Tuscan Rose
Already a best-selling author internationally, Alexandra makes her American debut with her fifth novel. It begins in Florence, Italy, in 1914, when an infant with a silver key tucked in her blanket is left at a convent. Fifteen years later, Rosa reluctantly leaves the convent to become a governess for a powerful but cursed family. Rosa has amazing powers of perception, and just as she begins to piece things together, she is falsely accused and imprisoned. While there, she is raped, and the resulting child becomes her heart’s focus. She falls in with a traveling theater troupe, which is a cover for anti-Fascist rebels. As WWII breaks out, Rosa is forced to choose between safety for her child and following her love. In the tradition of The Thorn Birds and Corelli’s Mandolin, Tuscan Rose is a sweeping story, taking Rosa from musician, to antique dealer, to nurse, to revolutionary, all the while maintaining her indomitable and loving spirit. There is plenty of intrigue, emotion, and bravery, and a few scenes that will remain with the reader for some time. --Elizabeth Dickie