Lucina's Letters

Big family drama! Lucina is the oldest half-sibling to mostly sisters who have a different father. She has grown up splitting her time in Italy with her father and in Ireland with her mother and siblings and maintains both homes into her adulthood. Lucina never marries or has children but sees herself as the matriarch who must keep the family together. When a tragedy occurs, secrets are kept around the event and the sisters and nieces develop their own quirks and ways of relating to one another. As an elderly woman, Lucina eventually learns the truth about the tragedy and plans to travel from Italy to Ireland to tell the rest of the family but knows she is dying so writes a letter instead with instructions on when and how it will be read. In her letter, she not only reveals the events causing the tragedy but also several other family secrets and encourages everyone to forgive and forget.
I found the title of this book somewhat misleading as Lucina doesn’t seem to be a primary character and the single letter (not “letters”) doesn’t get written until close to the end. However, the bulk of the book is spent on revealing the other family members’ personalities, quirks and secrets and is written in an entertaining manner which draws the reader in and keeps the story interesting and fast-paced. I enjoyed the book very much but found that I needed to refer to the family tree listed at the beginning frequently to keep all the characters straight. Also, the book is written in different time frames and from different perspectives but transitions are not designated even within chapters so can be confusing at times although fairly easy to catch up to. Overall, the family drama is very entertaining and I would recommend the book. Thanks to NetGalley and Austin Macauley Publishers for the Advanced Reader Copy.

“They did not mean to hurt the boy, much less kill him. They only wanted to teach him a lesson.”

This stunning family saga set in Ireland and Italy explores the profound, dark repercussions of one long-ago deed.

Lucina is the oldest sibling and has grown up splitting her time in Italy with her father and in Ireland with her mother and siblings and maintains both homes into her adulthood.

The concept of family has always been of the utmost importance to Lucina, the self-appointed matriarch figure. Still, when she learns the truth about an event that almost ripped the family apart, she sets about mending the familial bonds.

Will the truth set them free and restore their family unit once more, or only drag them further into dysfunction?

While I enjoyed this book overall, but, the title is rather misleading. Lucina isn't truly a primary character, and the single letter (not “letters”) doesn’t get written until close to the end. The majority of the book deals with revealing the other family members' personalities, quirks, and secrets. Still, it is written in an entertaining manner which draws the reader in and keeps the story interesting and relatively quick-paced.

⭐⭐⭐

Thanks to NetGalley and Austin Macauley Publishers for the Advanced Reader Copy in return for an honest review.