Sunflower Publishing Book Reviews

    Walking  Italy (A Guide for Tourists and Armchair Travellers) By Rachael Martin   SUMMARY: Whether it’s setting off on a long walk or going walking for the day, it doesn’t get much better than doing it in Italy. Italy has it all: mountains, hilltop towns, medieval squares, olive groves, vineyards, Renaissance art, and routes which speak the stories of people and places. This is a book about walking that’s not necessarily for walkers. It’s for those who love walking and go regularly, but it’s also aimed at beginners, those of us who enjoy a walk followed by lunch or dinner in a medieval square and a night at a cosy B&B. Maybe you’ll never actually go on any of the walks. This is also the book for you. It’s full of the history and stories of routes and places, so you can go on your own journey from the comfort of your living room. It gives you all the relevant links you’ll need, such as up-to-date maps, detailed routes, GPS navigation, updates, furt...

    An Italian Island Secret By Victoria Springfield     SUMMARY: Escape to a beautiful Italian island with this wonderfully romantic story, threaded with secrets and intrigue. It’s time to return to Ischia.  Alessia knows her grandmother grew up on the beautiful Italian island off the coast of Naples. But Ornella seldom talks about her life there – or why she never went back. So Alessia is amazed when Ornella reveals that, in the months before she left Ischia, she had worked on the set of a famous 1950s movie filmed on the island. Is there a link between the film set and the tragic death of Ornella’s teenage sister? Ornella has kept her past – and the heart-wrenching promise she made – a secret for over sixty years. She has tried not to think about the love she gave up. But now, perhaps the truth should finally be revealed...Travelling to Ischia together, Alessia falls in love with the utterly captivating island. Meeting handsome journalist Robert...

     Invitation to Italy By Victoria Springfield One-time teenage swimming sensation, Loretta, has run the Hotel Paradiso since leaving Capri broken-hearted. When childhood friend Salvo comes to stay, Loretta is forced to confront her past and the fears that have kept her away from the water for forty years. But just as she finds the courage to open her heart, she discovers all is not as it seems with Salvo... It's a summer of new beginnings for Abi and Loretta - and one they will never forget.     SUMMARY Abi is distraught when her ex-husband Alex takes their twelve-year-old daughter, Chloe to spend the summer with his glamorous fiancée Marisa and her parents at their home on the beautiful Italian island of Procida. Persuaded by her best friend to book a holiday at the island's Hotel Paradiso, Abi finally meets the woman she's been avoiding for so long. Will the two women's strained relationship survive the summer?   MY REVIEW: An invitation ...

    Saving Madonna by Kate Bristow   SUMMARY: Inspired by real events, an unforgettable story of love, courage and sacrifice to save a country’s heritage. Italy 1943. As the Allies bomb Milan, Elena Marchetti reluctantly gives up her coveted job as an art curator in the city to return to her family farm near Urbino. She takes up a new role assisting Pasquale Rotondi, the Superintendent of Arts in the region, in protecting works of art from all over Italy that have been hidden in the relative safety of the countryside. At a family celebration, Elena reunites with Luca, a close childhood friend. A shattering event instigated by the occupying Germans deepens their relationship, and they start planning a life together. When rumours surface that Italy’s art is being stolen by the German occupiers, Pasquale hatches an audacious plan to rescue the priceless paintings in his possession. Elena and Luca are forced to make an impossible decision: will they embark on a ...

                                                                A Taste of Italian Sunshine By Leoni Mack        SUMMARY Jenn has always prided herself on being a city girl – she insists on easy access to good coffee, great food from around the globe, not to mention an easy commute. So, when her job takes her to one of the most famous Italian wine regions in search of the perfect Prosecco, travelling to meetings on a tractor is a bit of a culture shock. Tiziano hates the city.  He was made for the mountains and vineyards of Veneto, and generations of his family have earned their living from the land. But times are changing even in the Italian countryside, and the arrival of Jenn at his grandmother’s B&B opens up a window on a different world. Jenn has two months to persuade the Prosecco producers...