The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza is a book about strong women and powerful friendships that examines the changing roles of women and the demands that society places upon them.
Chef and restaurateur Sara is struggling, she has been forced to close down the business she built from scratch and her marriage has fallen apart. The last thing she needed was for her beloved Great Aunt Rosie, the woman who supported and encouraged her all her life, to die. When she learns that Rosie has left her the deeds to a parcel of land in her native Sicily with the instructions to sell it and restart her life, Sara is shocked. It turns out that the situation is a little more complicated and the ownership of the land is in dispute, so Sara must travel to Sicily to try to untangle the issues and claim what is rightfully hers. Once there she uncovers a mystery involving the murder of one of her ancestors, her namesake Serafina, a woman who was not willing to settle for the role that society and the church laid out for her, instead fighting for medical care and a better life for all the women of her village. Despite the decades that have passed, a strong independent woman who challenges the status quo is still not safe and soon Sara finds herself in danger and unsure of who to trust as she tries to uncover the truth and reclaim her inheritance.
This was a truly wonderful story with characters that came vividly to life on the page and such wonderful descriptive writing that I found myself transported to the Mediterranean. While I liked Sara and her tenacity , for me Serafina was the heart of this book and her story was the one that kept drawing me back to the book. The mystery at the centre of the plot is cleverly plotted and well paced and the reveal felt earned and satisfying.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

This is two stories, one in the present and one in the past. Sara, in present day Philadephia, has been made bankrupt following the failure of her restaurant. Her Great Aunt Rose, who recently passed away, has left her the deed to a parcel of land in Sicily and requests that she go and find out if it is still valid and if it is, to sell it to settle her debts and start again. When Sara gets there, she is presented with another letter from Rose asking her to investigate the murder of her mother, Serafina,
The book flicks between the present and the early part of the previous century and tells Serafina's story as well as Sara's.
I wasn't sure to begin with, but then the book swept me up and I enjoyed it.

I LOVED The Sicilian Inheritance! This story drew me in from page one, and I hardly put the book down until I finished it. When I read a book with dual timelines, I find that one story, usually the one in the past, interests me much more than the other. Not with The Sicilian Inheritance--both stories had me enthralled. Jo Piazza did a masterful job weaving the two stories together into a satisfying ending. This is a fantastic book!

Sara`s marriage and business is on the rocks and her grandmother Rosie who she was very close to dies and leaves her a plan ticket to Sicily and a deed to a plot of land left by her great grandmother Serafina and selling it could change her life.
On arrival Sara does not know who to believe and trust with the truth as she was told Serafina was supposed to have been murdered not died of flu as her family was told and it all gets complicated.
loved reading about the history of Sicily very interesting.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC and I give my honest review.

I loved this one from Jo Piazza. The mystery set for Sara was the perfect antidote to her current life problems and I loved how she bravely started uncovering details of Rosie and Serafina’s life before.
The strength of the community of women both in Serafina’s time and currently was brilliant to read about. The history of strong women of Sicily was fascinating and I loved the message of women helping other women to survive and beat the patriarchy.
I wasn’t sure who to trust at times as Sara uncovered more and more about her family’s history but enjoyed seeing Sara grow in self confidence. The little snippets from Rosie providing huge comfort to her when needed. ( She sounded an amazing character)
A really great story of family and women in history.

I really enjoyed this book, especially Serafina's story, she was incredible.
I was totally hooked on all the mystery and intrigue and rumour.
Really cracking stuff.

#TheSicilianInheritance by Jo Piazza is out now.

Thank you to @hqstories for my copy.

Tracing your family history should be fun, it shouldn't come with threats and an old story about your great-grandmother being a witch. But this is Sicily and old feuds die hard.
Inspired by the author's own family history, this novel follows Sara Marsala as she travels to the village her family emigrated from years before to look into a disputed inheritance. It's also the story of Serafina, Sara's great-grandmother, who stayed behind, raising children, treating the sick, and ended up never leaving.
I found this book totally engaging, more Serafina's story than Sara's, I think Serafina was utterly fascinating, a woman doing things women didn't do in that time or place, someone who longed to leave her home but never did. The mystery around the land she was given is wrapped in rumours, then and now, and in unravelling the story, we're given a view of a time and place that is probably unrecognisable now.

#books #bookpost #bookblogger #bookstagram #hqstories #historicalfiction #mystery
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I'm a huge Jo Piazza fan, but this is without a doubt the very best of her work. I couldn't put it down and already suspect it will be a contender for my best book of the year.

A dual timeline mystery set in Sicily. I liked the setting, culture and narrative pace. An ideal beach read. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher or the arc.

This book was a lot more than I expected. I enjoyed the historical elements which were in stark contrast to Sara's present day life. I thought the setting was really well done and I enjoyed some of the characters and learning about the culture of Sicily. I was always looking forward to coming back to the story each night and it taught me some things about history that I didn't know.

The Sicilian Inheritance
By Jo Piazza

Anyone who judges a book by it's cover will have a hard time bypassing this one. It's gorgeous, and evocative and I knew I had to have it.

This is a dual timeline story with dual narrators, set in the ruggedly harsh bit impossibly beautiful island of Sicily. There's a murder mystery element, an exploration of identity, romance and friendship and insights into how Sicily became so exploited and impoverished, it's tradition of emigration, it's deeply ingrained patriarchy and the grip that the Cosa Nostra have on the economy, the government and social structures.

We discover how difficult life was and is, particularly for women, and how they coped against adversity through their particular strengths and resolves.

Piazza has captured a strong sense of place. Her connection and research is evident, with lushly painted landscapes and villages and epicurean delights.

This is a brain candy ŕead with substance that would be worth the space in your holiday luggage, or to stretch out with in the garden on a sunny day.

Publication date: 25th April 2024
Thanks to #NetGalley and #HQHarperCollins for the ARC

Dual time frame historical novels are tricky to get right, but when they work they are truly epic - as is the case in The Sicilian Inheritance. The characterisation of each of the main protagonists was three dimensional and the plot was full of truly thrilling twists and turns. I loved the inclusion of romance as well as mystery and the sense of setting was very strong. Perfect for an exciting beach read.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

This is an epic historical novel, & a murder mystery set in Sicily. The two main female characters in each time period are strong independent women. There’s a riveting dual timeline telling both Sara’s & Serafina’s stories. And there’s a complicated modern day ‘crime’ plot! So many twists & turns in this epic family drama spanning 100 years in Sicily. An enjoyable & intriguing read.

When Sarah is left a piece of property in Italy by her great-aunt Rosie she is keen to discover more of the story behind it. But she may find out more than she is prepared to.

Because the forces that sought to silence her great-great-grandmother Serafina many decades ago, in what Rosie believes led to Serafina's murder, are now ranging themselves against Sarah.

Yet the more that Sarah finds out about her feisty ancestor as a result of her investigations the more she realizes what an inspirational woman she has to draw strength from when it comes to successfully fighting her own battles...

I like the thrillers she writes best, but Jo Piazza has done it again, combining a fascinating family saga with events of Sicilian history to create a page-turner of a (semi) historical novel. Well worth reading! It gets 3.5 stars.

I've been to Sicily and this book really captures the feel of the island, beautiful but with a difficult past. The story shifts between Sara today and her great-grandmother Serafina in the early 20th century. Sara discovers that Serafina left her some land on the island. Some of the locals have other ideas! The two women may be a century apart, but their stories often run along the same lines. Sara falls for handsome local Luca but does he really feel the same? What really happened to Seraphina that meant she wasn't buried in the cemetery? Occasionally confusing to start with but a great read with an unexpected ending.

A fascinating story covering two timelines, 100 years apart. Sara Marsala's life has fallen apart, in trying to have it all she has lost it all - her marriage has broken down, she only has part time custody of her daugher and her once acclaimed restaurant has failed and the aunt who she was very close to has just died. Her aunt Rose has a mission for her, to go back to her home town in Sicily and discover what really happened to her mother, Sara's grandmother.
Her time in Sicily is eventful (to say the least) as was her grandmothers story that is told alongside hers. The comparisons of attitudes towards women who want to succeed on their own has not changed much from Sicily in the early 1900's to Sicily & the USA now.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read The Sicilian Inheritance.

Sara Marsala’s great-aunt Rosie has passed away, leaving Sara a valuable piece of land in Sicily,
However, she has to prove to the locals she is the rightful owner and she has to uncover what exactly happened to her great great grandmother. Did she die of natural causes or was she murdered?
Sara travels to Sicily for answers and soon finds out that she to is in danger and they will stop at nothing to get what they want.

I love reading a book set in a place I know nothing about and I found learning about Sicily really interesting. Sara is a wonderful character that I was routing for from the offset. She is lost and in need of regaining confidence in herself, travelling to Sicily to fulfil her beloved aunts legacy she learns about the strong line of women that she is descended from. The novel, is told from the dual perspective of Sara and her great grandmother Sarafina whom she is named after. Its striking how nearly one hundred years later how similar their lives are. Women had very little agency in Sarafina's time and Sara is really restricted as her marriage breaks down and she faces bankrupcy. The novel becomes very tense as Sara starts to investigate a piece of land that was left to her aunt. There is real menace among all the beauty of the island and no one can be trusted.

I really enjoyed the engaging and emotive writing style. A real page turner that I could not put down.

“My great-great-grandmother was killed in Sicily before she could join the rest of her family in America. My late father was obsessed with finding out more. Soon, so was I.”
This is how an April 1, 2024 online “Today” article dedicated to American writer Jo Piazza’s latest novel starts – compelling me to read on and find out more – and was I glad I did! Despite her prominent profile on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, Jo Piazza’s literary work is much less well-known in this country, and I hope multifaceted, intergenerational novel will change this!
The protagonist is Philadelphia chef Sara who is facing both personal and professional ruin: her marriage is in tatters and bankruptcy proceedings are imminent. A free spirit and fast learner, Sara is matched for spirit only by her aunt Rosie, whose unusual funeral takes place in the early stages of the plot. Rosie’s present from beyond the grave to her beloved niece is a plane ticket to Sicily, the Mediterranean island the family can trace their roots to. I began to love the descriptions of the island’s picturesque sun-baked landscapes, indomitable islanders, and gorgeous food. Although initially confusing, I also enjoyed the introduction of the character of Serafina, who is Sara’s grandmother and whom we encounter in the first decade of the twentieth century, who has carved a niche for herself in the patriarchal society as a female healer that makes her vulnerable to local prejudice and eventual persecution and raises issues that sadly, still persist in the twenty-first century.

All I can say is, this is a complex, intricately plotted novel that speaks to readers on multiple levels - I will definitely read it again to and am sure I will discover something new!

My grateful thanks go to the novel’s publishers to NetGalley as it was their advance copy that allowed me to read this literary treat and to produce this unbiased book review.

The first thing that drew me into this book was the fact it was based in Scilly. With my family originally being from there I thought this could be a great read. The story of Serafina having to marry young just like my own Nonna did. With my family also migrating and leaving the scillian life for better opportunities. I loved the power of the women in this book, but also the backwards ways that the patriarchal system still did stand in some smaller parts. I loved the double narrative of the book. The twists and turns and the authors own touch from her visits to scilly. The mention of sites has made me want to visit myself having never visited.

The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza is an enthralling dual timeline novel that I just could not put down.
The action is set in present day and from 1908-1925. We begin in America and travel to Sicily in present day and backwards through the years as a character searches for the truth as to what happened to her Great Grandmother. Stories have traveled down the years. But what is the truth? We all need to know where we come from.
This is a book about the roles of women. In both time periods, men like to think they are in charge as they bully those around them… but the women have a tough inner core, and prove to be resourceful.
As we, and a character in present day, uncover the Great Grandmother’s story, we find a woman ahead of her times. She is very intelligent and has been held back by the conventions of the time. Women, with knowledge about medicinal herbs, were often seen as witches and shunned. They were, in fact, healers and often proved to be life-savers to those who came to them for help.
Jo Piazza brings the Sicilian landscape to life with her words. It is a hot, sultry landscape with a delicious cuisine. There is a vibrancy not found in New York. All of the reader’s senses are assaulted in a good way.
There is the theme of sacrificial love. We witness the lengths a mother will go to, for the good of her children.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Sicilian Inheritance. It was the perfect read on a grey spring day as it brought colour into my life.
I received a free copy from the publishers. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.