Title: The Stolen Letter
Author: Clara Benson
Publication Day: 24/09/2020
Description:
The longer her imprisonment went on, the more she cast her mind back to the stolen hours they had spent together. His love had blown in like an unexpected breath of warm summer air, giving her the promise of life and joy. But now they had been torn apart and she was tormented by the thought that they might never be reunited.
Italy, 1938: When Stella arrives in Florence, it’s love at first sight. She is wowed by the rolling hills dotted with olive trees, the buttermilk villas with shuttered windows and terracotta roofs that glow gloriously in the sunlight. Even the breeze holds the scent of freedom – freedom from England, where the shadow of her past haunted her.
Then there is Ted, an American journalist who is wild and mischievous, with an arrogance bordering on rude. Stella is infuriated by him – but she cannot deny the lure of the danger and excitement he promises.
But there is something dark under the bright surface of this beautiful country, with unspeakable tragedies just around the corner. When the Nazis take control of Italy, Stella and Ted – and whatever dreams the future held for them – are ripped apart. As bombs descend, destroying everything in their wake, there is nothing to do but sit in darkness, praying to see tomorrow.
And it seems that even in Italy, Stella’s past has found her. Somewhere in the winding streets of Florence there is a letter that could change the course of her fate. Unknown to her, it holds a secret with the power to rewrite her past, and everything she has been running away from. But will she live to find it? And with the odds stacked against her, will she ever see Ted again?
This beautifully spun and stirring tale is about the impossible tragedies of war and the miraculous possibilities of love. Fans of Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale, Rhys Bowen’s The Tuscan Child, and The Letter by Kathryn Hughes will be utterly captivated by this spectacular historical page-turner.
Readers absolutely love Clara Benson:
‘Amazing… One of my favourite stories… A brilliant story that is full of twists and turns… I felt like I was on the edge of my seat the whole time while reading… A must-read.’ Chells and Books, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘Oh my word, this was definitely an emotive and additive read, and then some… I felt myself well up… I fully immersed myself in the story and I knew that nothing much would be done for the rest of the day as I would be too busy reading!... I was too hooked… Superbly written… I became so emotionally involved with certain characters that every time they felt pain, I felt pain…The author uses such vivid and realistic descriptions that I actually felt as though I was part of the story myself.’ Ginger Book Geek, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘Amazing… I truly loved this book… Clara Benson does a masterful job of bringing her characters to life.’ Historically Yours, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘Stirring, captivating and electrifying… So poignant it could sever readers’ heartstrings.’ Bookish Jottings, ⭐⭐⭐⭐
‘A beautifully devastating book. Highly emotional and utterly captivating from the first page to the last.’ Loopyloulaura, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'The Stolen Letter' by Clara Benson.
Read and reviewed via NetGalley for Bookouture publishers and Bookouture anonymous
Publication date 24th September 2020
This is the first book that I have read by this author.
I was originally drawn to this book by its intriguing and beautiful cover and interesting sounding blurb. I also wanted a change from my typical genre of crime fiction and this looked perfect. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Bookouture. I have yet to read a book published by Bookouture that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of a prologue and 39 chapters split in 4 parts. The chapters are medium in length so ideal to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is written in third person perspective. I enjoy books written in third person as it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters.
This book is based in Italy and Geneva.
Confusing with several characters and storylines.
Part one focuses on Stella and her relationships with Monica, Ted and Marius and Beatrice and her relationships with Mimmo and Vittorio. Part one is based in Italy 🇮🇹 during the start of the war. I found part one to be a very slow burner and confusing at times while getting to know the many characters and their individual backgrounds and storylines.
Part two is based in Geneva in the middle of the war and focuses on Stella and her relationships with Maurius and Ted. This part is much more fast paced with more action and less characters. With less characters I found I could understand more of each one and what was going on.
Part Three is based in Italy and focuses on Stella, Ted, Beatrice, Tina, Dora and Vittorio. During part three the pace of the storyline picked up much faster and you can really see Stella maturing and her character developing. The storyline is also more 'set' and you can understand much more of what is going on.
Part Four. Italy 🇮🇹. In this part we see all the remaining characters from the rest of the book and find out what happens to them.
Once I got to know the individual characters some grew on me and others I could not abide. The character I believe that went through the biggest transformation was Stella who started of as a naive young girl and ended the story as a courageous young woman. I really enjoyed how the author showed her gradual growth in strength.
I think one of the biggest challenges of this book is to write a story from the war from a side that wasn't against the Germans and I believe the author did this well. I struggled at the beginning to read it through this perspective but as I delved deeper into the book and attitudes changed with some of the characters I felt that I bonded with them better.
Overall a very slow burner but one that ends in a roller-coaster ride of love, loss, strength, war and courage. After Part one things definitely picked up for me and that's when I got sucked in.
Genres covered include Saga, Historical Fiction, Coming-of-age story
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above.
423 pages.
This book is £1.99 to purchase on kindle via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 4 /5 (I enjoyed it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
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Author Bio:
Clara Benson is the author of the Angela Marchmont Mysteries and Freddy Pilkington-Soames Adventures - traditional English whodunits in authentic style set in the 1920s and 30s. One day she would like to drink cocktails and solve mysteries in a sequinned dress and evening gloves. In the meantime, she lives in the north of England with her family and doesn't do any of those things.
To find out about new releases and receive a FREE, exclusive Angela Marchmont short story, sign up to her mailing list at clarabenson.com/newsletter.
Author Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClaraBooks
BUY LINKS:
Amazon: https://geni.us/B08CRLS58SSocial
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Kobo: http://ow.ly/x0IM50Awuiv
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