The Italian Girls

By: Debbie Rix

Narrated by: Katie Villa

Length: 14 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

The sun hung low in the sky, casting pink light all over the city. A faint breeze blew over the rooftops, as flocks of starlings swirled above her, swooping and diving in unison. It seemed unimaginable that, even now, German soldiers were marching along the streets below. It was time, she decided, for direct action. It was time to fight back.

Each morning Livia Moretti makes her way from an apartment overlooking Florence’s famous Duomo to a nearby café, where she drinks espresso and reads the newspaper. To the crowds of tourists who pass by, snapping selfies, nothing about Livia will be memorable. She is simply an old lady. They walk on without knowing the part she played in ensuring the future of this beautiful city. And to Livia now, those dark days feel very far away too.

But today, when she opens the paper, she sees a name she has not heard for a long time. A name that will bring memories flooding back of Nazi troops marching through the city and the dangers she faced as a young woman, carrying out secret missions for the resistance.

Isabella Bellucci.

A siren of the silver screen, Isabella cultivated all the right connections to ensure her rise to stardom. But when Rome falls to the Nazis, Isabella is suddenly faced with the choice between protecting herself and all she has worked for or sacrificing everything to save the man she loves.

As the war rages across Europe, a terrible misunderstanding causes the fates of Isabella and Livia to become forever intertwined. And each woman must decide what she's willing to risk, to protect the ones she holds dear from a brutal enemy.

Inspired by the incredible true stories of two women in wartime Italy, this is a heart-wrenching and unforgettable tale of love, resistance, betrayal and hope. Fans of Kate Furnivall, Fiona Valpy and My Name Is Eva will be absolutely gripped.

©2020 Debbie Rix (P)2020 Bookouture, an imprint of Storyfire Ltd.

Absorbing. Katie Villa as narrator was superb.

I took a chance on this book and was very pleased. I have to point out that the narrator, Katie Villa, made this audio book compelling. Choosing her to chronicle this well-executed story was brilliant. She made each character discernible by voice alone and I particularly noticed she did not make the male voices sound silly or out of place. I was impressed. One cares about all the characters; liking or disliking them, but not feeling neutral. There are two protagonists in this book and I felt I got to know them. Well done Debbie Rix and Katie Villa. I'll be listening to this audio book again.

Now, confession - I worried that I had just bought, I'll just say it for brevity, a chic lit book (don't like the term, but you get my meaning I hope...). Not so. In fact, this book made me realize how, in general, the women who contributed so much to the Allied victory in WWII have often been overlooked. The two main characters in this book are based on real women. Now, I'm seeking out books, fiction and non fiction, about these women. To be clear - this book is for everyone.

In summary: The Italian Girls did what good books should do - reveal new landscapes to the reader through an absorbing story. One more time...well done Debbie Rix and Katie Villa. Please team up again.

I enjoyed listening but would have liked more historical details and less soap opera.

I enjoy historical novels especially during WWII in Europe. Although I enjoyed this book and appreciate the truth in it, I didn’t get as much out of the actual specifics of what went on as I have in many other novels set during the war. I felt at times it was a bit too ‘romantic’ and soap opera like. I DO recommend however!

Wonderful!

A wonderful story that once again leaves me in awe of The Greatest Generation. Sweet, brave, kind, and so very humble. A great story!

This was a very nice plesant story, enjoyed it so

I will recommend this story to my friends. You could really feel the story come to life as you listened intently.
Thank you, It was a pleasure to listen to.

Better than I expected

I will say this book ended better than it started. I thought it was a bit slow at first but very quickly started picking up the pace and was great throughout.
The narrator was good and was easily identifiable. The characters were believable and very well described.
I like this genre and am super hard to please and I was pleasantly surprised.
I would say give it a go!!

Tedious…could not finish

All the Italians have English accents. The women have SHRILL English accents. And these women are immature, naive and hard to take. I wanted to like this but, alas, it’s too painful to listen anymore.

Fantastic

Absolutely fantastic book! A must read., especially if you love historical fiction. Listen to the end for the author’s note it’s remarkable.

Good story - VERY slow start

This story started out SO slowly that I was about to despair if the Italians had actually had a Resistance movement. Overall good story and well written. The author was able to tell the story without graphic scenes or offensive language which is always appreciated (my own imagination can fill in any gaps). The narrator was good but the story would have been much improved with an Italian speaker. At least the characters would have had Italian accents. It is always off putting to have a European story told in an American accent.

Wonderful audio of ww2 bravery

I so admire the average Italian citizen who put their life and their families lives in danger to fight the fascists and nazis. Young innocent men and women which would become the greatest generation but so would their parents and old farmers and ordinary citizens. This book really kept my interest as I was not very knowledgeable about the fascist . Florence must be one of the worlds most beautiful places and to think it was partly demolished but has been built back to its former glory. I was sad when the book ended mid love Debbie Ric’s books

Renee Cloney

I enjoyed this book so much. It was wonderfully written, I could not stop listening! I love books based on true facts and stories. I Highly recommend this book!

Interesting history, terrible dialogue

Most of this novel is based on true events and so the world it inhabits is rich and interesting. The author explains this in the historical notes at the end where she also explains that she had to imagine the conversations the characters had. These conversations are like some of the worst soap opera dialogue, they turn characters into caricatures and the base level of exposition is insulting to the reader. Although this is supposed to be a novel about courageous women, I felt like the author doesn't really like women as none of the ones she writes about have any depth and aren't very likeable. Many of the characters appear as pantomime villains, Livias mother gets a particularly unfair representation. I felt sorry for the narrator, who did a good job with the voice acting considering the material she had to work with.

Shallow characters and dreadful narration

I was very disappointed with this book. The characters are bland and colourless. Considering this is fiction based on true events and characters, the author has not done them justice at all. A book that should've been about strong courageous Italian women during WW2, comes across as frivolous and weak. The characters are reminiscent of pantomime characters. Additionally, I found it very difficult listening to the narrator, whose accents varied from Scottish for the elderly mother to East London for another character. Could not recommend! Indeed I will avoid this author and narrator in future. I wouldn't waste money on any other works from either.

Debbie Rix, never fails.

Another informative novel regarding the war and the effect of so many who lived through it. Beautifully narrated. Totally spellbinding.

Spellbinding story

It took me 2 days and including very late nights to listen to this! Brilliant!

Captivating story based on fact

Thoroughly enjoyed the story line even more so as based on fact. I could sense the complete terror and intensity of certain situations and was gripped from the start. Would highly recommend.

Couldn’t stop listening

Although constantly annoyed by Isabella’s actions and thoughts, the fact that she is based on a real character makes it excusable rather than cliché.

Overall loved the story and the twists and turns. Brilliant book and brilliant characters.