"Tartufo" is a charming novel about a small, quiet village in Italy. With beautiful descriptions, the author depicts the daily lives of the villagers and everything it entails. We follow many characters, both humans and animals, and get to know the peaceful life they lead. There are many humorous situations, and we are presented with several hopeless, quirky fates. Unfortunately, the village is not a popular tourist destination, and economically it is almost bankrupt. But that is until the day when local truffle hunter Giovanni Scarpazza stumbles upon the world's largest truffle! This triggers a scenario no one could have imagined: complications, fights over truffles and truffle dogs, quarrels, and unexpected friendships. And how do you actually sell the world's largest truffle? This was a heartwarming, incredibly cozy, and charming story that I fell for from the first page. Recommended for everyone who loves Italy, peaceful village life, and funny characters full of life. The audiobook was wonderfully narrated.

I first came across this book in the Modern Mrs Darcy Spring Book Preview and so when I found it on Netgalley, I immediately requested it.

This was a gem of a book, just what I needed. The endearing cast of characters, including a donkey mayoral candidate, an ambitious but ennuyé chef who forgot his roots, a truffle searcher with his wonderfully expressive dog and I could go on and on. Imagine the kind of village where it would be a pleasure to stop over on your winding exploration of Tuscany or even to settle down in.

The story itself is both a gorgeous paean to Italian food, an exploration of small town dynamics, and a situational comedy. Even if you've never experienced either one of these, you'll find yourself charmed, amused and desirous of being there. Thank you for my wonderful visit, I'll be going to Tuscany this spring and can already imagine myself enjoying truffles even more due to this enriching book.

Thank you!

What an interesting read.

I had a pretty good time. It reminds me of Anxious People by Fredrick Bachman a bit, in the way that all the characters are weaved together (I mean, they didn't have much choice being from such a small town). The small town life in Italy was a lush in description and feelings. It has some silly moments that only small town hijinks can really do well.

Bonus points from writing from the animals perspectives. Really enjoyed the narration!

All in all, Literary Fiction isn't my usual jam, but this was good.

Thank you to Hachette Audio/ Grand Central Publishing and Netgalley for an audiocopy.

Had a difficult time with the narrator's Italian accent, and would have preferred to have gone without it. As for the story, I loved the way Buxton's language created a sense of place in nature. Her descriptions of natural phenomena were enjoyable to wade through, and tempered nicely by the charmingly quirky small-town characters. I can easily imagine this as a light-hearted book club pick, and a helpful title to have up my sleeve for readers advisory.

Thank you, NetGalley and Hachette Audio | Grand Central Publishing for this ARC for review. This book was absolutely delightful! It took a minute to get into the story, but once I did I couldn’t put it down. I read this author’s previous book, Hollow Kingdom, VERY different subject matter and much less cussing 😂, but similar theme- family. Tartufo takes places in a small Italian village on the brink, that no one knows about and if tourists DO find their way there, it is by mistake as they were looking for the bigger, fancier city down the road. That is until the mayor finds the biggest, most impressive beautiful white truffle- Un Tartufo, and then there’s the possibility of fame and riches the village as never known, if only the people of the town can get it together and not mess it all up.

A hilariously heart-warming story about a a small, dying Tuscan town and the colorful characters who live there. among these wonderful citizens is a truffle hunter who suddenly thrusts his tiny town into the international spotlight when finds the world's largest white truffle.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this digital audio e-arc.*

This was a cute story of a small town in Italy trying to stay afloat, while bigger towns cash in on all the tourism spending. A large cast of characters, led by the mayor, get together to try to raise its profile, especially after a local truffle hunter finds one of the largest truffles ever. Everything gets cozily tied up at the end.
The audio is mixed - I liked the narration quite a bit, but the sprawling cast (including occasionally anthropomorphized animals) evaded my attention span at times. The narration is unaccented, but most characters are given varying degrees of Italian accents - which worked for me, a little like a Brunetti audiobook, but more playfully dramatic. In all, a pleasant listen, if not riveting.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

Such a fun book with interesting characters! The novel focuses on the scents of Italy above all the senses, particularly that of the wine, the earth, the TRUFFLES. There are loving descriptions of pastries and pasta dishes, the local olive oil, and more. This lush language makes the local populace more eccentric by contrast. Old grudges, lost loves, and a town devastated by losses is struggling to survive. The race for Mayor is between a local woman who moved away to study as a vet, now returned to bury her father, and Mauricio, a donkey. There are wonderful scenes of tourists who get lost en route to a more famous village and stop in for coffee, of apprentices at the elbow of a 5-star chef creating a lavish tasting menu, and the grandson of a psychic who shakes down her clientele so he can travel to the city to see DaVinci’s notebooks. This is also the story of a town learning how to band together to support each other, even when what can go wrong does go wrong.
The more I think about it, the more I like and want to recommend it. 4.5 rounded up for beautiful writing and excellent audiobook narration.
My thanks to the author, publisher, @HachetteAudio, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook of #Tartufo for review purposes. Publication date: Jan 28, 2025.

Tartufo could easily be renamed “Follow the Truffle and See What Chaos Ensues”! Set in a charming yet crumbling Italian village, this madcap tale is brimming with larger-than-life characters and unexpected calamities.

There’s the truffle hunter mourning his lost love, the bold and unapologetically sexy divorcée, and the ambitious chef who leaves for fame and fortune—each one a colorful whirlwind of personality. When the world’s largest truffle is discovered, the tiny village erupts into absolute mayhem.

With moments of heart-pounding tension, laugh-out-loud hilarity, and tender reflections on family, love, and life’s true treasures, Tartufo is a delightful romp that will leave you both entertained and deeply moved.

What a delightful slice of small town Italian life! The town of Lazzarini Boscarino may not be doing well, but it does not stop the residents from living their lives and doing their best. So many color characters and multiple points of view from a tiny ant, to a truffle hunting dog, and on to the lively people of Lazzarini Boscarino. This was a joy to listen to and the narrator did a wonderful job of being it all to life! I could see the town quite clearly and feel what the characters were feeling, their joys and trials as the giant truffle changed everything with its arrival and though both good and bad things happened because of it, I still feel that this was a nicely cozy tale of a town brought together and surviving and thriving!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to listen to this advance copy of an audiobook. And again, props to the narrator for the wonderful job they did in bringing this book to life!

WARNING: yet another unscheduled unpopular opinion stop!!

I didn't want to DNF this early in the year, but then I asked myself: do I really want to spend over 8 hours on what is left of a story that simply doesn't work for me at all? When I could be spending that time on a book I do enjoy instead? The answer is absolutely not. On paper, Tartufo should have been a perfect fit for me. I love quirky stories, and the premise of this book sounded absolutely hilarious. I thought I was going to have so much fun listening to this story... But in the end my experience turned out to be about as fun as a trip to the dentist. I'll try to explain why below.

I think one of the main reasons my personal experience with Tartufo ended up being so negative had a lot to do with the narrator. I'm sad to say that I had an extremely negative reaction to the way this story was told, and the narration completely ruined the story for me. The tone, the (in my opinion) not authentic and extremely exaggerated Italian accents, the speed... The whole experience was just enormously frustrating and it made it really hard to focus on the story itself. I really do suspect that I wouldn't have made the decision to DNF if I had read the story on my kindle instead... It's sad that my first audiobook of 2025 ended up being such a negative experience to be honest.

The narration isn't the only reason for my difficult decision to DNF though. I also blame the writing style itself, which is both flowery, pretentious and overburdened with alliterations. I mean, I like an alliteration or two, but this was just WAY over the top and it felt like the author wanted to bury you under a mountain of alliterations along the way. The same goes for the choice in vocabulary, using words that make the story sound pretentious and not natural at all. I'm never a fan of literary fiction, so this might just be a personal pet peeve though.

Can we also talk about the fact that Tartufo has WAY too many characters and POVs? I honestly struggled to keep them all apart, although this might also have had something to do with the narration itself. The humor itself failed to hit the mark for me; in fact, I didn't see the humor at all in the part I did listen to. To make things worse, nothing seemed to be happening AT ALL, and there wasn't even one tiny mention of the truffle this book is named after. The lack of plot and overdose of descriptions made the pace extremely slow, which was another reason I couldn't find the motivation to keep reading.

In short, I think we can all agree that Tartufo wasn't the book for me, although I have to say that I don't think I would have DNFed it if I had read the story on my kindle instead. I seem to be in the minority though, so definitely don't give up on my account! I do recommend listening to a sample first before you commit to the audiobook though.

A small Italian village, a quirky cast of characters, and a giant white truffle bring together a hilarious novel that is so much more than it seems.

With humourous animal characters, and humans dealing with loss, longing, and life, the reader is transported to a small Italian village and rooting for this village to return from the brink of death.

This would be an excellent book to read with a book club as there are so many aspects that different people will identify with. I just want to discuss it with someone!

The narration is excellent and helped me get the names and pronunciation straight before I finished the book in print.

Thank you to Hatchette Audio, Grand Central Publishing, and Net Galley for the DLC. All opinions are my own!

It takes place in a very small town in Italy and has a unique cast of characters in the small town. I loved the Italian setting and wanted to find out what happens to the town and the truffle and so I had to keep reading! I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves character-driven novels set in charming small towns. It's a heartwarming and fun read that will leave you feeling like you've visited Italy yourself!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to give this book an advance listen! I really enjoyed the narration and setting. The characters had so much personality and were very relatable.

Love, Love, Love! Enchanting story of a crumbling Italian Village that is saved when an enormous “Tartufo” (truffle) is found. Tartufo is such a great story, entertaining characters, and hilarious animals. Highly recommended! This was my first book by Kira Jane Buxton, and it won’t be my last.

Caroline Hewitt did a great job narrating, easy to understand and impeccable Italian.

Thanks Hachette Audio and NetGalley for the early audible copy. All opinions are my own.

This book is fun and different from other books I have read recently, so I enjoyed it! It takes place in a very small town in Italy and has a unique cast of characters in the small town. It has humor, and we get a variety of points of views (including a dogs which is fun!). I loved the Italian setting and I loved the description of the large truffle that was found. I wanted to find out what happens to the town and the truffle and so I had to keep reading! This book is highly recommended for people that like character driven novels in small Italian towns! The narrator on the audiobook made this book fun, I appreciated her Italian pronunciation and accent which made me feel even more like I was in the Italian town!