BREAKING NEWS

Friday, November 7, 2014

Venice in the Moonlight by Elizabeth McKenna (Review and Giveaway)

Venice in the Moonlight by Elizabeth McKenna
ISBN: 9781492720195
Published: October 2013
Trade paperback, 194 pages

Twenty-year-old Marietta Gatti is banished from her in-laws’ Verona villa upon the death of her faithless husband. With nowhere else to go, she decides to return to Venice, hoping to reconcile with her estranged father. Upon arriving  there,  Marietta discovers that her father has died in mysterious circumstances.  Determined to find out what happened to him, she begins her investigations, aided by Nico Foscari, a rich, handsome Italian playboy, who is also blind. This is the first blind hero I've encountered, but it somehow works.  Marietta  is strong, independent, resilient and very likable And the hero isn't too bad, either. He develops into an honourable man by the end.

I liked the fact that the story is set in 18th century Venice during carnival time, with its masked balls, beautiful gowns, luxurious villas, and historical people like Casanova, the Foscari family and the artist Tiepolo.  I enjoyed learning something about the early days of Venice as a great trading center for silks, spices, and exotic goods. I would have enjoyed reading more about the history.

Most everything in the novel is believable. The only thing that isn't too realistic is Marietta’s nighttime excursions, dressed up as a man, into the homes of rich Venetians in her attempts to resolve the mystery of her father’s death. I don’t think it’s something a young woman of the day would do.

This is a quick, easily read historical fiction that also contains elements of mystery, revenge, friendship and romance (a couple of non-explicit sexual scenes.)

I hope the author favors us with more worthy tales.

Note: This book is rated S (mild)
To follow the tour and read more reviews, please visit Italy Book Tours page for Venice in the Moonlight.

About the Author:
Elizabeth McKenna works as a full-time technical writer/editor for a large software company. Though her love of books reaches back to her childhood, she had never read romance novels until one Christmas when her sister gave her the latest bestseller by Nora Roberts. She was hooked from page one (actually, she admits it was the first love scene). She had always wanted to write fiction, so she combined her love of history, romance and a happy ending to write her debut novel Cera's Place. Her short story, The Gypsy Casts a Spell, is available for free on her website. She hopes you will enjoy her latest novel, Venice in the Moonlight, as much as others have enjoyed her previous works.

Elizabeth lives in Wisconsin with her understanding husband, two beautiful daughters, and a sassy Labrador. When she isn't writing, working, or being a mom, she's sleeping.

Connect with her: Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter


And now for the giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Reviewed by Sandra




Disclosure: Thanks to Laura Fabiani  from Italy Book Tours for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.


Share this:

Post a Comment

Thank you for commenting! I appreciate your feedback.

Visit Us Today

Visit Us Today
iRead: getting your book in the hands of readers
 
Back To Top
Copyright © 2009-2017 Laura Fabiani Library of Clean Reads . Designed by OddThemes OddThemes