Nina Lawrence is a British ex-pat living and working in Rome as a successful landscape gardener. She died in the late 1970s, but few people attended the funeral to pay their respects and her killing was never properly investigated. Thirty years later, Lottie Archer is travelling to Rome having accepted a job there as an archivist in Archivo Espatriati and to be with her new husband, Tom who works for the British Council in Rome. When she comes across a valuable painting owned by Nina, Lottie becomes fascinated by Nina and her life, putting herself in danger.

In this novel with a historical context, the author delivers a compelling tale. Nina’s storyline draws the reader in and her story is swathed in the political intrigue of the decade. For her part, Lottie is trying to find out about her own history. The dual timeline linking two women who have the experience of living in Rome many decades apart is really well done. The reader is immersed in all of the delights of the enchanting city from the off and the characters are easy to empathise with. I recommend Two Women in Rome without hesitation to anyone who is partial to historical, romance, or contemporary fiction.

I read Two Women in Rome in staves with other Pigeonholers as part of a group. A special thank you to Corvus, Elizabeth Buchan, NetGalley and The Pigeonhole for a complimentary copy of this novel at my request. This review is my unbiased opinion.

I was sent an uncorrected proof of Two Women in Rome by Elizabeth Buchan to read and review by NetGalley. Having read the author’s most recent book I had high hopes for this novel – as it turned out too high! While the subject matter was interesting, I found that the writing itself was rather lacking. I found the prose rather matter of fact and the way the story was set out with protagonist Lottie reading the journal of murdered Nina Lawrence, whose effects she was archiving, alongside her own detective work on the subject, and especially the timeline of this, just did not ring true to me. I felt that I had the measure of the piece very early on and unfortunately just carried on reading because I felt that I should. I feel that this could have been a much more engaging read, however, I do think that it could make a good film or TV series. As it stands the novel is only worth a generous 3 stars for me.

This book is most definitely well written and well researched,I felt as though I was in Rome. I can’t put my finger on why but I found the story hard going, for me it definitely wasn’t a page turner. I finished the book but unfortunately can’t say it is one of my favourites.

This is clearly very well researched, and the result is an atmospheric and engaging novel. We can't travel far this summer so reading books like 'Two Women in Rome' helps to bring exotic locations a little closer.

I was fascinated by the story of these women and loved the well researched background.
The descriptions of Rome are realistic and the historical background is well researched and it reminded me of those years (I was a child but I remember them as I'm Italian born and bread).
The characters are fleshed out and quite memorable. The author delivers an enthralling and fascinating story that kept me hooked.
I want to read other books by this author.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

An evocative literary tale of two women born decades apart who live in Rome but never meet. Lottie, an archivist, starts her new role by archiving the papers and possessions of Nina, a landscape gardener who died in the late 1970s.

The story is written with vibrant description that vividly brings Rome to life in the politically turbulent seventies and the present day. Nina's story draws Lottie, into her world, through her journal, which gradually reveals the secrets of her life and death. With each revelation, Lottie examines her own life.

There are many elements in this story, all of which add to its authenticity and complexity. The characters are well-written and the connections between the dual stories believably created.

An intriguing mix of art, history, mystery and love.

I received a copy of this book from Corvus via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Two Women in Rome is a truly captivating story set in two time periods. In the present day, Lottie is an archivist working in Rome who comes across a painting once owned by an English woman called Nina who died in the late 1970’s. The painting appears to be valuable, painted in the fifteenth century.

Lottie also finds Nina’s journal in her personal effects, and the more of it she reads, the more she wants to find out about her life.

I loved the details about Rome in both timelines - I’ve visited Rome and loved it. The strong female characters were also a big plus point for me. Lottie is a head archivist, she really knows what she’s doing and is confident in her abilities. Nina is also an assertive woman - she is often in new situations that many would find themselves floundering in (Ok, that sounds really vague, but I don’t want to give anything away!)

This is a book about secrets: about keeping them, and what happens when they are revealed - both good and bad. This isn’t a book that goes fast and hard in its revelations. Quite opposite in fact, and probably why I liked it so much. I love a well told story, and I really felt that I knew the women in this because of that feeling of not being rushed through the story.

There’s a fair amount of Italian politics in this, some of which I had never known about, so that was another plus point. I hadn’t realised that Italy had had quite such a tumultuous political life for so long after World War Two. The novel has a great mix of themes, actually: secrets, history, politics, life in Rome, betrayal, guilt. I think I’m becoming a bit of an Elizabeth Buchan fan because I really enjoyed her last book The Museum of Broken Promises, as well. Both books are set in Europe, with the aftereffects of great political upheavals, ostensibly going back to World War Two. This book is well worth reading - I’d definitely recommend it.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole and NetGalley for my copy of this book.

This story is told from two perspectives. Lottie becomes intrigued by the life of Nina who lived in Rome a few decades before her. I found Lottie's world somewhat stilted with her awkward relationships and insecurities whereas Nina was a much more vibrant character who came to life through her diaries.

Regular readers may remember how much I loved Elizabeth Buchan’s last novel The Museum of Broken Promises, in fact it was one of my top twenty of the year. So, I was very excited to be approved to read this via NetGalley. The story is split into two timelines and follows the lives of two British women who spend some time living in Rome. Lottie Archer arrives at the Eternal City as a new wife and with a new job as an archivist at the Archivo Espatriati. Her very first task is to archive the papers and journal of a woman called Nina Lawrence who worked as a gardener in Rome in the late 1970s. This was a difficult time for the country socially politically, known as the ‘Years of Lead’ - a period which stretched from the 1960s to the 1980s and resulted in many incidents of far right and far left terrorism. Nina’s task was to redesign gardens that had been devastated by WW2, something she was passionate about and was very talented. Within her papers, is a large leather journal, rather worse for wear and full of drawings and pressed plants. However, she also finds a painting of the Annunciation - the moment where the Virgin Mary is visited by the angel Gabriel to tell her she will be the mother of Jesus, the son of God. Lottie thinks it may be medieval, due to the colours used and the iconography. This piques her interest and she is disturbed to learn that Nina was murdered in Rome, and that very few people attended her funeral in the Protestant ceremony. Interestingly though, one mourner was a Catholic priest, which strokes Lottie as very unusual. She wants to find out more about the painting, but she also finds herself sucked into the mystery of what happened to Nina, who murdered her and why did she seem so friendless in this beautiful city?

I found the novel a little slow at first. I didn’t click with Lottie straight away, the detail and discussion of medieval art was quite dense (or I was) and the complexity of the political situation wasn’t always easy to follow. I also thought the intricacies and machinations of the Catholic Church might be a little difficult to penetrate for those who don’t know much about Catholicism - luckily I am one, with convent teaching under my belt, so this was not so difficult for me. However, I did like that the author didn’t simplify these areas of the book because in a way they added to the mystery of a city that has an incredibly complicated history. I was drawn in most by the story of Nina, just like Lottie is. I could understand why her story would get under your skin as someone interested in the past and trying to make sense of it. There is a kinship between the two women, even though they can never meet. Lottie is unsure of her position in Rome for several reasons. Firstly, when she arrives to work at the archive, her new role hasn’t quite been vacated. She moves into the apartment that her husband Tom shared with his previous partner Clare, and all around her are memories that don’t belong to her (including an ugly lamp, that should be kept because it works perfectly well, according to their formidable housekeeper). All of this is compounded by an underlying sense of abandonment, formed because she was left by her birth mother. There’s something lost about Nina that she latches onto and the more she finds out, the more she wonders whether Nina was more than a gardener?

Nina is a rather fascinating woman, who shares Lottie’s sense of rootlessness and lack of ties. There is definitely a deeply woven reason for Nina’s death, involving politics, security services, the church and a rather unwise, but beautiful love affair that unfolds in her journal. It is this aspect of her character that really humanises her for me, she becomes a real, living and breathing person and it is then even more tragic when the end comes. One thing both narratives capture beautifully is the city itself. Just like the narrative structure of the book, we get a sense of Rome as place where the past is very closely layered under the present. I thought about the tunnels and cave structures that run under the city’s streets, some still populated with WW2 vehicles, as an embodiment of this feeling. The present is full of tourists, rushing around on their itineraries getting a sense of the past and present city, but not necessarily the world underneath their feet. The author evokes the sights and smells beautifully: describing the less followed paths, the street fountains carved with dolphins and maidens, the detail of the plants so precious to Nina, the smells and sight of the deli counters full of salami, olives and beautifully ripe tomatoes. I found myself craving a trip to Italy all the time while reading!


However, she also shows its impenetrability to outsiders who know nothing of Catholicism, Roman etiquette or it’s slightly corrupt ways of getting business done. This is captured most beautifully in Lottie’s burgeoning relationship with their housekeeper. I also enjoyed her friendship with the book binder, who she asks to authenticate the painting she finds without understanding his significance. The background on medieval painting is vital here, not just to understand the symbolism within the traditional aspects, but to identify those that are far more transgressive and intensely personal. This is a complicated mystery/thriller, mixed with a travelogue of Rome and an intense love story. It asks questions about where we belong and whether our final destinations have been reached by choice, accident or a deep sense of duty to our family, our religion and our country. By the end I realised I’d become so enthralled, I was very sad to leave Rome behind.

This will appear on my blog tomorrow 9th June 2021

Lottie Archer arrives in Rome excited to begin her new job as an archivist. When she discovers a valuable fifteenth-century painting, she is drawn to find out more about the woman who left it behind, Nina Lawrence. Nina seems to have led a rewarding and useful life, restoring Italian gardens to their full glory following the destruction of World War Two. So why did no one attend her funeral in 1978? In exploring Nina's past, Lottie unravels a tragic love story beset by the political turmoil of post-war Italy. And as she edges closer to understanding Nina, she begins to confront the losses in her own life.

A beautifully descriptive novel set in the heart of Rome that came alive for me as I turned the pages of the story. As I was reading I felt like I was there in Italy with its beautiful streets, foods, flowers, smells and fabulous buildings and gardens which were brought to life by such wonderful storytelling.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

3.5/5.

Absolutely fantastic read. I have loved this and been completely unable and unwilling to put this one down.
This is a great read which I will be highly recommending.

One of those special books that you just can’t put down.
It is a love story as well as a murder mystery.
Two women is a duel time story set in the present day and the late 70s.
It is centred around Lottie newly married who has joined her husband in Rome to take up a position as an archivist and Nina who has a duel role as a restorer of gardens and what we today would call a spook.
Nina was murdered and Lottie sets out to find the truth behind her demise.
Filled with political intrigue it is a brilliant read with a really satisfying conclusion.

Historical fiction set in Rome. Lottie an archivist discovers some papers from Nina a woman killed more than thirty years ago under strange circumstances. Somebody doesn't want these secrets uncovered. Despite never having met they have a connection. Told in a dual timeline incorporating betrayals, lies and deceit. A great conclusion.

‘In the Eternal City, no secret stays hidden forever’ - cover tag line.

My thanks to Atlantic Books/Corvus for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Two Women in Rome’ by Elizabeth Buchan in exchange for an honest review.

In 2019 I enjoyed Elizabeth Buchan’s ‘The Museum of Broken Promises’ and so looked forward to her latest novel set in Rome. It takes place in two timelines: today and in 1977-78.

Thirty-seven year-old Lottie Archer recently took a major step in her life by marrying Tom, who works for the British Council in Rome. She joins him there and takes up her new position as Chief Archivist at the Archivo Espatriati, a private institute that houses the papers of British and American ex-pats.

When she discovers a valuable fifteenth-century painting among the papers of Nina Lawrence, Lottie is drawn to find out more about the woman who left it behind. In the late 1970s Nina was restoring Italian formal gardens following the destruction wrought by World War Two. So why was her funeral in 1978 unattended by no one?

As she explores Nina's past, Lottie discovers a tragic love story set amidst the political turmoil of post-war Italy. As Lottie gets closer to understanding Nina, she begins to confront the losses in her own life.

This was a beautifully written exploration of the lives of two British women in Rome. Woven through it are details of art history and the art of landscape design as well as a love of nature and of the Eternal City. Elizabeth Buchan did a wonderful job of describing Rome and its inhabitants. This was very much a character-driven novel with definite resonances between the lives of the women.

Given the political situation in Italy during the late 1970s, including the activities of the Red Brigades, there are elements of Cold War shenanigans woven into the narrative.

Both Lottie and Nina were compelling leads as were the supporting characters. There are elements of mystery to the novel but it is a slow reveal via the study of documents and personal accounts rather than via flashy twists.

Overall, ‘Two Women in Rome’ was an intelligent, graceful novel that held my attention throughout. It’s the kind of novel that I expect will appeal to a wide readership.

For me it's a sign of a good book when I have to look stuff up outside of the book. (If it was boring, I wouldn't care.) I looked plenty of things up with this book. I remember much of the political turmoil in Italy in the 70s/80s but I was young so had to reacquaint myself a bit. An old friend was actually a nun based in the Vatican at the time, so I may pick her brains. Either way, this took me by surprise, I wasn't expecting the political undercurrents but I thoroughly enjoyed it. A well written, intelligent book.

Two Women in Rome is a captivating work of historical fiction set in the sun-drenched Italian capital of Rome and a beautifully atmospheric story of two women who can never meet, set in a city full of secrets both ancient and modern. Nina Lawrence is a British ex-pat living and working in Rome as a successful landscape gardener throughout what came to be known as the ‘Years of Lead’ when political strife led to violence and assassination. But on her death in the late 1970s, or murder to be more precise, few people attended the funeral to pay their respects and it appears her killing was never properly investigated. But is Nina all that she says she is? Are there other things going on in her life? Thirty years later, Lottie Archer has taken up the post as archivist in an archive housing expatriate papers where she comes across a trove of Nina’s papers in which is discovered the painting of an Annunciation which could be medieval. What happened to Nina, and the story behind the painting, causes Lottie to rethink her experiences and attitudes but it also puts her in danger as some people want what happened kept hidden. Yes, politics and work are crucial in life but so, too, is forgiveness.

This is a captivating, richly described and intriguing novel with a dual timeline linking two women who never meet but have the common experience of living in Rome many decades apart. You are immersed in the sights, sounds and smells of this enchanting city from the get-go and the characters were likeable and easy to empathise with. Nina’s story was very cleverly woven as it was clear there was still so much to find out about her and Buchan showed Nina’s pain at giving up on love to save herself from heartache. Lottie questioned how much she really knew about her husband as secrets began to unravel about him. This book is part history, part mystery-thriller and part beautiful paean to the city of Rome. A plethora of clues, deceit and betrayals are woven into the pages of the story and spread throughout the city and the characters' lives. Each character had their own motivations and traumas and when everything started to unravel the revelations were both alluring and heart wrenching. It kept me guessing right the way through, and I loved how the two timelines converged at the end to form a conclusion. Highly recommended.

I absolutely loved this book-the first time I had read a book by Elizabeth Buchan and I’m now going to read more. It’s beautifully written ,and so evocative of Rome ,with all the sounds ,scents and sights of the city described in detail.
It tells the stories of two British women ,Nina and Lottie ,separated by 40 years, which are linked when Lottie ,an archivist,is asked to look at a painting which was found among the documents belonging to Nina ,who died in mysterious circumstances in 1978. As she learns more about Nina through her examination of the documents,Lottie becomes determined to find out what happened to her ,but also faces her own demons in the process.
Definitely one of my favourite books of the year so far.Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review which reflects my own opinion.

Nina’s part of the story, revealed through her journal and other papers, features a particularly turbulent time in Italy’s political history – the late 1970s – a period I’ve not seen featured in historical fiction before. Although perhaps it’s my age that makes it difficult for me to see any part of the 1970s as ‘historical’!

Regular followers of my blog will know I’m not a great fan of the narrative device of the secret journal, finding it rather artificial. However, in this case the author manages to make it work chiefly because Lottie’s role as an archivist naturally involves the perusal of previously unexamined papers. Although I still found Nina’s journal remarkably detailed (she obviously had a good memory for conversations), the motivations suggested for her having kept it were believable, albeit unwise given what the reader learns about her.

As Lottie discovers, the devious machinations of government officials and those employed by the Vatican during Nina’s time in Rome continue into the present day. As one character observes, ‘The Vatican is home to the humble, the saintly and the ambitious’. And in a country where family is everything, the power of blood ties to influence events should never be underestimated or ignored.

The similarities between the two women could make them merge into one but the author successfully ensures they exist as characters in their own right. In the case of Nina, it’s her love of botanical history and the hint of intrigue. In the case of Lottie, it’s her passion for documenting and preserving the records of past lives. As Lottie reflects at one point, ‘She had a strange feeling that Nina Lawrence was speaking directly to her’. Having said that, Lottie’s curiosity does seem to have a blind spot closer to home.

As you would expect from a novel set in Rome, food features prominently. Who can blame Lottie for being tempted by the goods displayed in a delicatessen window? ‘The jars of goats’ cheeses in oil, black olives in cream earthenware bowls and salamis hanging from ceiling hooks like stalactites.’ The atmosphere of ‘the Eternal City’ is vividly evoked and I enjoyed learning about the symbolism of Medieval religious art, especially the significance of the colours used, ‘paint ventriloquism at its most dazzling’ as it is so eloquently described.

The author’s choice of Rome as a setting – a city I’ve been fortunate enough to visit – combined with a story that encompasses art history and garden design ticked plenty of boxes for me. Add in the element of mystery and a touch of romance, and you have a book that deserves to have a wide appeal. I really enjoyed it and a return trip to Rome is definitely going on my wishlist.

An enthralling and enchanting story set in Rome. Lottie has gone to live in Rome after marrying Tom and lands a job as an archivist who becomes enthralled with the mystery of the woman called Nina Lawrence. What happened to this enigmatic character who was murdered in the 70s but no one attended her funeral. Lotties sets out to unravel the mystery and find the harsh truth
A well written and documented story bringing Rome and the hidden story of Nina to life

Fiction with a shot of post World War 2 history added. Quite complicated characters which I enjoyed getting to know. An intriguing way of telling the story.