Rosa was a young teenager when she left the sheltered life of the convent to become a governess for a wealthy Italian family. Strange and mystical things happen while she is with them. In trying to help another staff member, Rosa is accused of being an enemy of the state. I don’t want to say any more, but it is at this point that Rosa’s life takes a dramatic turn that impacts her forever.This story started off strong for me, but then went into a bit of a lull to the point where I wasn’t sure I would want to finish. I can only say, I’m sure glad I decided to continue reading. I think it was because I liked Rosa and I wanted to see how her story ended. Even though she is young, Rosa is determined to survive. The suspense really picked up in the second half of the story and it became a real page turner. This is my first book to read by Ms. Alexandra and I really would like to read more.Many thanks to Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books, via Netgalley, for allowing me to read this in exchange for an unbiased review. This book has an awesome story and I thoroughly enjoyed devouring it in a couple days. It only gets three stars (note- changed to four ... Plus one for making me root for ya!) because it feels like a first draft of the book. I feel like so much more could be done to make the story more compelling... A story I resonated with and wanted more from! Some general notes....The beginning felt pieced together. So much happens in a short period of time that as soon as I become interested in what is happening, it switches gear. Like a good novel getting thrown into a movie version, a lot of connections to get the reader really emotionally hooked weren't fully made. The spacing between events was a little weird at first but you get used to it. The historical wartime elements were carefully considered- I felt like they drew me right in without much effort- but the individual relationships didn't receive the same attention and left me wanting more. Sometimes I felt like certain events could have been explained more through bodily senses of what the character was experiencing or what events were taking place externally instead of so literally. Other times I felt like I was reading propaganda for the authors beliefs instead of a story- particularly when issues of the bible or vegetarianism came up. I'm all for the lessons the story conveyed but didn't appreciate such an overt tone of righteousness about it- It stole me out of the story. I appreciated the elements of witchcraft and how it was portrayed so pragmatically in the book. I loved the love triangle. I thought the plot twist was fun to read but suspected it early on and was slightly disappointed about how it played out- seriously so much more could have been done for this characters story!So overall I'd say to definitely give this a read if you are into historical modern day fairy tale types stories. Don't expect to have an earth shattering experience, though it'll definitely be an enjoyable way to pass the time. If it were up to me, this would have been a much longer book, maybe a series, and only the first draft.
What do You think about Melodía En La Toscana (2010)?
Couldn't put it down loved the story although some of it came as a surprise
—Dem
belinda alexandra at her best, as usual, but too much about the war
—nihae
Not compelling, but I am a sucker to historical drama.
—dee
