I don't want to criticize an authors story, because it is her story to tell. That said, hear is my thoughts. I loved the story line. Characters were great! And Emily figuring out a long kept family secret even without the help of her aunt was a great mystery. I was so caught up in the hunt for answers that the book kept me reading late into the night. But, I didn't like the ending. I thought the main character, from the "past story" was a selfish woman. Selfish and mean. Self centered and childish. And the author makes her that way all the way to the end of the book. I don't think the author thinks of her as selfish and mean, but she is. The other issue is that by the very end when the past main characters meet up again, he's on his death bed and the woman in the present story, Emily, never does mean the woman from the past, which is crazy because she's her Grandmother. A grandmother who has been missing for like 70 years. Nothing is resolved. I guess you just have to imagine they meet later, which is crazy because the whole book is about these two women and their connections. And then Emily's Aunt, who she's staying with says no to going and seeing this old man, on his death bed, but she has loved him her whole life. The only thing resolved in this book was the old mystery of what happened to this woman in the 1940s. I didn't find this book as lovely or charming as most did. I got annoyed with the nicknames in the diary for half of the characters (but not everybody). Plus I thought all the fate things were a whole lot far fetched and became unbelievable. I also had issues with the main character who wrote the diary. She seemed to have control over everybody. I felt like I was really supposed to like her, but I didn't. I thought a lot of the stuff she did was underhanded. I feel like the way her life turned out could've been totally avoided at just about every turn.
Do You like book Il Diario Di Velluto Cremisi (2011)?
A charming summer read…while you have to suspend reality at times, the story is quite lovely.
—noob007
Not sure I got much out of this one - a bit soft and not much content. But a fast read.
—fidelityintegrity
I love stories about family secrets. Wonderful love story!
—tcn19000
