Yes, it is Paris in July time, but I am taking a quick detour to Italy for this post. Never fear, I will be back in France again tomorrow.
I have read a number of Siobhan Daiko's books, and so when I saw that there was an upcoming blog tour, of course I am going to volunteer. My first book by this author was set in the Pacific theatre of WWII, but the rest have been set in Italy, which is where she lives, although she is British originally.
What I like about her books is that she takes lesser known stories from WWII and fictionalises them to share with her readers. With a title like Daughters of Tuscany, it will be no surprise that this story is set in Tuscany, but it is in a small valley called. Initially, the war is not that near to Emma and Rosa, our two main characters. The main impact is in the loss of the men who help run the estate owned by Emma's father, Marchese Ginori. Rosa's family are tenants of the Marchese.
The Marchese is able to get some POWs to help with the farm, which brings Rosa into contact with a Scottish soldier named Tom. Rosa is determined that she is going to stay away from Tom. She has already suffered great loss thanks to the war, which has left her to raise her daughter alone, and she is determined not to risk heartbreak again.
Meanwhile, Emma and her father walk a fine line in trying to navigate dealing with the German's, helping their people to survive, and helping the resistance fighters who hide in the nearby forests and mountains.
However, with the Allies advancing from the south of Italy and the Germans moving northwards, the fighting gets closer and closer, bring different types of danger for each of them with it.
Recently, I was at an author event where a publisher speaking about the fact that we seem to be moving away from WWII fiction. I still love WWII fiction, but it has to be something different, something exceptional. I liked this book, although I do feel like the premise is kind of safe, by which I mean it isn't anything I haven't really read before. I do also feel like there were times when I could see the editor, particularly in the early parts of the book. That aside, the story was engaging, there were strong female characters, and it does tell an interesting story.
Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and Rachel's Random Resources for the review copy. I am sharing this review with the New Release Challenge hosted at The Chocolate Lady's Book Review Blog and with the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge which I host.
About the Book
Daughters of Tuscany
Two women, one community, everyone’s war…
With the arrival of English prisoners of war on Marchese Ginori’s farmhouse estate, Rosa is immediately wary. Her husband was killed by the Allies and she will not trust any inglesi around her daughter.
The marchese’s daughter, Emma, is thankful for the extra help. Especially when Italian soldiers are forced into hiding, fleeing the Nazis. Emma vows to protect her childhood best friend, Marco, at any cost.
It’s a dangerous time to be harbouring fugitives, and as the POWs prove their allegiance in helping the Italian men, Rosa begins to become close to one in particular – an alluring Scotsman named Tom.
Both women will do what it takes to protect their loved ones, but daring to hope for a better future in wartime is a dangerous dream. And what starts as a quest to keep their men safe soon turns into a mission to save their whole community…
A sweeping tale of love, loss and hope in times of strife, perfect for fans of Fiona Valpy, Rhys Bowen and Kristin Hannah
Purchase
Link - https://mybook.to/daughterssocial
About the author:
Siobhan Daiko is a British historical fiction author. A lover of all things Italian, she lives in the Veneto region of northern Italy with her husband, a Havanese dog and a Siberian cat. Siobhan was born of English parents in Hong Kong, attended boarding school in Australia, and then moved to the UK — where she taught modern foreign languages in a Welsh high school. She now spends her time writing page-turners and living the dolce vita sweet life near Venice. Her novels are compelling, poignant, and deeply moving, with strong characters and evocative settings, but always with romance at their heart. You can find more about her books on her website www.siobhandaiko.org
Social Media Links –
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/siobhan.daiko.author
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Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/siobhan-daiko
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