I'm upset! I did not enjoy this book. It was pretty much okay, nothing particularly angering, until the ridiculous ending. I'm disappointed and frustrated. I am usually very gentle with authors, knowing it is not easy to produce a novel. But instead, even a few hours later since having read the ending, I am more like "What the Hell?!" I really disliked and failed to understand the modern day character. The one shining light in this debacle, is that I get to talk about it with another Goodreads f...

I've got no qualms about giving this one star because it's got a higher average rating than Hamlet, War and Peace and Pride and Prejudice. (Damning evidence we're not perhaps evolving as a race!) Romantic fiction is a bit like self-assembling furniture. There's no craftsmanship. Every interlocking component is functional. I skimmed through reviews and sometimes saw it described as beautifully written. It isn't beautifully written. The author has a rudimentary command of language. What she does t...

Caroline Grant’s married to Josh, they have a little boy Teddy and she works as an editorial assistant at a women’s magazine. Josh is offered his dream job in New York, she and Teddy stay behind in England and it doesn’t take long for Josh to meet another women, Caroline’s marriage is in tatters and he wants Teddy to spend the summer in New York.Caroline's close to her grandmother Winnie and her great-aunt Lettie, she visits them in Surrey and she’s in need of some moral support. Aunt Lettie los...

An excellent read.

When Caroline's great aunt dies, she leaves a sketchbook and three keys; these lead to Venice where Caroline unravels several secrets which have been hidden from the family for over sixty years.
A well written multi timeline taking the reader back to Venice in the lead up to World War II and beyond. I thoroughly enjoyed this brilliant story, and cannot recommend it highly enough.

Another dual time line story. This one is easy to follow as each chapter is headed up with the person, date and place.The book description is sufficient so I don’t have to repeat the entire story line here. What I will say is:This is not a spectacular WWII story nor is it a hot romance story.It is, however, a story about forbidden love and heartbreak aplenty. I enjoyed it for the most part, however it seemed to take forever to get to the point.There are never ending passages that read like a tra...

I can’t believe it…this is the first book I have read by prolific writer Rhys Bowen. Although I thought it somewhat fairytailish, after the last few years, maybe it was just nice to escape into a fairy tale, albeit bittersweet.Although somewhat formulaic, I found the story gripping; I couldn’t put it down. I liked how the plot unfolded by moving forward and backward in time. As a bonus, the beautiful city of Venice is also one of the main characters….and I enjoyed revisiting some of my favorite ...

Time changes everything. We can never fully revisit those people and places we've kept frozen in still life hovering in chambers within our memories.Rhys Bowen presents The Venice Sketchbook which travels in a time-spanning arc from 1928, then to 1938 and then to 2001. The points of destination leap from England and to Venice and back again. The cast of characters adapt to the years, the changing of locations, and the deep impact of historical events.Juliet "Lettie" Browning first sets foot upon...

The Venice Sketchbook by Rhys BowenThe descriptions of Venice in both the 1928-44 and 2001 timelines are beautiful. Englishwoman Juliet Browning visits Venice with her aunt in 1928 and then she visits again in 1938 and 1939. Each time, she meets and spends time with wealthy nobleman Leonardo Da Rossi. Leo's path in life has been set since he was young, so there can never be a permanent relationship between Juliet and Leo but they will always be connected because of their actions in 1939. Much la...

This is the story of Juliet ‘Lettie’ Browning from 1928 through the Second World War years and her great-niece Caroline Grant at the turn of the 21st Century. When Aunt Lettie dies in 2001 at a low point in Caroline’s life, she sets off to Venice to unlock the mysteries of Juliet’s well kept secrets. The story is told in dual timelines. First of all the setting principally in Venice is very good though I do feel like I’m reading from my trusty DK guide as we take many a stroll or ride in a vapor...

This is not a genre I read very often (historical/WWII fiction) or even enjoy very much but there are exceptions, and the fact that it was largely set in Venice called to me.The story is told from the point of view of Juliet (Lottie) Browning before and after the start of WWII and in 2001 from the POV of her great niece Caroline Grant. In 1928, when Lettie was 18 she visited Venice briefly with her Aunt Hortensia (that is some name). Naturally she met a handsome young Italian man, Leo da Rossi, ...