February 12, 2024
Piazza (Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win) delivers an entertaining and suspenseful novel of an Italian American woman’s dangerous attempt to reconcile her family history in Sicily. Sara Marsala, a 30-something Philadelphia chef, travels to the Sicilian village of Caltabellessa to fulfill the final wishes of her great-aunt Rosie, who requested in a letter to Sara that her ashes be spread there. Aunt Rosie’s letter also tasks Sara with claiming a piece of land deeded more than 100 years earlier to Rosie’s mother, Serafina Forte, and finding out why Serafina never joined Rosie in the U.S. around that same time. Sara has her own troubles back in Philly: a failed restaurant, a failed marriage, and the loss of custody of her four-year-old daughter. These problems pale in comparison, however, to what awaits her in Sicily. First her passport is stolen, then she’s kidnapped and threatened by local thugs, incidents she suspects are related to her attempted land claim, and which prompt her to go undercover as a tourist. Piazza alternates Sara’s story with Serafina’s and mirrors the two thematically, offering bracing depictions of an oppressive patriarchy in early 20th-century Sicily and its legacy in the present. This paean to furbezza, the “devious intelligence” of women, succeeds on all counts. Agent: Byrd Leavell and Pilar Queen, UTA.
May 31, 2024
When Sara Marsala's beloved Aunt Rosie dies, Sara agrees to fulfill her aunt's request to scatter her ashes in their family's Sicilian village. However, once she arrives on the island, Sara finds there is more to Rosie's last wish--to discover what happened to her mother, Serafina, and determine if a mysterious deed to several acres of land is real. Piazza's (Charlotte Walsh Likes To Win) latest is told in alternating chapters, describing Sara in the present as she explores the island and pokes her nose where it might not belong, and Serafina in the past as she works to build a life in the village. As she follows these two women, each caged by the expectations of society, Piazza deftly interweaves the everyday struggles of wives raising their children, keeping the village running, and trying to find happiness in a society that expects much while appreciating little. Narrators Rachel F. Hirsch and Carlotta Brentan convey Serafina's and Sara's emotional depths as they face challenges and reflect on the meaning of family and independence. Together, the narrators give each character a unique voice while maintaining consistent, natural-sounding Italian accents. VERDICT A riveting, powerfully narrated story for fans of historical fiction and mystery.--Zoey Colglazier
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