Title: The Star-Crossed Sisters of Tuscany
Author: Lori Nelson Spielman
Publisher: Berkley 2020
Genre: Fiction
Pages: 378
Rating: 3/5 stars
Reading Challenges: UnRead Shelf Project; UnRead Shelf Reading Challenge - Recent Acquisition
Since the day Filomena Fontana cast a curse upon her sister more than two hundred years ago, not one second-born Fontana daughter has found lasting love. Some, like second-born Emilia, the happily-single baker at her grandfather’s Brooklyn deli, claim it’s an odd coincidence. Others, like her sexy, desperate-for-love cousin Lucy, insist it’s a true hex. But both are bewildered when their great-aunt calls with an astounding proposition: If they accompany her to her homeland of Italy, Aunt Poppy vows she’ll meet the love of her life on the steps of the Ravello Cathedral on her eightieth birthday, and break the Fontana Second-Daughter Curse once and for all.
Against the backdrop of wandering Venetian canals, rolling Tuscan fields, and enchanting Amalfi Coast villages, romance blooms, destinies are found, and family secrets are unearthed—secrets that could threaten the family far more than a centuries-old curse.
I had such high hopes for this book and it just fell flat for me. Most of the book is set in modern times and full of what seemed to be a travelogue for Italy. That’s fine, but it didn’t really grab my attention. I really fell for the chapters detailing the romance between Poppy and Rico. I wanted a book just of them. Emilia and Lucy were complete wet blankets in comparison. I just couldn’t seem to get myself to root for either of them. So, I wasn’t super excited about the book and then we get to the revelations and secrets about Poppy and Rosa. And I wanted to throw the book across the room. I was so incredibly mad at Rosa and her entire attitude and actions throughout the story. And we don’t really get any real apology from her. For that matter, I was very disappointed that Emilia’s sister never truly apologies for her behavior toward Emilia. For a book that was touted as being full of family and forgiveness, I felt it was sorely lacking in the forgiveness part. Boring.
Next up on the TBR pile:
