What can I say about Sally Brady's Italian Adventure? Pff, I loved it! Low and behold another Sally that I want to be when I grow up. She's spunky, funny, brave, fearless, and an underdog.

After being sent away to California by her parents (rude), she jumps into a car to escape the police and manages to get adopted by the actress in said car. Years later, they are in Italy. Sally is sent to finishing school so she can get all the gossip later at high society parties for an America newspaper.

Yet, Italy is tied to Germany, and soon, her adopted mother leaves Sally behind in Italy, but she doesn't mind. She loves Italy and doesn't want to leave, not even when she's imprisoned and considered a political prisoner of war. Which is where we meet my favorite side character of all side characters ever written, Fava Grossa, a carabinieri, who, despite having loyalty to Italy, doesn't seem support il duce, but man!, does he love Sally. The humor he brings to the page when they interact is glorious, and I wish there were more scenes with them together.

Mussolini wants Lapo, a farmer in Tuscany married to an American, to ghost write his autobiography, and he agrees to do so in order to keep his son, Alessandro, safe while he's sent out to serve in Nazi occupied Prauge.

Alessandro is having a hard time with his role in the war. He doesn't believe in the ideology of the "true Italian" eugenics. He's called a foreigner by his colleagues because he's Italian-American. Yet, his American cousins also call him a foreigner for the same reason. So when he has the chance to leave his post, he seizes it.

How Sally, Lapo, Alessandro, and Fava Grossa find a way to intertwine with each other I'll leave for you to discover. But know that you'll love it. Every word. I may have also cried at the end.

I listened to the audiobook. I loved it. Elise Roth did an amazing job. Thank you to @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for the book.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Christina Lynch for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC audiobook for Sally Brady's Italian Adventure coming out June 13, 2023. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

What if you found yourself in the middle of a war armed only with lipstick and a sense of humor? Sally Brady was abandoned as a child in 1931 during the Great Depression in Los Angeles. She convinces a Hollywood actor to adopt her, and grows up to be a gossip columnist secretly satirizing Europe’s upper society. By 1940, Sally is conquering Fascist-era Rome with sass and charm.

A good deed leaves Sally abandoned again in wartime Italy, brandishing wit, a fake passport, and a sense of right and wrong. To save her friends and find her way home through a land of besieged castles and villas, Sally must combat tragedy with comedy, and unravel the mystery, weight, and meaning of family.

I enjoyed listening to this story. I actually listened to it while I was in Italy so it made it fun. I think wartime in Italy is an interesting topic. I like the idea of women fighting in the war as spies. There were some parts of the book I didn’t care for. Some of it seemed a little superficial, but overall, it was enjoyable.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys historical fiction about Italy!

What a fascinating life Sally had! I was drawn in by the story and although some of it seemed implausible, I enjoyed this glimpse into life in Italy during the war. Sally was such a resilient character and her outlook on life was so refreshing. This was my first read by Christina Lynch but I will definitely seek out others based on this one.

I believe this is a well written, epic tale of survival in the historical era of Mussolini’s war torn Italy. The narrator is vary clear and talented in her narration. However, I could not finish this audiobook. The 3 series rate plot lines were throwing me off and it felt like a chore everytime I forced myself back to the book.

I don’t believe this will be everyone’s experience. It just wasn’t a great fit for me.

I haven’t read many books set in Italy during WWII – generally, those are set in England or France – so I was eager to read this story. In it, Sally Brady, who was raised by a Hollywood movie star and became a gossip columnist, finds herself stranded in wartime Italy.

I liked reading about the Italian countryside and how the war impacted the citizens of Italy under Mussolini’s control. Much like the famed French Resistance, Italians also worked against their ruler, which I loved reading about.

Sally’s character, however, never had me fully invested in the story. Sure she was a clever American who could get out of sticky situations with her charisma, but she was rather frivolous throughout most of the book. I did like the love story and how she eventually grew up, but she never captured my full attention.

DNF at 40%
I was interested in Alessandro's story, but cannot stand Sally. Singing things better in the prison? No. She just keeps saying things for a reaction and trying to scandalize everyone because she's so fun and fancy free, ugh very annoying

Super cute book that pulled at my heartstrings. I loved the setting and the historical fiction aspect of this book. It was also easy to root for the main character throughout the whole book.

This was a sweet simple book but a lot to follow with the different timelines. It wasn’t super gripping which bummed me out but overall a good quick listen.

I love a happy ending and wasn't disappointed with this one! This was a great ride and you could truly feel the angst, sadness, horror, and hopefulness coming from the pages of this story. I always like reading about the past and history through the eyes of a character in a book! I can't wait to read another book by Christina Lynch!

I thought this book was gonna be great but there are what to many languages and way to many names it flip flops I couldn’t get half way though

I gave this one 5 stars but in the beginning it was a 3 (or maybe less). I had a hard time getting into the book and slogged through the first part. I debated on not finishing. But hung in there and I’m glad I did. I really enjoyed the last, I don’t know, 75% of the book. The characters in the first part of the book were boring and very unlikable.
I felt like I was just reading about a bunch of debutantes who cared about nothing but wealth and image. But as the story progressed, new characters are introduced. These characters were likable and of great substance. The story becomes for action packed and interested. Overall, I ended up loving the book, even with the rocky start.

I really loved the beginning of this book, I loved Sally and found her story really interesting and charming! However by the middle of the book, I had lost interest many times and found myself getting lost in the details of the Italian government. I also found the pacing a bit messy. With some scenes being rushed through and then other uninteresting scenes seeming to go on for ages. Unfortunately this one was just not for me, but I do think there is an audience for this one and maybe it was just a mix of my mood and timing that didn't work for me!

I absolutely fell in love with Sally Brady and her adventures throughout Italy during the dangerous height of fascism. The narration by Elise Roth is superb and brings a special depth to each of the main characters. As you listen, Sally grows in maturity and confidence from a scared and abandoned eleven-year-old girl to a confident young woman that understands her repertoire of words and her wit are her innate power. As in most periods of history, Sally is at a huge disadvantage because of her sex, danger and powerfully abusive men lurk behind every corner. Despite these obstacles, Sally cultivates relationships throughout her travels that will impact the rest of her life and be her saving grace.

Sally is the central character in the novel, but there is also a second story concurrently evolving. Lapo, with dreams of the simple life farming the lush Italian countryside, purchases a run-down medieval castle with his American wife. As their family grows and the hard times roll in, they raise their three children whilst navigating the everchanging politics of Italy. Lapo’s son, Alessandro, is an ardent anti-fascist and a dreamer. Alessandro’s penchant for exhibiting his feelings publicly makes Lapo nervous as well as their familial connections to America. As Lapo and Alessandro’s stories progress the eventuality is their entanglement with Sally’s.

As with most historical fiction there were some liberties taken with events and people. However, I believe these to be an addition; inserting light-hearted humor where there may have been none. Sally’s grit and fortitude were at times overshadowed by her childlike idealism and naivety, but her ability to problem solve quickly saving herself and those she loves cannot be minimized.

This novel is beautifully written as a coming-of-age story during an untenable time. For those that love historical fiction it highlights the plight of Italians during Mussolini’s rule and the struggle to keep a family together. For anyone that loves a heroine that relies solely on her intellect, rather than beauty, Sally is your girl. Despite the humor, Sally is a tough and tenacious early feminist ready to take on whatever is thrown her way.

The most captivating part of this audiobook was the Narrator Elise Roth. Wow! Just Wow! The perfect execution of Italian and English was Incredible. This story really came to life because of the narration.
I repeatedly got lost in this story. I replayed several chapters trying to figure it out. There are too many characters to follow.
Overall it was a good story but very long. I lost interest several times.

I loved the evolution of Sally's character and how she found her way in Wartime Italy as an American. This book truly transported me to the streets of Italy and I loved the descriptions of life there despite the war The perspectives of Lappo and Alessandro helped me to understand the views in Italy at the time! There is humor in this book in spots with Sally's spunky character but it was also a book that helped me feel for the people. I liked The Italian Party by this author and this is another enjoyable book! The narrator for the audiobook did Sally's voice perfectly!

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen to an ARC of this book.

Sally Brady's Italian Adventure is a very interesting book. The title makes it sounds somewhat fun and frivolous. It's not. The story takes place during most of WWII where Sally, an adopted "puppy' to a well-known actress, finds herself stuck in Italy unable to return to the US. And she has a number of adventures. I kept wondering how I would react if Sally were a boy/a man having to work her way out of some very difficult situations. I began to appreciate the pluckiness of this woman. Although often afraid, she never let it get in her way of creative ideas to make the best of bad situations.
Sally works for a news journal as a gossip columnist although it's called something much fancier. Readers think she is a man because of the way she writes which gives her leeway to be smart, sassy, and very observant. This sassiness is part of who Sally is. Unlike many books where a woman is the main character, Sally never shudders in fear, never thinks out loud so the reader can hear about how terrified she is, never comes across as a helpless woman. So many of those kinds of books are being published these days. It was a treat to follow Sally throughout the war.
The choice of Sally being in Italy during the war and describing much of how Italy survived was fascinating. Many of us who were born after the war ended, know an amazing amount about Germany, Poland, UK but not so much about Italy. Sally could speak fluent Italian but her American accent gave her away in many instances. It both helped and hurt her. Sally was likeable and the Italians being what they are (very fond of the female sex), she made it work in her favour. The reader also has the feeling that she is often fond of her "enemy" and they knew it.
All in all, I found this a very enjoyable book. Hooray for female heroes who aren't insipid, weepy, and difficult to read about.

Dear Sally Brady's Italian Adventure,
Every time I read an historical fiction book, I love that it brings a new perspective and light to that time period. You shed new light on the Italian side of World War II, through the lens of a woman caught between tow worlds. Sally is an American caught in Italy during the rise of Mussolini. I loved that you shared a perspective outside of the cultural buy-in that most Italians had to fascism. I loved the delicate balance that Sally walked between frivolity and intelligence and I adored her as a character. You gave me a wonderful escape into pre-war Italy and I thoroughly enjoyed your story.

What an adventure we went on! I was mildly disappointed in the ending but that's totally a me problem. I was thoroughly invested in what was happening between both characters. Great detail and plot!

With the plethora of novels set during WWII, it was refreshing to read a novel set in prewar Italy and read more about the events leading up to it. Aside from that, this novel was a bit of a flop for me. The perspective and time jumps were confusing, and I did not find Sally and likable or relatable narrator.

Sally is like that friend you have. The one you know you'll have a great time with if you're together, but you don't really go out of your way to call and make plans with. Thanks to #netgalley and #macmillanaudio, I was able to listen to that friend in beautiful Italy in this #arc. While her Italian Adventure was a slow build for me, once I was committed to the journey I wanted to see it through.

Hers isn't a tale of your standard historical fiction female lead. What she does have in common with many of those expected heroines is that hers is a different version of a woman finding her own strength when that was all that she had left. While I had fun with it, there were quite a few sub story lines that left me wanting more or at least more closure. The plus side, is that I guess I cared enough to want to hear those pieces out, the down side is that I'll never know. Either way, I would definitely recommend this audio book. I thought the narrator was perfect for the story and more than once I found myself longing for a glass of rich Brunello in the gorgeous Tuscan countryside.