The Secret Daughter of Venice by Juliet Greenwood (review + #giveaway)

 

"She could sense it. Now, more than ever, she knew she had to find out about her past, or her future would never be truly her own".

The Secret Daughter of Venice is a historical novel, set in England and Italy during and after the WWII.

Blurb:

The paper is stiff and brittle with age as Kate unfolds it with trembling hands. She gasps at the pencil sketch of a rippling waterway, lined by tall buildings, curving towards the dome of a cathedral. She feels a connection in her heart. Venice.

England, 1941.

When Kate Arden discovers a secret stash of drawings hidden in the pages of an old volume of poetry given to her as a baby, her breath catches. All her life, she has felt like an outsider in her aristocractic adoptive family, who refuse to answer any questions about her past. But the drawings spark a forgotten memory: a long journey by boat... warm arms that held her tight, and then let go.

Could these pictures unlock the secret of who she is? Why her mother left her? With war raging around the continent, she will brave everything to find out...

A gripping, emotional historical novel of love and art that will captivate fans of The Venice Sketchbook, The Woman on the Bridge and The Nightingale.

Kate Arden feels suffocated by the confines of Arden House. Snatched from everyone and everything she knew, she was brought to England as a little child and adopted by the Ardens. Though loved by her sisters, and being treated kindly by her step-mother, Kate feels she doesn't belong here. 

All questions about her past are left unanswered. 

Kate is a talented artist, and dreams of studying art, but Leo Arden, her strict father, doesn't want her to move to London. She's always been interested in sketching and drawing, and some suppressed distant memories suggest that she might have had an inspiring teacher.

"...drawing had always been her refuge, the one thing she could hold onto from her past and that elusive memory of the woman - who had surely been her mother - holding her, guiding her, encourgaing her".

Her late (adoptive) mother left illustrated Shakespeare's volumes to all her daughters, with messages hidden inside. One day, after examining the volume once again, Kate realises that the book cover has something hidden within the finer leather. There is a selection of drawings that might reveal the secrets of Kate's past, and possibly her true mother.

"Somewhere here lay the secrets of her past, and the reason Leo Arden brought her from the warmth of grape vines and olives to the frigid winter of Arden House".

The pater familias is the product of his generation and social status. Leo Arden believes he knows best what his womenfolk need. Children have to be obedient. The whole family tiptoe around him, not daring to provoke him or displease. If only he would tell Kate what she desires to know.

Instead, Kate is left to find her true origins, by solving the clues left to her, and some hints from her old teacher.  Her early memories come as day dreams, and they are all about distant shores, warmer climes, and gentle hands that cherished her.

"She shivered, remembering the deep cold that had settled in her bones in her first terrified days at Arden House; and the feeling of absence - absence of familiar heat, of earth brittle with lack of moisture and yet rich with the scent of lemons and olive groves, rosemary and wild thyme. The absence, most of all, of love".

Unfulfilled as an artist, and unable to pursue her painting until the war is over, Kate uses her artistic skills to alleviate the suffering of the most vulnerable. Working with young children who've lost everything during the Nazi raids, she proves to be a talented and compassionate teacher.

"She was going to escape! Her life was going to be her own, at least. and perhaps she could use that freedom to follow the clues left to her by her mother and find her, wherever she might really be."

Along Kate's tale we follow the story of Sofia, who is looking for her daughter in Italy, while the war is raging around. Sofia is a talented artist herself. Rather than return to New York when she still could, she stays in Venice, to find answers to the "question that had, in the midst of all her riches and success, eaten away at her, leaving her hollow inside".

Will mother and daughter be able to discover what's happened to each other? Will Kate at last know who she really is?

The plotline settings alternate between England (Warwickshire, West Midlands and Cornwall) and Italy (Venice and Naples).

I loved the Cornish setting, and the descriptions of the sea... the old cottage that used to be the artists' haven, the gallery at St Ives. 

The secret daughter of Venice is a moving story of secrets and deception, fractured families and tragedies, and being true to oneself. 

Juliet Greenwood captures the time and social setting beautifully. The descriptions of hardships of life during the war and human suffering are poignant and harrowing (e.g. the scene of the baby rescue after the raid is heart-stopping). Evocative, vivid, inspired. Highly recommended. 

This review is part of the blog tour for The Secret Daughter of Venice.

Many thanks to Juliet Greenwood, Storm Publishing and Rachel's Random Resources for my e-copy of the book!

Purchase Links

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Secret-Daughter-Venice-absolutely-historical-ebook/dp/B0CVV7F4N7

https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Daughter-Venice-absolutely-historical-ebook/dp/B0CVV7F4N7

 

Author Bio –

Juliet Greenwood is a historical novelist published by Storm Publishing. Her previous novel, The Last Train from Paris, was published to rave reviews and reached the top 100 kindle chart in the USA. She has long been inspired by the histories of the women in her family, and in particular with how strong-minded and independent women have overcome the limitations imposed on them by the constraints of their time, and the way generations of women hold families and communities together in times of crisis, including during WW2.

After graduating in English from Lancaster University and Kings College, London, Juliet worked on a variety of jobs to support her ambition to be a full-time writer. These ranged from running a craft stall at Covent Garden to running a small charity working with disadvantaged children, and collecting oral histories of traditional villages before they are lost forever. She finally achieved her dream of becoming a published author following a debilitating viral illness, with her first novel being a finalist for The People’s Book Prize and her first two novels reaching #4 and #5 in the UK Kindle store.

Juliet now lives in a traditional quarryman’s cottage in Snowdonia, North Wales, set between the mountains and the sea, with an overgrown garden (good for insects!) and a surprisingly successful grapevine. She can be found dog walking in all weathers working on the plot for her next novel, camera to hand.

 

 

Social Media Links –

Storm:                   https://stormpublishing.co/

Website:              http://www.julietgreenwood.co.uk/

Blog:                      http://julietgreenwoodauthor.wordpress.com/

Facebook:            https://www.facebook.com/juliet.greenwood

Twitter: https://twitter.com/julietgreenwood

Instagram:           https://www.instagram.com/julietgreenwood/

 

Giveaway to Win 3 x Signed copies of The Secret Daughter of Venice (Open to UK Only)

*Terms and Conditions –

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