Rosanna LeyThe Villa

From the moment I browsed through the Kindle store and stumbled across this I just knew it was the book for me.Having inherited a villa in Scicily, from a man unknown to her--a man who was her mother's employer many years ago--Tess leaves England and goes to Scicily in search of answers; why did that man, Edward, leave the villa to her and not to her mother, Flavia? why does her mother never speak of where she came from? what happened to her mother that she would want to abandon everyone and everything she ever knew to go to England?Tess falls in love with the place, but soon realises that within such beauty lies ugliness; beyond the navy blue sea, the shimmer of schools of fish in the ocean, and the scent of fruit-bearing trees, lies bitterness, greed, power and egotism--all packaged as tradition and family honour of course.Tess's daughter, Ginny, remains in England with Flavia and, after finishing school, is practically traumatised by her inability to decide on what to do with her life. She is only sure of what she DOESN'T want: university. As if that pressure wasn't enough, her father, who abandoned her and her mother before Ginny was even born, turns up at her door wanting to be a part of her life--it may eighteen years, but better late than never; or is it?This particular part of the story didn't really do anything for me, but perhaps someone of that age may be able to relate to it as I do recall those insecurities about life when I was eighteen.But for me, the real story here was Flavia's, Tess's mother: the headstrong woman who, as a girl, abandoned her family, her friends, her home and country in search of the man she loved, and in search of a better life. This was the story that captivated me and reminded me of a part of my own life. Her story seems honest, difficult, sometimes content but--in my opinion--simply unfair, just as life can be. But both her and Tess's story were those of intrigue and seduction and just as the characters fell in love so too did I: with Scicily, with the food, with falling in love, and with the idea of living.A beautiful novel to leave you with beautiful thoughts and dreams. Thank you to the author for this creation. It has had such a wonderful impact on me.I'll have to check out other books by this author. Definitely recommend.

This book tells the story of Tess who, out of the blue, inherits a villa in Sicily. She does not know, and has never met, the man who left the property to her. The connection is via her mother Flavia who was born in Sicily and who left it more than 40 years ago. Flavia and her parents had all worked for the owner of the villa.The book tells the story of 3 generations - Tess, her mother Flavia and her daughter Ginny. As a condition of her inheritance, Tess is required to visit the villa so she goes on holiday there. Flavia has never spoken about her life in Sicily and it is clear that she has secrets which she has never divulged. She clearly does not want Tess to go to Sicily.The characterisation is good. All the characters are vividly portrayed and are all very believable. I enjoyed getting to know all of the characters and following their lives. However, there was a plot concerning lost treasure which I thought was very silly. I felt as if I was reading a "Famous Five" childrens' story. No-one knew what the treasure was or if it really existed but 3 generations of various families in Sicily were involved in a feud over the so-called treasure. This was all a bit melodramatic and not terribly believable. It was also very confusing and at the end of the book I was still unsure about who was responsible for the missing treasure.In spite of the silly elements of the plot, overall I still enjoyed this novel. It was a light-hearted, escapist read. If you are prepared to suspend disbelief and ignore the silly parts of the plot, there is still much to be enjoyed and for this reason I have still given it 4 stars.

This is a novel of three women, three generations of the same family.Flavia escaped from Sicily when she was a teenager and has never been back. She refuses to talk about her time out there with her daughter, Tess. The only thing she does remain true to is Italian cooking. She still subscribes to their way of cooking.Tess has never been to Sicily. But when she is left a villa in a will with the caveat that she must come out there first before she can decide anything. The Villa happens to be where her own mother's family worked, and their house is now a ruin in the grounds.Ginny is coming to age when she wants to branch out into the world on her own, but feels constricted by her mother. It has only been them since she was born, and she has no father to help her find out who she really is. But Tess is very protective and the two come to blows as many a teenage daughter and mother do.All three of these women, are facing different futures and having to look at their pasts as well. Flavia needs to answer the many questions about her past that she has kept hidden from her daughter. She does this through her cooking and writes down what went on in Sicily as well as the perfect recipes that need to be kept going in the family.Whilst Flavia is writing, Tess is in Sicily finding out first hand about her mothers history from many different people she meets. Two of these are men, Giovanni and Tonino both have very different stories about their families history. Tess finds herself embroiled in a feud that has been running for over fifty years. She starts to learn very quickly about these men.Ginny is left back at home without her mum and living with her grandparents. When a visitor turns up, it seems that perhaps Ginny can make a life for herself the way she wants, just as it seems her mother is doing in The Villa in Sicily.This is not a light fluffy read, if you picked it up expecting that. It is in fact a bit more substantial - 560 pages of substance, perhaps a bit too much. The descriptions of Sicily, the Italian fairy stories, the myths and legends of a place and a family feud come across strongly in the book as much as the relationship between the three women. For me the myths became a bit cumbersome and I wanted a bit more a faster pace to the book, but I suppose life in this Sicilian village was never going to move fast. The paragraphs and sections dealing with food were good, but I have read better in other books if I am honest. The book could quite easily have survived without this and worked just as well with Flavia's back story.It is a book for a summer read, but your mind may wander as mine did if you read it.

As I actually live in darkest Sicily I was curious to read this novel, which I did enjoy, but found certain inaccuracies so very irritating - such as calling the Mediterranean "the ocean" when it isn't : the Atlantic and Pacific "seas" are called oceans. Also when the heroine checks the tides - there are no tides as such in the Med, which is also known as the tideless sea. There were also several misspellings of Italian words. Does no one check details before the novel is published? I am probably too pernickety, but these frequent mistakes rather spoilt what was otherwise a pleasant read

Excellent choice - love Rosanna Ley -

I enjoyed it from start to finish. An easy enjoyable read. I didn't want to put it down. When is the next book out? book

"The Villa" is an enjoyable read - read it for leisure. Perfect for a holiday or a weekend read. I felt like I could feel the atmosphere of Sicily through the emotions of the main character. The novel contains a little bit of history, a little bit of geography, a little bit of crime and a whole lot of personal drama - very entertaining!

Es ist die Geschichte von Flavia, ihrer Tochter Tess und deren Tochter Ginny. Es beginnt mit der Erbschaft - Der Villa. Flavia arbeitet ihre Lebensgechichte auf, indem sie für Tess ihre Lebensgeschichte und ihre Rezepte niederschreibt. Tess stürzt sich in das Abenteuer Sizilien inklusive Vendetta. Ginny wird durch den Druck der Oma flügge. Und dann taucht noch Ginnys Vater nach 18 Jahren auf. Gut recherchiert (Sizilien), gut geschrieben und auch amüsant.