Review: Florence, Italy...city of beauty, history, art....and mystery!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 8, 2013
The Yesterdays of FlorenceDim shadows often memories may be;But thy old memories are brightest things,O Florence!---All have voices, whisperings,Of those who won thee immortalityAnd fame throughout the world.  And these are thee.Thy poets, painters, sculptors, are the kingsOf thy renown.  It is their fame that bringsPilgrims to thee, o'er every land and sea,An endless host.  Here in thy palaces,Museums, churches, loggias, in thy storeOf art, and picturesqueness of thy beauty,Are thy great yesterdays:  thy glory isIn those bright, medieval days of yoreThat wrought the artist crown for thy fair city.William Leighton  c1909Beautiful Florence, Italy.  A city of history, art, romance and mystery.Narendra Simone's 'Tuscan Dream' takes the reader right into the heart of Florence.  From a courtyard in the beautiful Piazza San Giovanni, to the lovely cafes, through museums, churches, and the countryside Mr. Simone's characters literally take the reader  on a tour of some of the most breathtakingly beautiful places in the world.The story begins with the confession of young Mary, dying with cancer.  As she begins her dying confession to the priest, her musings take her back to the very beginning, a spring in Tuscany.  This spring, her sister, Kitty who is a tour guide, meets David.  It was an auspicious day, both Kitty and Mary had a feeling that something wonderful was going to happen.  Kitty stays at the train station and meets David convincing him to hire her as his guide.David, the tortured veteran of the Falkland Wars, has been traveling Europe seeking inspiration for the novel that he hopes will help him to finally slay his demons.  He finds this inspiration in a little cafe over dinner.  A young woman, with the most beautiful and elegant hands he has ever seen, and David is in love.  When he finally meets her, he is both delighted and chagrined to discover that she is Kitty's sister, Mary.The three young people become very good friends as they travel Florence.  They share their histories, and their pain, and their joys.  When David discovers the horrible truth of Mary's past, and her relationship with her husband...the mystery begins.Take your time with this story.  Savor your time in Florence.  You will come away from this book with both the satisfaction of a well told story, and a better understanding of a magnificent place!