Any story with Spanish/Italian characters is bound to be passionately narrated if the writer has done his/her research properly or is a native of Spain/Italy. At the risk of stereotyping, all Spaniards/Italians I know are quite spirited. That combined with the book summary got me interested in the book. The cover however, was a dampener as it wasn’t really tastefully done.
Carolina, a teacher by profession learns about her biological parents and embarks on a complicated mission to find them. She has her original birth certificate, a photograph of them, a paper with words in a weird language and gypsy talisman which leads her to them. She teaches at an orphanage school and is in charge of three students with high IQ, whom she involves in her search. Eventually she finds love and magic.
The story had my attention right from the start. I’m not really the type to mark down quotes and make notes to write a review. I go with the flow and rely on memory, however, the prologue of this book began with a very interesting quote which hit a nerve in me and made me note it down – “Kud ce vjestica do u svoj rod?”, translates to Where should a gypsy go if not to her kin? –Sounded oxymoronic yet philosophical for me. Only when I finished reading the book I realized, that saying was a literal giveaway to the story. The story was crafted well but it did have fair share of minor flaws which can be overlooked. The writer obviously has done her research and explained in detail about the gypsy literature. That explanation was tastefully done and didn’t bore me like it would normally. More often than not, the writers overdo the history part of such a story leaving the readers bored and tired. I’m thankful that this writer did no such thing. Added to that, the description of the sleepy Italian village was such a pleasure to read. Rich history, quaint little village and a passionate gypsy – hard not to cook up a beautiful story with that mix. The characters were well sketched out with one exception – Larry’s character. His character somehow lacked that conviction and depth the other characters had. The writing was perfect, breathing life into each character.
MY SAY: Tastefully narrated story.
RATING: 4/5
About The Book
GENRE: Fiction
NUMBER OF PAGES: 151
FORMAT: Digital
SERIES / STANDALONE: Standalone
HOW I GOT THIS BOOK: Review copy from iRead book tours in exchange of an honest review.
BUY LNKS : Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble
About the Author
Barbara Casey is a partner in Strategic Media Books, and president of the Barbara Casey Agency, representing authors throughout the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Japan. She is also a manuscript consultant and the author of numerous articles, poems, and short stories.
Her award-winning novels have received national recognition, including the Independent Publishers Book Award. Her novel, The House of Kane, was considered for a Pulitzer nomination, and The Gospel According to Prissy, also a contemporary adult novel received several awards including the prestigious IPPY Award for Best Regional Fiction. Her most recent young adult novel, The Cadence of Gypsies, received the Independent Publishers Living Now Award and was reviewed by the Smithsonian for its list of Best Books.
Ms. Casey makes her home on the top of a mountain in northwest Georgia with her husband and three dogs who adopted her: Benton, a hound-mix, Fitz, a miniature dachshund, and Gert, a Jack Russel terrier of sorts.
Thank you so much for hosting me and for your nice review. I appreciate your time and wish you and your bloggers all the best.
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