this, but I’d say if you’re looking for the romance and escapism it may not suit so much - although it’s pretty likely that it’s just one of those I’m too daft for!