Loved this book! An American empty-nester of Italian descent travels to the Italian countryside to uncover her relatives, people her mother refuses to discuss for some mysterious reason. She meets her cousin online, and she shows her the town where her mother grew up and introduces her to her grandmother. Shortly after her arrival, a natural disaster occurs that will reveal everything her mother worked so hard to hide. The book focuses on family relationships, a little romance, and detailed descriptions of the Italian town. It was very good reading, but I would have chosen a different ending.

Loved it!! Loved everything about it- the story, writing style and characters. I enjoyed how the book alternated between Luce in 2006 and Clelia's story when she was a child and during WWII. There were so many twists and family secrets. Family members were kept apart because of lies and secrets. I started reading the book believing certain things about several people and blaming them for Luce not knowing her extended family. By the end, I realized how wrong I was and was completely surprised when the truth was revealed. My favorite parts were about the past surrounding Clelia. The ending felt a little rushed. I have so many questions. Why did this person do all these crazy things? Pretty much he/she lied about everything. If Angelina and Carlos would have talked, maybe everything would have been sorted out sooner. There was so much in the book I wasn't expecting. The disaster that happens when Luce is visiting her family was a huge one. So much destruction. Loved getting to know all the characters. The description of Italy was beautiful and would love to visit.

Definitely recommend the book. It's full of love, tragedy, family relationships, forgiveness, tons of secrets and lies and so much more. Loved the story with all the twists. Look forward to reading more books by the author. Love the cover of the book.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bookouture through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

After some psych thrillers and crime procedurals, I was ready to get back to history. I had hoped that after the first book, The Italian Villa, the author would have stepped up the historical aspects.
What I found however, is that much I said in that review still applies.
It’s a similar plot. A woman, Luce, goes to Italy to find out her historical roots. There is a hint of mystery because her mother, Angelina, left Italy when she was young, rarely talks about family, and has hinted at how dangerous it would be to dig up the past.
I liked that premise. I should put in here that I found out in my teens that I am half-Italian. When my mom and I went to Italy while I was in college, I felt like I had come home. There was no reason for it – I know nothing about my heritage or lineage.
But I understood people, I felt comfortable wherever we went in the country, and I felt like a part of me had been awakened. In that regard, I totally related to Luce. I “got” her desire to find out more about her heritage.
I also liked how she found that things weren’t what she expected, what she’d been led to believe by her mother over the years. I think it was a good way to illustrate the importance of finding your own truths.
I suppose that could be said about Luce’s personal life as well. Not giving anything away, she finds answers to more than just her heritage.
That itself is also interesting. She finds out more about the family history from her grandmother.
And herein lies the issue I have with this book.
When I see that something promoted as a “historical novel,” I usually expect there to be a contemporary storyline that sets the stage for the historical part, which then takes up the majority of the story.
In my humble opinion, to be considered such there should be at least a 50/50 split, preferably more. If a majority of the story isn’t in the past, I’m not sure it can be considered historical.
I’m sure we can all relate to choosing a book based on “what do I feel like reading now?” And then having certain expectations of the book based on those conceptions.
And now we come to the reason I brought it up.
I stand by my critique in my review of The Italian Villa. Once again, the historical parts are told in passive voice, as Luce’s grandmother tells the stories of the past more as a reminiscence. It takes a lot of the bite out of the history and makes it difficult to become engaged.
It also leaves too little to the historical sections. Because they are told from one person’s point of view as a memory, there’s no life to the actual events. It’s all just ghosts. And it seemed as if the contemporary storyline far outpaced the historical – as I mentioned, that makes it difficult to read as a “historical novel.”
For the points of this story, and for how important the past was, actual flashbacks would have been so much more effective. It was actually quite convoluted as is, especially with the confusion surrounding the characters in the contemporary storyline.
It’s really a shame, because the secrets that Luce’s family were hiding were real doozies. I just wish the revelations would have been more impactful.
I’d still recommend the book, but know that for me at least, it doesn’t fit the definition of a true “historical novel.” There was no chance to be immersed in the past. And that’s a major reason I like the genre.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary advance reader copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This book was not at all what I expected, it was even better! I have read a previous work of this author and loved the Italian setting, when I saw her name again I was instantly interested in this book. I lost myself in this book was so good, I was expecting your typical dual timeline historical romance and it was not typical in any way. The events in this story kept me on the edge of my seat and had twists and turns I simply did not see coming.

Luce Nardini’s mother almost never speaks of her family and past in Italy. Luce has never met or even seen a picture of her grandparents; she does not know who her father is; and she longs to put the pieces of her ancestry together. Luce’s mother is loving and kind but secretive, Luce decides to research her family and finds a cousin and arranges a trip to finally meet her family. When Luce arrives in Italy, things look postcard perfect, but will she be accepted by her family; what secret is her mother keeping, and why does Luce’s mother’s warning about keeping safe scare her?

The events of the story are shocking; the characters are memorable and the past has a way of catching up with you. I really enjoyed this book and the author’s style of writing. I will definitely be looking for more books from this author.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

Fast paced, gives no space for distractions. Keep you glued all the way.

As the story unfolds and chaos, tragedy, family secrets, twist and turns follow, along with a sea of emotions.

Highly recommended it.

Lost Roots

A story about a family set in two time periods. Luce Nardini has never known her father. Her mother refuses to talk about the past. After Luce's son Eli is in college, she is separated from her husband, and at loose ends she searches for her family in Italy against the wishes of her mother. Finding a cousin Matilda and learning her grandmother and an uncle are still alive she books a trip to Italy.

When Luce arrives in Italy and meets her cousin and her grandmother she feels like she has found some family. The second time period is during the war when her grandmother tells her story. She is happy to meet her family, however, her uncle wants nothing to do with her and will not speak to her and tells her she should leave. She wonders why is her Uncle so hostile toward her and why does her mother say she is not safe in Italy. What secrets are being kept?

Just when she is feeling good about her trip , finding out her grandmother's story in increments as her grandmother is not well, disaster strikes. There is an earthquake. Her cousin and her grandmother are both in the hospital.

Will Luce ever unlock the secrets of her family? Will her grandmother and her cousin survive their injuries and will her uncle ever speak to her. She need to know the answers. What she finds is more than she ever imagined.

I love the twist in the story at the end. The ending was wonderful. The setting was beautiful and the characters were great. The story was well written and I enjoyed reading it.

Thanks to Daniela Sacerdoti, Bookouture, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’m not sure what exactly it is but it just flows wonderfully, and I became completely lost within the pages of the story. Her story telling is compelling and addictive and completely immersive.
So we visit Italy in the present and in 1945 – many differences but some things don’t change. The description of Bosconero is stunning and so much like the Italy of my dreams – beyond the tourist places and where local life thrives. The description of the setting is just breath-taking, and the community and way of life was a delight to read about.
The plot itself is intriguing and unfolds at a good pace with twists and new information regularly to keep the reader glued. Luce’s search for the truth in the present and the history of her family in the past are both so emotional. When disaster strikes Luce realises she has to learn the truth about her family and heritage before there is nobody left to tell it.
I enjoyed getting to know each character and understanding their points of view. The dual timeline narrative is fascinating, and I loved seeing some of the characters as younger people and then how their lives have been impacted by events.
This is a riveting novel with a wonderful writing style. Highly recommended.

The second book this year from Daniela Sacerdoti takes us once again back to Italy and boy does she have a way a wonderful way of writing about this beautiful country. The Lost Village moves effortlessly between the past and the modern day, perhaps the modern aspect is more dominant, with a story full of twists and tales, anguish, heartbreak, hope and love. I really enjoyed this story as it wasn’t too taxing but had just the right amount of detail and mystery to keep you rapidly turning the pages to discover the secrets as Luce Nardini attempts to uncover the reasons behind a family estrangement. A tense and unsettling opening sees a young woman escaping to see her boyfriend but on her way tragedy strikes and her father lies dead in the woods. Even from this brief introduction, I was left with lots of questions the answers only becoming clear in the final pages.

We then move forward to 2006 and Luce is boarding a plane to Italy. She has never been there before and her mother Angelina refuses to talk about her family, why she left the country she was born in and why contact with her family has ceased? This secrecy eats away at Luce and she wants to know the cause of it. She won’t rest until she has all the answers and the enigma surrounding her family has been unravelled. What are they hiding and why? What could have been so drastic that meant her mother left the safety of her home leading to a significant estrangement and silence on all matters connected to her relatives? For Luce, now is the perfect time to embark on this journey as she is experiencing empty nest syndrome now that her son has left for university. She has been separated from her husband Ethan for several years and as she feels a bit adrift now is the perfect opportunity to venture outside her comfort zone and in doing so she may very well find some much needed confirmation and conclusion. But is she really ready for what she will uncover or will it tear the family apart even more?

Luce is met off the plane by her cousin Matilde, whose existence she never knew of until recently, and from that moment on I felt a whole new Luce began to emerge. I got the impression that the Luce that resides in America was slightly weak and hadn’t enough confidence in herself but it’s like the moment she steps foot on Italian soil, she takes on a whole new persona. The change in atmosphere, a whole new country and with new family members to meet inspires her on to be someone different and her quest takes on a fervour that sees her grow in confidence and she becomes almost ruthless, but in a good way, to get to the bottom of all the family problems. Her mother has been carrying a burden inside that is eating her up and Luce is determined that this will not go on any longer. Luce doesn’t know where her roots are or who her father is and with Matilde and her fiancée Massimo working alongside her she hopes the answers will come thick and fast. She views Italy as being full of promise, possibilities and discoveries. But she doesn’t bank on tragedy striking the region and when this happens the sense of urgency to reach the truth only intensifies.

Luce finally gets to meet her grandmother Clelia who has this wonderful aura about her but her Uncle Carlo is less than welcoming and refuses to have anything to do with her. Here she comes up great resistance and it’s almost as if he is dangerous. Luce is clever enough to realise that her grandmother holds the key to what exactly happened and the answers are not straight forward but will take time to come to the surface having been surpressed for so long. She keeps pushing even when doors are closed in her face and the walls already erected just seem to grow taller. Italy provides so many new opportunities for her and she became like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis transformed. The constraints and tensions surrounding her heart and mind were dissipating. I loved her determination to keep going as I think she really sensed this was the make or break time. It was now or never and even more so when an earthquake hits the region and the town of Bosconero is virtually destroyed.

The story had a steady pace to it right from the start but I thought towards the middle section the story does lose its way slightly. Then the from the moment the earthquake hit, everything really ramped up a gear and these scenes were incredibly well written. The emotions flowed from the page and the anger at what was unfolding combined with the danger, grief, loss and desperation that Luce experiences as she doesn’t know if the family she is finally starting to get close are gone forever was believable and real. The earthquake was an even greater catalyst for the truth to emerge and as Luce battles with her own feelings towards someone that are starting to stir and the torrent of emotions as things begin to spill forth I was with her all the way as she rushes about trying to find out were people safe after the disastrous event. Whilst at the same time the momentum she had been gaining in inching ever closer to what exactly had happened all those years ago, well she didn’t want to lose that and I am glad that she kept picking away at the wound until it slowly started to open. Luce had such bravery, courage and an inner strength that I deeply sensed she didn’t know she possessed. It really only emerged when she needed it to the most. I got the feeling that it took her by surprise and had she remained in America this new Luce would never have emerged and she would have gone about the remainder of her life just aimlessly drifting along. Happy enough but never truly contented.

A line on the cover suggests this is an emotional World War Two story and to some extent it is but I thought someone thinking this would be the sole focus would be left disappointed. There is more time spent with Luce in the modern day than with Clelia in the past but it suited me perfectly. It’s a different kind of world war story but one I did very much enjoy as the author only took us back to the past when she deemed it absolutely necessary and the information and insights given to us at these junctures propelled us back to the present with enough information to whet our appetites for more of Luce doing her best to right so many wrongs even if for most of the book she didn’t know what they were. It was necessary to have Clelia retell her story to Luce as it gave the reader a chance to delve back to Italy during World War Two and also it gave a tantalising clue as to the meaning of the books title. Clelia in the past is very different to the Clelia in the present and she surprised me many many times.

The Lost Village showed how Luce’s family were very complicated with their feelings tangled and unclear and so much left unspoken and enshrouded in secrecy, spite and jealousy. Luce does her best to repair the rip in the fabric of the family but in order to do this she had to understand the role the past played in how they reached the present situation. I couldn’t believe some of the truths and insights that poured out in the last quarter of the book many of which I had never seen coming and they were truly surprising and shocking. But to be honest it all got a bit too confusing for me at the major point of reveal as everything was coming forth in one sentence after another, and I found myself having to reread paragraphs several times to make sure I had all the connections and pieces of the puzzle correctly joined. Maybe stretching this out just that little bit more in order to give the reader time to digest something before another thing was made known would have been better. Aside from this issue, I experienced towards the end I did really really enjoy The Lost Village. It’s a great read that fills you with a range of emotions but in the end you will be pleased with the eventual outcome.

The Lost Village by Daniela Sacerdoti was a World Ward II novel, which took place in the current day, through retelling. Luce has had it with her mother refusing to tell her who her father was and anything about her family. All she knew was that she had grown up with only her mother and that she had come from Italy. She sent her mother off for the day and rifled through her apartment, where by sheer luck she discovered a photo with the name, Bosconero, on the back. She quickly got on the Internet and connected with someone with the last name of Nardini in the correct place. A cousin! Twenty years younger but friendly and wanting to engage. She didn't think twice before she was on a plane to Italy. Matilde picked her up at the airport and took her to see her grandmother, who was beyond thrilled. Her uncle Carlo, Matilde's father, however, was not. Nonna began to tell the story. . .

As always, things happened along the way. The important one was at earthquake that had a huge effect on Luce and the members of her family. She proved her mettle as she dove into volunteer to help. She met new people along the way and her gentle soul was touched by all that happened. This was a terrific story of human beings with emotions and needs. Deceit played a huge part, several times. Do things like this happen? Absolutely they do. Did this? Probably not. But it made a good read, partly historical fiction, partly romance, all women's fiction. I loved the family history and story telling. I enjoyed it.

I was invited to read a free ARC of The Lost Village by Netgalley. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #thelostvillage

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.


Please read this book knowing you have no distractions. It will keep you glued to the pages all the way.

It’s certainly fast paced from the beginning.

It takes the reader to glorious Bosconero in the hills just outside Rome.

Luce travels to her ancestral home, searching for her roots. The sights, smells and people definitely drew me in as will the readers and they put a huge smile on my face.

Soon, disaster strikes and the story seems to speed up even more.

As the story unfolds and chaos, tragedy, family secrets, twist and turns follow, along with a sea of emotions.

Highly recommended it.

Having read and loved Daniela Sacerdoti's Seal Island books I couldn't wait to get started on this. The setting was quite different but I loved the descriptions of the beautiful area of Italy where this story takes place. It was so perfectly worded that the sights, smells and feel of the place totally transported me to Bosconero. The female protagonist, Luce, travels from her home in the USA to this little village to meet with the family that she has never met. Her mother, living back in America, has also had no contact with her relatives for many years and Luce is determined to find out the secrets that have caused the split within her family and to try to heal the rifts. Her mother refuses to speak about it and Luce is therefore forced to undertake this journey of discovery for herself. The story takes us back, in flashback, to the war years but the story isn't wholly focused on the war but on the family drama that occurred during that time. Tragedy strikes however and horrific and terrifying events split the family even further. Although she is urged by her family back home to return to the USA Luce insists on staying on in Bosconero to help the victims in whatever way she can. Meanwhile, her Nonna, (grandmother) is very ill in hospital but she takes time to speak with Luce and relates her life story in bite size pieces. As her health deteriorates Nonna asks her granddaughter to retrieve a little wooden box from her home and take it to hospital for her. It is the opening of this box that is shattering and the revelations therein are absolutely shocking. I personally never saw that coming and this latter part of the book is just mind blowing! The further I got into this book the faster I read as it was so exciting. I did get a little bit bogged down in parts towards the end as there are a lot of characters which became somewhat confusing at times so I had to backtrack a few times to check who was who but, that aside, I loved this lovely book. The characters were very well written and I engaged with all of them. I can highly recommend this book and look forward to Daniela's next one. My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a pre release copy of this book in exchange for my honest, unbiased opinion.

I’ve read a few books by the author and am a bit of a fan, so I was really looking forward to reading this. Historical Fiction has become one of my favourite genres this year and I was looking forward to getting lost in Italy. I thought this was a great book. I loved the way the story is split between the present with Luce trying to find out the truth about her mother’s secrets and her estrangement from her Italian family and the dark shadows of the past that Luce’s probing threaten to set free. I’ve never been to Italy, but the author does a brilliant job of bringing it to life. This has a real sense of place. The characters are also well-written and really come to life. I got lost in this gorgeous book.

I am excited to be taking part in the #BooksOnTour #BlogTour for Daniela Sacerdoti's wonderfully emotional tale THE LOST VILLAGE.

What drew me to this novel was the historical aspect that held a kind of mystery from the past as a key to the present. However, the historical story featured only very minimally and I was a little disappointed that it wasn't the main story as alluded to by the tagline "an emotional World War II historical romance set in Italy" and promised by the opening premise. It is more of a contemporary fiction and chick lit with a historical aspect rather than historical fiction as such. However, that aside, THE LOST VILLAGE was still a hugely enjoyable story that is easy to get lost in within the depths of Italy.

2006: Empty nester Luce Nardini leaves her home in America to travel to her ancestral home in Bosconero, Italy in search of her roots. Her mother Angelina has never spoken of her family or what made her leave the only home she has known and refuses to give Luce the answers for which she seeks. Angelina believes the past is best left in the past. But at 43, Luce feels herself floating adrift and not belonging anywhere since the collapse of her marriage three years before and her son moving away to college.

Her mother was born in Italy towards the end of the war when tensions were rife due to Mussolini's alliance with Germany. Aside from that, all Luce knows that is that she abruptly left some forty years ago at the tender age of 18. Why, is a complete mystery. But now desperate to understand the truth about her mother's past, Luce is determined to discover the family she never knew and the truth as to why her mother fled all those years ago. And the only way to get those answers is to travel to Italy herself.

When she arrives, she is greeted by her cousin, Mathilde, she found thanks to social media and the two women immediately click as if they had always known each other. Luce is desperate to meet her Nonna, her mother's mother, and so they make their way to "Rose Bianca", her family's ancestral home. As soon as she sees the ancient dwelling with the blue door framed by the trailing white roses just as her mother had described it, Luce knew this is where she will find her answers.

As soon as she walks through the blue door, she is greeted by a small elderly woman with her arms outstretched crying "Angelina! You've come home!" Mathilde explains that it is her granddaughter Luce, Angelina's daughter, as Nonna tearfully embraces Luce. But the three women could not foresee Carlo's anger once he learned of Luce's visit, banishing her from the house in which he shared with his mother. Mathilde tries in vain to bring her father around but he refused to entertain the idea of his estranged sister or his niece. Puzzled by the force of his resentment, Mathilde gives Luce a room at her flat to sleep off her jet lag and in which she is welcome stay for the duration of her visit.

Luce then meets Massimo, Mathilde's fiance, and his friends from the volunteer ambulance service, Andrea and Giacomo. With the summer festival in full swing in the village, Luce is introduced to the Italy's finest foods and wine as they dance and enjoy the atmospheric beauty. But she has not forgotten the reason for her visit - to learn the truth about her mother's past and the secrets of her ancestral home.

When she visits "Rose Bianca" again in Carlo's absence, Nonna begins to tell Luce and Mathilde the story of their family and how it all began...starting with her own father's embarking on an adventure that would change the course of their lives. She related the story of growing up with her little sister Nora and the poverty in which they were living. The story took so much out of Nonna that she had to tell it in parts with each separate visit, for at 90 years of age Nonna was no longer young and had a bad heart to contend with.

The relief at discovering the family she never knew, Luce was excited to learn to the truth about her mother's past at last. But she wasn't prepared for the tragedy that was to come when an earthquake decimates the village of Bosconero and the threat of losing her family before amends could be made became real. And as news of the earthquake reached America, her son Eli and ex-husband Ethan and even her mother pleaded with her to return home at once...but Luce refused to return until she had all the answers.

But was it too late? Would she ever discover the truth that caused her mother to flee her home? Would she ever resolve the bad feelings between brother and sister? Would she ever learn the truth about her parentage? And why her mother refuses to speak of the past? Will there be any happy endings?

A story that is equally heartwarming as it is heartbreaking, THE LOST VILLAGE is filled with love, loss and tragedy as one woman embarks on a journey of discovery for the family and a past she has never known. The descriptions are so vivid I felt as if I was right there in Italy surrounded by all it's sights, smells and flavours.

The characters are well-rounded and I loved getting to know them all. Luce is a strong and determined woman as in discovering her past she builds new relationships and strengthens old ones. Mathilde is an idealistic young woman just beginning her life. Massimo is a kind and gentle soul I loved to be alongside. Angelina had a real mystery to her in her refusal to revisit her past but she struck me as a strong self-reliant woman who brought up Luce single-handedly. As bitter and sullen as Carlo was I was eager to learn the truth behind his resentment. And Nonna...well, she is a multi-layered character who surprises us with the various facets of her nature. Whilst Luce is the main narrator throughout the story, it is Nonna who is the core of the story. She is the one who holds the key, not just to the past, but to the entire story.

While it is a dual timeline novel, the time-slips are flashbacks revisited by Nonna in her retelling of the past to Luce. I did enjoy the WW2 backstory but I would have liked to have more of a predominant feature, particularly as it was billed as a WW2 story. As it was, it took a long time to get to that part of the story I began to wonder if it was going to come at all.

Despite this, I still very much enjoyed the book. Daniela Sacerdoti is a new author to me I've not read before and I would be interested to read some more along a similar theme.

Overall, THE LOST VILLAGE is a beautiful tale that takes you through a range of emotions but leaving you with a smile at the end.

I would like to thank #DanielaSacerdoti, #NetGalley, #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheLostVillage in exchange for an honest review.

The Lost Village is a very moving historical fiction story of a woman's search to find her family.  Luce's mom wouldn't never talk about her Italian family so Luce travels to Italy to reconnect with them after finding a cousin on Facebook. In her journey we hear another story when two young women both gave birth to two baby girls on the same night and the struggles they went through to protect their babies. Luce also uncovers dark family secrets that destroyed her family and is the reason her mamma never wanted Luce to know that side of her family. I loved this story!!!!!!!! This was my first Daniela Sacerdoti and I will definitely look up her others. I highly recommend this book. Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for my early review copy

The Lost Village
Author: Daniela Sacerdoti
Genre: Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction

'The Lost Village' terms the story of Luce, who has always known only one family member in her life: her mother Angelina. As a middle-aged woman with an estranged husband and a son off to college, Luce is suddenly a free bird to dig deep for the roots of her family in Italy. During her stay there, a devastating earthquake occurs, leading to much more than buildings and old secrets toppling down.

Sacercoti's portrayal of Italy is so charming that you start visualising the scenery before your eyes and experience a longing in your heart to explore the Italian village. The other fabulous description in the book greetings to the earthquake. The vividity with which she portrays the devastations and the after-effects of the disaster are bone-chilling.

However, the most important part of any book is the story and its unfolding. This is where the book loses its steam midway. Upto about 60% of the book, the story maintains a slow but steady progress, engrossing enough for you to keep turning the pages. But after that, there are too many repetitions, delays and twists that lead to a dissatisfying end and a few unexplained plotholes.
- Why did Nin have a problem with Nonna?
- Why did Matilde's mom have a problem with Nonna?
- Nona, who is desperate to become a mother after multiple miscarriages, takes a massive risk of escaping into the woods while pregnant. Why?
- Why did Angelina never try to get in touch with Giuseppe, though he had nothing to do with the problems that had caused her to avoid her family?

The title can be interpreted in various ways. It could refer to the village lost in the earthquake, or to the ruins shown by Andrea to Luce on their outing, or even to the lost familial roots of Luce.

Overall, the first half is brilliant. It is the second half that brings the book down. The buildup to the grand reveal about Luce's family is much more enjoyable than the reveal itself. The characters are interesting but only a few are really well sketched.
Most of the plot twists are guessable with the ample clues provided by the author.

All in all, a decent one time read, nothing exceptional.


I received an advance review copy of the book from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is my first book by Daniela Sacerdoti and will definitely not be my last. I flew through this historical fictional novel set in present-day Italy and flashes back to Italy in WWII. The story is about Lucy, an American woman who flies to Bosconero (which is a village outside of Rome) to meet the family that her mother has never told her about. Lucy ends of meeting her cousin Matilde online and then goes to Italy to find out her family history and meets her maternal grandmother. There are tons of family secrets through the novel and it is definitely unpredictable. I loved the atmosphere of this book and how I could picture the village of Bosconero like I had been there before.

This book is a must for anyone who likes historical fiction with a duel timeline.

The Lost Village by Daniela Sacerdoti has been one of the biggest roller coaster of emotions books I can remember reading! This novel takes the reader on an emotional roller coaster that spans the full spectrum of possible emotions from sadness, joy, and heartbreak to betrayal and anger. It was a wild ride and a joy to read!

Luce, is the narrator of our story. She is in her forties and is experiencing empty nest syndrome. Her son Eli has recently gone to college and she and her husband, Ethan, have been living separately for going on three years now. Luce has lived her entire life with her Italian mother never knowing who her father was or anything about her family history. Luce's mother has always been tight lipped about her past telling Luce that some things are better left a mystery because of the heartbreak that can come from knowing the truth. Luce now being a middle aged woman with a family of her own longs to know about her Italian family and their past so she decides to take a trip to Italy to get the answers to her family mystery.

Luce has been in contact with a cousin still in Italy through some social media snooping and set up a meeting to meet her extended family in her mother's hometown village without her mother's knowledge. Mathilde, a distant cousin, meets Luce at the airport and brings her to their grandmother's home affectionately called Rosa Bianca. Upon first meeting her grandmother, Nonna Clelia, Luce is overwhelmed with love and affection for her long lost grandmother and resentful towards her mother for denying her the right to know her family. Throughout the entirety of the novel Luce is being told by Nonna the whole history of her family, from the point where Nonna met her grandfather up until the point that Angelina, Luce's mother, left for America. Luce finds out some very troubling things about her family, for example, finding out that her grandfather was a Swedish spy during World War II and that her grandmother was a part of the resistance to the Nazis. Nonna paints a beautiful but troubled past that still leaves out the reason for Angelina's escape to America. The reader is left guessing until the last few pages of the book what exactly caused Angelina's departure, and wow what a reason!

I thoroughly enjoyed The Lost Village. I felt myself closely relating to Luce being separated from a husband and seeing her child grow and blossom into an independent person. I felt her heartache in descriptions of a relationship that went stale between two people that meant the world to each other and the joy in watching your child grow and succeed. The suspense and story telling peppered throughout kept me interested all the way through. One really can't ever judge a book, or a person, for that matter by its cover and The Lost Village was a perfect example of this statement. The individuals in the novel you think to be the most trustworthy end up with quite a different story to tell...

I was totally captivated by this WWII historical time-slip novel. This is my first introduction to the work of Daniela Sacerdoti and after reading The Lost Village I know for a fact I'll be on the lookout for more of her stories.

This is a story that will transport you back to a time of bliss and beauty in the idyllic Italian countryside, to a time before the world became shattered in conflict. Then Italy enters troubled times and life for all becomes difficult and people become wary of each other. One young woman has experienced more heart wrenching pain than most and when a split second decision changes the course of not only her future but that of others it's the start of a catalyst of a turbulent time for all involved. A person that takes it upon them self to be the judge and jury of their loved ones but were these wise moves?

Many decades later Luce is desperate to understand her mother's past. She knew her mother was born and grew up in Italy and left abruptly forty years ago. Luce's mother refuses to talk about the past but Luce feels this rawness of pain in her mother's life needs to be resolved once and all. Luce embarks on a mission to find her lost family in Italy. However, to have lost and then found the fear of losing again is a pain like no other.

Whilst in Italy discovering her family history Luce becomes involved in a terrible tragedy and there's now a fight of survival and another challenge to find the truth of her heritage before it is lost forever.

A story that is equally fascinating, full of drama with emotional tugs of the heart. It's also a story of reflection. However, when the past reveals itself no-one could foresee the shattering effects it would have on the lives of many. The ending of this story broke me and I struggled to comprehend the impetus of events that led to the heart breaking finale. Life had been so cruel to Luce's family and it never ceased forming new cracks in the structure of the family until there were too many cracks to hold the past together.

A heart-stopping emotive historical time-slip novel.

The Lost Village by Daniela Sacerdoti is a gripping, smoothly flowing story.

It has flavors of mystery, romance, and self-discovery. However, it is the mystery that dominates. Luce's mother, Angelina, has cut off all ties with her family in Italy and has settled in America. What happened in the past that forced Angelina to take such a step?

As if finding these answers was not compelling enough, a tragic event and its repercussions in the middle of the book made it even more difficult for me to leave the book. I could not stop turning the pages to find out if Luce's family in Italy was safe.

Besides, I did not see the twists coming at the end. They were surprising, to say the least.
The web of lies and deceit that this story weaved left my head spinning.

As you have correctly guessed from the book cover, Sacerdoti has painted vivid descriptions of the breathtakingly beautiful locales of Italy.

Be aware of one thing, though. This is not really a WW2 story. Yes, those events do influence the story, but The Lost Village is more a story of family and relationships. It explores how lies can destroy a family and how truth can rebuild it.

Moreover, most of the story is set in the present time, but there are flashbacks to the past when Luce's grandmother recounts her story.

However, I do have quibbles with the book. Sacerdoti builds up to the climax so well only to end up with a rushed ending. Also, I noted one inconsistency - why did Luce's grandmother keep that envelope? I would not ruin the story for you by delving further.

Overall, I enjoyed reading The Lost Village by Daniela Sacerdoti. I recommend it to fans of historical fiction and mystery.

🌄Top-notch storytelling: the secrets of the past split open like the earth under Bosconero😮

The Lost Village hit me hard, especially the earth-shattering tragedy that struck the innocent citizens of the small Umbrian hilltown of Bosconero in the contemporary part of the story. I found the multiplot, past and present, riveting and did not want to put the book down. Author Daniela Sacerdoti is a dab hand at these family sagas as I learned when I picked up her previous novel The Italian Villa. Her descriptions of Italian village life are spot on and she weaves a fascinating tale built around family secrets revealed after decades of cover-up and deceit.

Luce's American life is at a crossroads as her only son has left home for college and her marriage is over. On the spur of the moment she takes off for Italy to meet family she only recently discovered as her Italian-born mother refuses to speak of her family and past. What starts out as a simple visit to see the town where her mother grew up and meet a cousin, uncle and grandmother becomes so much more as Luce hears her grandmother's long-unspoken story of her upbringing and events during WWII that broke her family. And the beauty of a hot, sunny Italian summer turns tragic in the blink of a eye.

I wholeheartedly recommend this novel. It's gripping, emotional and unpredictable.

Thanks to publishers Bookouture and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.