Posts by Kimberly Sullivan
An imposing castle surrounded by olive trees in Nerola
Returning from a track race in the town of Rieti, about a 1.5 hour drive from Rome, my son and I decided to stop off an explore the little medieval hilltown of Nerola. Nerola sits on a hilltop 453 meters from sea level. Its name is believed to be derived from the ancient Sabine language…
Read MoreTalented writers make it look easy
Easy reading is damn hard writing. ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne Perhaps best known to every American school child for his novel The Scarlet Letter, American author Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) was a prolific novelist, short story writer and essayist who certainly could speak with authority on the craft of writing. His observation back in the nineteenth…
Read MoreMeandering along Rieti’s Velino River
I was with my younger son for a weekend in Rieti, a town in northern Lazio – about one and a half hours from Rome. He was there to run, but since we were staying for the weekend, we had lots of time to wander around the town we know quite well, and we also…
Read MoreNext Tuesday is #Womensfictionday!
If you are a reader or writer of Women’s Fiction, I think you will join me in my excitement for #Womensfictionday next week – 8 June, to be precise. This is a day led by the Women’s Fiction Writers Association (WFWA), but all interested readers and writers are asked to promote the day and maybe…
Read MoreOn the shores of Central Park’s Harlem Meer
The Harlem Meer is a picturesque artificial lake at the northeastern corner of Central Park. I enjoy this small lake, lined with benches, in all seasons. This artificial lake was constructed with the creation of Central Park, on what used to be a tidal marsh fed by a creek that led into the Harlem River.…
Read MoreBook review: The Guest List
This is the third Lucy Foley I’ve read, and it is most definitely her best. This mystery novel set on a remote, wild island off the coast of western Ireland digs deeps into the psyches of its multiple point of view characters, and the slow reveals keep the story moving quickly and maintain reader interest…
Read MoreA spring stroll in seaside Sperlonga
Like many, I’m thoroughly sick of the semi-lockdown mode that has kept my family so close to home. Therefore, on Mother’s Day, my younger son and I decided to take advantage of the spectacular, summer-like weather to go visit one of our favorite beach getaways – Sperlonga. I’ve written many times about pretty, whitewashed Sperlonga,…
Read MoreBook review: The Flat Share
I had heard about this novel that had been a runaway success, and was curious to read this feel-good, romantic comedy for myself. This is the story of two quirky young Londoners who both share a common challenge one would imagine is well understood by many a city dweller. How to afford living in London…
Read MoreLonely tourists in the Marche’s Ancona
I’ve already written about weekend trips we made to Ancona, in Italy’s Marche region, for my son’s indoor track season. Previously I wrote posts about the city’s bustling port, its Duomo perched at a panoramic point and its indoor track. Since we were here in semi-lockdown state, we wandered this strangely deserted city, almost entirely…
Read MoreBeach reading season 2021 officially begins (at least for me)!
Sometimes you have to celebrate the small pleasures in life. This past year has certainly taught us as much. I have always taken pleasure in the first day of spring in which I venture out to the beach, armed with the latest novel I’m reading. Staking out my spot in the sand never gets old.…
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