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1917, 2000s: This book was previously published as Tuscan Roots.
1917, 2000s: This book was previously published as Tuscan Roots.
Anna is distraught when her beloved mother, Ines, passes away. She inherits a box of papers, handwritten in Italian and yellowed with age, and a tantalising promise that the truth about what happened during the war lies within.
The diaries lead Anna to the small village of Rofelle, where she slowly starts to heal as she explores sun-kissed olive groves, and pieces together her mother’s past: happy days spent herding sheep across Tuscan meadows cruelly interrupted when World War Two erupted and the Nazis arrived. But Anna is no closer to learning the truth: what sent Ines running from her adored homeland?
When she meets an elderly Italian gentleman living in a deserted hamlet, who flinches at her mother’s name and refuses to speak English, Anna is sure he knows more about the devastating secret that tore apart her mother’s family.
“Il Mulino. An old crumbling mill, by a winding river, nestled in the Tuscan mountains. An empty home that holds memories of homemade pasta and Nonna’s stories by the fire, and later: the Nazi invasion, and a family torn apart by a heartbreaking betrayal.”
Badia Tedalda
The area of Tuscany where the author lived and from where she gained a lot of inspiration for the novel.
“This stunning countryside where I live for half the year, is situated along the Gothic Line and history whispers to me along the mule tracks and mountain passes we regularly walk.”
The villages of Montebolino and Montelabreve as well as the stunning Tuscan countryside in general are well evoked and very inviting despite the war years!
Destination: Tuscany Author/guide: Angela Petch Departure Time: 1917, 2000s
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