The Tuscan Secret

By: Angela Petch

Narrated by: Ellie Heydon

Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's Summary

An absolutely gripping, emotional, World War II historical novel

Il Mulino. An old crumbling mill, by a winding river, nestled in the Tuscan mountains. An empty home that holds memories of homemade pasta and Nonna’s stories by the fire, and later: the Nazi invasion, and a family torn apart by a heartbreaking betrayal.

Anna is distraught when her beloved mother, Ines, passes away. She inherits a box of papers, handwritten in Italian and yellowed with age, and a tantalizing promise that the truth about what happened during the war lies within. 

The diaries lead Anna to the small village of Rofelle, where she slowly starts to heal as she explores sun-kissed olive groves, and pieces together her mother’s past: happy days spent herding sheep across Tuscan meadows cruelly interrupted when World War Two erupted and the Nazis arrived; fleeing her home to join the Resistenza; and risking everything to protect an injured British soldier who captured her heart. But Anna is no closer to learning the truth: what sent Ines running from her adored homeland? 

When she meets an elderly Italian gentleman living in a deserted hamlet, who flinches at her mother’s name and refuses to speak English, Anna is sure he knows more about the devastating secret that tore apart her mother’s family. But in this small Tuscan community, some wartime secrets were never meant to be uncovered....

A stunning tale, inspired by true events, about how the tragic consequences of war can echo through generations, and how love can guide us through the darkest times. Fans of Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale and The Letter by Kathryn Hughes will be captivated.

This book was previously published as Tuscan Roots.

©2019 Angela Petch (P)2019 Bookouture

Frustratingly naive main character (spoilers)

How could Inez, a member of the Italian resistance during WWII, be so obtuse. She, a girl from rural Italy, should at least be knowledgable about the birds and the bees from the farm animals if nothing else. But to expect her life to become a fairytale after experiencing first hand the horrors of the war is a down right silly premise for a novel. The narrator really played up young Inez's naivete too with her childish voice. I felt no connection with any of the characters because there wasn't sufficient insight into their history to sympathize with them. I only get the briefest of glimpses into the previous lives of all the other characters except Inez and still her story wasn't well developed. And how could her husband suddenly become the villain when he returns to England? He was a POW before meeting Inez so don't try and tell me the last few months of the war while the 2 were apart were enough to change him into a different person. If this were the 1st WWII era novel I'd ever read I might have given the story 3 stars for lack knowing better, but this I can't finish. I hate wasting my time listening to bad stories.

Learned so much Italian history during ww2

What a great story. There are very few Italian stories during ww2. I know beCause this subject is my main genre. Good character development and descriptions of land both great. Would read more from this author. Highly recommend

An enjoyable listen.

I enjoyed this Angela Petch book, my first. Although romance is not my usual genre , I was captivated by the Tuscan people’s struggle against their leaders in the Second World War. . Refreshing to hear new resistance stories. Ms Petch is a master descriptive writer! I loved how she created the sights, sounds, food and ways of the
Italian people and countryside. Some of the most evocative I’ve listened to. I also have to admit that even the romance parts were acceptable! And that’s high praise from me. My only real quarrel with this whole audiobook, which I received as a free copy, was the grating “little girl” voice the narrator used for Anna, the central character and occasionally she slipped into it for other people. Aside from that her narration was really good. So with reluctance I can only award three stars for the narration, it should have been 4.

WWII new perspective

The Tuscan Secret by Angela Petch is a gem! The book gave me a new perspective of WWII in Italy. Parts of the story are tragic. Some of the characters were incredible showing determination to survive and flourish, while others were despicable. I found myself fascinated by the story, The imagery was vivid in portraying the scenes and atrocities. The storyline kept me engaged. I really enjoyed the Tuscan Secret, and it will stick with me. Ellie Heydon was great bringing the characters to life. She added the right emotions to her voice, and had had distinguishable voices and accents that were fitting. I requested this review copy audiobook and have voluntarily written this review. I would definitely listen to more books by this author and narrator.

The Tuscan Secret

I received the physical copy of the book as a gift. I decided to get the audio version as well, and I am so glad I did. Following along while listening made me feel like I had experienced everything that was going on in the book! I definitely recommend this book and the ones to follow!

Beautifully written, wonderful story but a little racy at times

I loved everything about it except for several moments of seemingly unnecessary detail during intimate moments for the characters. I wish it could have been less explicit as I don’t feel I can recommend it to friends with parts like that included. But the story was wonderful and Angela Petch is a fantastic writer!

Beautiful Story!!

I loved this book. I loved the story of the present as much as the one the character was reading of the past!!

Very moving book

A very moving book about an English war bride and her family. It traces their lives through years of war, the post war period and lingering suffering inflicted by the brutality of the war down to the present .

,Italy under the Nazis.

I really enjoyed this perfectly paced historical novel. It was set in current time and during WWII Tuscany and the two were connected by diaries, written during and after the war.

When Anna's mother, Ines, dies, she leaves her daughter some cash and a series of diaries. Anna decides to take a trip to Tuscany, where her mother was born and lived, until she moved to England after the war. Unfortunately the diaries were in Italian and Anna's skills in the language are not up to translation, so she has to find someone to translate for her. This was a great tool to allow gradual dissemination of the content and the life of Ines amongst the Partisans.
I loved that this was based on true events, along with considerable research, and the narrative felt very real. I was totally immersed in the lives of both the historical and the present-day characters and although I did guess the ending, I would have been disappointed if the author had ended it any other way.
There was also an interesting side-story, relating to a child who had selective mutism, since the death of her mother.

The book evoked wonderful images of the tastes and smells of italy, alongside traumatic wartime images. A powerful combination.
Lovely narration by Ellie Heydon.

More love story than war story

This was a wonderful romantic with the was as more of a backyard. Good but very light on the historical fiction.

What a great listen!

Thoroughly enjoyed this from start to finish. Likeable characters, wonderful descriptions of Italy and a love story to boot. Not cheesy or sickly, a really good listen. Narrator was excellent and really invoked feelings or being swept along. (Whilst all Italian sounds fluent, I wouldnt know how accurate but was great. There were two words in English that were mispronounced and you do notice them but the do not detract at all from the story, characters and enjoyment of the book). Loved it and highly recommended

Exciting untold story of WW2

Beautiful story about the people of Italy rebelling against the war their countries leader is partaking in.
Covering ww2 to present day, had me gripped.
Loved it very much

WW2

I really enjoyed this book. I listened on audio and often found myself driving around to finish chapters! I love most books where there are different stories, told by different sides that all tie up together. Anna’s mother passed away and leaves her her diaries. As her mother was Italian Anna decided to travel there to see where her mother grew up and where her story cane from. Won’t ssy anymore but if your looking for a good read/listen - I highly recommend

Beautiful

A delightful, poignant story of love and loss. Anna is in Italy discovering her Mother’s story through her old diaries. Her Italian mother Innes fell in love with her English father Jim during the war and moved to England to set up life with him. The diaries are Innes gift to Anna and reveal a side to her mother that she has never seen. I loved this story so much I did not want it to end.

The Tuscan Secret

Totally enthralled by this story written by Angela Petch which was so descriptive of this beautiful part of Italy. Narration by Ellie Heydon was delightful and I can’t wait to listen to more of these great author’s books.

The Tuscan Secret

Wonderful read. WWII in Italy and the long term effects lasting generations. Learned a lot I didn’t know. Lovely ending.

Good story

Really engaged with this story
Had to get used to the narrator doing the different voices

A weak attempt.

I didn't enjoy the the reader's simpering manner. She is better suited to a less dramatic story; but I would say the same of the author. There is not enough intellectual weight for a story of this nature.
Additionally, only 50% of the audio book downloaded and the refund option is not available without too much effort.

Quite nice

Quite a nice book with quite nice storyline, but not an unputdownable. Ok if you want an easy listen

A bit boring

This was very different to the other book I listened to by the same author. Unfortunately it was a boring story and went on for far too long. I am struggling through the last couple of hours but I doubt much will improve. The narrator has a young voice and therefore difficult for her to portray the voice of an old lady.