Tuesday 14 March 2017

✪ A Letter From Italy ✪ Pamela Hart ✪





Inspired by the life of the world's first woman war correspondent, Australia's Louise Mack, the most sweeping love story yet by Pamela Hart

1917, Italy. Australian journalist Rebecca Quinn is an unconventional woman. At the height of World War I, she has given up the safety of her Sydney home for the bloody battlefields of Europe, following her journalist husband to the frontline as a war correspondent in Italy.

Reporting the horrors of the Italian campaign, Rebecca finds herself thrown together with American-born Italian photographer Alessandro Panucci, and soon discovers another battleground every bit as dangerous and unpredictable: the human heart.

A passionate and poignant love story set on the beautiful Italian coast by the bestselling author of The Soldier's Wife and The War Bride.


 

ARC received from Hachette Australia for an honest review

A Letter From Italy was the perfect way for me to pop my Pamela Hart cherry!

This book was inspired by the first female war correspondent, and what a story it is.

It is a sweeping, beautiful, emotional story that does wonderful justice for a part of history that for the most part has been swept under the carpet (I am not ashamed to admit that I did not know of Louise Mack and what she did).

Rebecca's story is one that I am sure could be told hundreds of times over - the loving and supportive wife following the husband wherever he goes, keeping quiet and doing as he expects.  

Instead she is vocal on her career, her marriage, her expectations in life - and I loved her for it.    This story shows how far we have come in the past century, but also highlights how far we still need to go.

The story is intriguing, enlightening, action packed and full of passion. 

I really think that A Letter From Italy would make a wonderful movie or mini series - someone needs to get onto that pronto!

Now I am going to go back and read Ms Hart's other works, and look forward to what she brings us next.







Pamela is an award-winning author for adults and children. She has a Doctorate of Creative Arts from the University of Technology, Sydney. 

Under the name Pamela Freeman she wrote the historical novel THE BLACK DRESS, which won the NSW Premier's History Prize for 2006. Pamela is also well known for her fantasy novels for adults, published by Orbit worldwide, the Castings Trilogy, and her Aurealis Award-winning novel EMBER AND ASH. 

Pamela lives in Sydney with her husband and their son, and teaches at the Australian Writers' Centre. A LETTER FROM ITALY is her thirtieth book, and follows THE SOLDIER'S WIFE and THE WAR BRIDE.