Writing Blog
Book 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 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 MoreSono fuori di testaaaaa … editing
To borrow from the (catchy) winning performance by the Italian (Roman, to be precise) band Måneskin at the 2021 Eurovision contest: Sono fuori di testaaa (I’m out of my mind). Mine, however, is not twenty-something existential angst about not being able to adequately express my individuality in a world that constantly pressures me to conform.…
Read MoreMore than halfway through my Goodreads Readers’ Challenge
We’re in July now, and I still have no idea where over half the year has gone. However, I have been enjoying a fun reading year. I’ve already passed the halfway mark to meet my Goodreads Readers’ Challenge for 2021. I’ve read lots of interesting novels, including some (new to me) authors and others by…
Read MoreSurrounded by history at the Historical Novel Society Conference
Moonlighting has never been so much fun! Nor has it ever (at least for me) ranged from medieval times to the Renaissance, swinging on to the Gilded Age and speeding up to the Roaring 20s and the post-WWI world. Exhausting and exhilarating at the same time! Yes, you can find all that and more at…
Read MoreBook review: What the Lady Wants
I love historical fiction and have a softspot for America’s Gilded Age, so I was very pleased to discover What the Lady Wants. Not surprisingly, I loved the novel. This is my third Renee Rosen novel, each set in a different period of time. What the Lady Wants opens in 1871, on the eve of…
Read More900 posts!
I started this blog dedicated to travel, writing and reading – with a generous dash of all things Italy-related – back in 2012, and I’ve been at it ever since. Like all bloggers, it’s great to celebrate some milestones. So, I’m pleased to announce I’ve just reached (gulp!) 900 posts! No one is more surprised…
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 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 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…
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