Point Books As The Rossetti Letter (Claire Donovan #1)
| Original Title: | The Rossetti Letter |
| ISBN: | 1416527370 (ISBN13: 9781416527374) |
| Edition Language: | English URL http://www.therossettiletter.com/ |
| Series: | Claire Donovan #1 |
| Characters: | Claire Donovan, Andrew Kent, Gwendolyn Fy, Giancarlo Baldessari |
| Setting: | Venice(Italy) |
Christi Phillips
Hardcover | Pages: 383 pages Rating: 3.75 | 4962 Users | 485 Reviews
Interpretation Concering Books The Rossetti Letter (Claire Donovan #1)
In this captivating debut, Christi Phillips blends fact and fiction, suspense and sensuality into a vibrant, richly imagined novel in which a modern historian uncovers a courtesan's secret role in a shocking conspiracy of seventeenth-century Venice. Claire Donovan always dreamed of visiting Venice, though not as a chaperone for a surly teenager. But she can't pass up this chance to complete her Ph.D. thesis on Alessandra Rossetti, a mysterious courtesan who wrote a secret letter to the Venetian Council warning of a Spanish plot to overthrow the Venetian Republic in 1618. Claire views Alessandra as a heroine and harbors a secret hope that her findings will elevate Alessandra to a more prominent place in history. But an arrogant Cambridge professor is set to present a paper at a prestigious Venetian university denouncing Alessandra as a co-conspirator -- a move that could destroy Claire's paper and career.As Claire races to locate the documents that will reveal the courtesan's true motives, Alessandra's story comes to life with all the sensuality, political treachery, and violence of seventeenth-century Venice. Claire also falls under the city's spell. She is courted by a handsome Italian, matches wits with her academic adversary, bonds with her troubled young charge, and, amid the boundless beauty of Venice, recaptures the joy of living every moment....
Layering wit and warmth into her portraits of two very different yet equally dynamic heroines, Christi Phillips shifts effortlessly between past and present in a remarkable novel that is at once a love story, a mystery, and an intriguing historical drama. Filled with beautifully rendered details of one of the world's oldestand most magical cities, "The Rossetti Letter" marks Phillips's debut as a writer of extraordinary skill and grace.
Define Containing Books The Rossetti Letter (Claire Donovan #1)
| Title | : | The Rossetti Letter (Claire Donovan #1) |
| Author | : | Christi Phillips |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | First Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 383 pages |
| Published | : | March 6th 2007 by Pocket Books (first published 2007) |
| Categories | : | Historical. Historical Fiction. Fiction. Mystery. Cultural. Italy |
Rating Containing Books The Rossetti Letter (Claire Donovan #1)
Ratings: 3.75 From 4962 Users | 485 ReviewsCrit Containing Books The Rossetti Letter (Claire Donovan #1)
Underwhelming. The story was full of cliches, and I wasn't terribly impressed with the author's writing in general. I guess it's a point to her credit that she didn't have Claire and Andrew get together in the end, though it doesn't make their interaction any less contrived. I do like how the narratives switched from Claire's story to Alessandra's, but I feel like the two stories weren't really woven together very well. The story itself was engrossing at parts, but the characters were terriblyThis is one of those books that has two stories going alternately at the same time, one in 17th century Venice, the other in present-day Venice. The 17th century story involves a young courtesan and the Spanish Conspiracy. The present-day story involves a young woman working on a dissertation regarding a letter written by the courtesan concerning the Spanish Conspiracy.This is not deathless literature, but is well-written and not too full of cliches. Also not too full of racy parts. There is one
Wonderful fun, snappily written -- this is part historical novel and modern day, with a complicated plot playing out in the past while in the contemporary chapters, a history student tries to figure out what happened (for her dissertation). It's all set in a sparkly, enticing Venice with charm and intrigue and action and romance. The author is very good at playing off the two interleaved sections of her novel and at keeping the suspense going.
Claire Donovan is working on her dissertation and needs to go to Venice but can't afford the trip. Gwen Fy is a rich teenager in need of an adult to deliver her safely to her father in Europe. Claire is a caricature of the writer who never gets out of her pajamas, while Gwen is the unhappy little rich girl who likes to cause trouble. As you might expect, their mutual problems bring them together on a trip to Italy, and after a rough beginning they predictably begin to bond. Claire is in Venice
I really enjoyed Claire's story. I felt like the reader is left hanging a little bit in terms of Claire's future. The history portion was not as interesting as I hoped. I liked learning about the courtesan life and Venice during the 1600's, but I felt the presentation of the actual conspiracy was confusing and not the interesting.
I thought I would love this book- courtesans, historic Venice; sign me up. Unfortunately I thought it was poorly executed with awkward transitions from a pedestrian current-day doctoral student trying to finish her dissertation on an elusive historical figure. Would not recommend.
Claire Donovan, still reeling from her divorce and single-mindedly working on her doctoral dissertation, has a heart stopping moment when she reads about another academic who may have evidence that her entire thesis is flawed. The evidence is about to be presented at a prestigious conference in Venice, Italy, but Claire cannot afford to attend. Out of the blue comes an all-expenses-paid opportunity to chaperon a young girl in Venice, while her father honeymoons in France. Off goes Claire,
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