Synopsis:
When pragmatic, sensible and resolutely single Deirdre York (Didi to her friends) is sent to Venice for work she is determined not to be taken in by the romantic clichés. Winter in the floating city may be breathtakingly beautiful, but she’s here with a clear purpose and will not let the magic of Venice distract her.
Piero Zanetti is the epitome of the handsome yet tortured artist. Heart-broken by the end of his love affair with a glamorous opera singer, he has lost his ability to work, and his inspiration has drained away, along with his zest for life.
But Didi needs Piero working – she has been tasked with commissioning him to do a glass centrepiece for a luxury department store Christmas display – some how Didi has to cheer Piero up or at least find him a new muse…
As Didi and Piero slowly become friends, and as Venice starts to melt Didi’s heart and gently nudge Piero out of the blues, something special begins to happen. Can Venice – the City of Love – work a Christmas miracle and help Didi and Piero to find their happiness at last…
My Take:
I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. I’ve read a lot of romances where the heroine meets a mysterious foreign stranger and falls in love, but this book was nothing like I was expecting in a really good way!
Didi and Piero had a believable relationship, and it wasn’t enhanced by the setting in Italy, if anything, it was hindered by it, because both characters are not romantic by nature. Two cynics both with very different reasons for their lack of emotion toward romance, and both with very interesting back stories to be revealed.
All that, and a look into the art of glass blowing, was enough to keep me entertained, and to ensure that I rarely put the book down. I highly enjoyed it!
Thank you to Boldwood Books for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!
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