Living like a noblewoman in Ravenna
I usually do all our holiday planning, so I was pleased recently when my husband took over and planned a weekend escape to beautiful Ravenna, Italy, in the Emilia Romagna region. He discovered a hotel I loved in the center of Ravenna: The Palazzo Galletti Abbiosi. This was a noble palace built in the 1700s…
Read MoreEnjoying a piadina on Ravenna’s picturesque Piazza del popolo
Okay, so not only do you live and learn, but you travel and learn. I’ve eaten the Italian piadina many times, but I never realized it was a specialty of Emilia Romagna, and particularly the Romagna region – from the area of Ravenna, Rimini, Forlì. But now I know. A piadina is a type of…
Read MoreSeeking book reviewers: My novel, Three Coins, now available on NetGalley
Last week I announced my cover reveal for Three Coins, my debut novel, set to be released in October. Like all authors, I am eager to start gathering advance reviews, so an advance copy of my novel is up on NetGalley. For any readers who love women’s fiction with a touch of romance, stories about…
Read MoreFinally made it to Rome’s Botanical Gardens
I have been living in Rome for – ahem!- over two decades. Yet it is only recently that I crossed the city to visit Rome’s Botanical Gardens (L’Orto botanico di Roma). Am I glad I did! I can’t believe it took me so long to get there, especially since it’s an easy location to reach,…
Read MoreCover reveal! Pleased to reveal my new Three Coins cover
I’m super excited to be able to announce a cover reveal for my debut novel, Three Coins, which I’ll be publishing in October. I had so much fun writing this contemporary women’s fiction novel, with romantic elements, told through the perspective of three very different expatriate women living in Rome, Italy. As someone who loves…
Read MoreHanging out at Ohio’s Buckeye Lake
Last summer, my older son and I took a midwestern driving trip. I already wrote an earlier post about some of the stops we made along the way. It was a scorching hot day when we drove from Wheeling, West Virginia to Columbus, Ohio. Buckeye Lake was just along the road, so we decided to…
Read MoreBook review: Carnegie’s Maid
This is my first novel by author Marie Benedict. But I picked it up because of my fascination with America’s Gilded Age, and the fact that I knew little of the early years of famous Robber Barron (and generous philanthropist) Andrew Carnegie. Benedict is a Pittsburgh native, and so Carnegie loomed large as a powerful,…
Read MoreSometimes all that glitters is gold: Ravenna’s San Vitale Basilica
It has been years that I’ve wanted to visit Ravenna and its spectacular early Christian churches with their stunning moasics. Of course, I had seen all the photos, but somehow nothing prepares you for visiting in person and taking in all that beauty surrounding you. In San Vitale, all that glitters most certainly is gold!…
Read MoreWriting as a way to banish concerns from your mind, according to Dos Passos
“When you write about something you often never think of it again.” —John Dos Passos I’m a big fan of John Dos Passos and his stories about how cruel the reality could be for immigrants arriving in American cities at the turn of the century – and how harsh and solitary life in those…
Read MoreVisiting the world’s oldest republic: San Marino
For those who (like me) love Italy, you may be aware that, within its borders, Italy contains two independent countries. One – the Holy See or Vatican – requires little introduction. The second might be less known. San Marino, or, by its romantic sounding full Italian name Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, is just under…
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