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Of My Own Hand's Weaving
Romantic fiction at its very best! Set against the background of the Swinging Sixties it tells of a web of intrigue and a maelstrom of affections as Jeannie, the heroine, becomes involved with Col, a sensuous young Sicilian who is working in a classy hair salon in England.
Jeannie has been corrupted by all that's happened in the past. Now twenty seven, she's living in her friend Gretch's botched up attic conversion, and a right pair of weirdos they are. Sexy, money-grubbing Gretch, having escaped the misery of post-war Germany via dependable Frank, is stuck - for now - with a husband she despises and two kids. As for our heroine, Jeannie, well, she's done what had to be done to get, if not love or affection, at least men's attention. And she settles for that.
Until, that is, Colombo Borgia comes into her life. Col is a powerfully attractive and talented hairstylist with an unshakable belief in the importance of family, honour and fedeltà. Fidelity! In the Swinging Sixties? Gretch has hysterics but urges Jeannie to make use of Col's gorgeous body and practise 'sexual manoeuvres' after a long lay-off.
Maybe she's got the right idea for Jeannie finds Col's passion, and stamina, compelling. If his brother, back in Sicily, hadn't got word of their liaison, their affair might have continued indefinitely. Or Jeannie thinks it might. Instead, LeoLuca arrives and insists on meeting her.
LeoLuca – idolised by an adoring Mamma – demands, as of right, anything he wants. Especially anything belonging to his younger brother. Women – even, way back, Col's chosen teenage bride-to-be – have inconstantly fallen for the devil. One look, one quick intake of breath, and Jeannie knows why. The stink of depravity is familiar to her. And when he indecently gropes her, she watches four men struggle to drag Col away.
Yet he follows LeoLuca back to Sicily. Who knows how men's warped minds work? But when Col returns, he's determined to marry his 'Gina'. What is left for him in Sicily? Seven years earlier, when his father had refused to disinherit his younger son, Papà had had to die. At Mamma's hand? LeoLuca's? Or some collusion of the conniving pair? Too late any which way, the will already signed and sealed. The witch, Maggalà, must be bribed with gold. A cut of Col's hair is snatched and his silk shirt, the pink silk shirt Jeannie loves so much they've been sharing it, week and week about. Does that mean she will become infected?
The plot thickens as Col falls ill and struggles to recover but recover he does and, when Mamma dies, he takes Jeannie, the wife he has secretly married, back to Sicily for the funeral, and to resolve the situation with his beguiling and bewitching brother by any means he can conjure up.
Col has knowledge of sorcery. As a boy, he'd helped the strega, Maggalà, and draws on the skills he'd learned. His step-by-step 'intervention' carries mortal risks to both he and Jeannie but – Thank God! – succeeds.
And Jeannie's conversion is absolute, she knows it will be. All you need is love.
Take a ‘Look Inside’ to find a compelling and absorbing love story with a difference. Filled with passion, action and bound by a wonderfully evocative narrative, this innovative piece of romantic fiction will delight and surprise in turns.
Jeannie has been corrupted by all that's happened in the past. Now twenty seven, she's living in her friend Gretch's botched up attic conversion, and a right pair of weirdos they are. Sexy, money-grubbing Gretch, having escaped the misery of post-war Germany via dependable Frank, is stuck - for now - with a husband she despises and two kids. As for our heroine, Jeannie, well, she's done what had to be done to get, if not love or affection, at least men's attention. And she settles for that.
Until, that is, Colombo Borgia comes into her life. Col is a powerfully attractive and talented hairstylist with an unshakable belief in the importance of family, honour and fedeltà. Fidelity! In the Swinging Sixties? Gretch has hysterics but urges Jeannie to make use of Col's gorgeous body and practise 'sexual manoeuvres' after a long lay-off.
Maybe she's got the right idea for Jeannie finds Col's passion, and stamina, compelling. If his brother, back in Sicily, hadn't got word of their liaison, their affair might have continued indefinitely. Or Jeannie thinks it might. Instead, LeoLuca arrives and insists on meeting her.
LeoLuca – idolised by an adoring Mamma – demands, as of right, anything he wants. Especially anything belonging to his younger brother. Women – even, way back, Col's chosen teenage bride-to-be – have inconstantly fallen for the devil. One look, one quick intake of breath, and Jeannie knows why. The stink of depravity is familiar to her. And when he indecently gropes her, she watches four men struggle to drag Col away.
Yet he follows LeoLuca back to Sicily. Who knows how men's warped minds work? But when Col returns, he's determined to marry his 'Gina'. What is left for him in Sicily? Seven years earlier, when his father had refused to disinherit his younger son, Papà had had to die. At Mamma's hand? LeoLuca's? Or some collusion of the conniving pair? Too late any which way, the will already signed and sealed. The witch, Maggalà, must be bribed with gold. A cut of Col's hair is snatched and his silk shirt, the pink silk shirt Jeannie loves so much they've been sharing it, week and week about. Does that mean she will become infected?
The plot thickens as Col falls ill and struggles to recover but recover he does and, when Mamma dies, he takes Jeannie, the wife he has secretly married, back to Sicily for the funeral, and to resolve the situation with his beguiling and bewitching brother by any means he can conjure up.
Col has knowledge of sorcery. As a boy, he'd helped the strega, Maggalà, and draws on the skills he'd learned. His step-by-step 'intervention' carries mortal risks to both he and Jeannie but – Thank God! – succeeds.
And Jeannie's conversion is absolute, she knows it will be. All you need is love.
Take a ‘Look Inside’ to find a compelling and absorbing love story with a difference. Filled with passion, action and bound by a wonderfully evocative narrative, this innovative piece of romantic fiction will delight and surprise in turns.
241 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 23, 2014
2 people are currently reading
26 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
November 11, 2015
"Of My Own Hand’s Weaving" is a deliciously quirky new addition to the chick lit genre by Mary Boscoletta. To say the least, this author has talent. While this, her debut novel is “typical” of the formulaic girl meets boy/boy gets girl, the characters are uniquely atypical. They are all too human, touched with the kind of descriptive realistic details that instantly capture a reader’s interest and imagination. Consider twenty-eight year old Jean, the main protagonist, who, living in a friend’s London attic, finds herself deeply embroiled in the conundrums of friendship, family, familial memories, betrayal, loyalty, and, of course, romance – emotionally, passionately, physically, and otherwise. Her distinctly nearly profound insights garnered as she steps boldly into the throes of love with Colombo “Col” Borgia, a very sexy Sicilian hairdresser, are captured by the author in a most refreshing, face-paced style. And her supporting cast is as equally weighty and deep: Gretchen with her down-to-earth post WWII Germanic lustiness; Frank’s lovable, cuddly weakness and culinary talents; Stefan and Peta who struggle with the death of wife and mother. Even long-dead Aunt Mary rings true. Jean is in the thick of them all, tooling around in a semi-battered Triumph convertible; trying to find her own way, to make sense of it all. No chick lit superficialities here.
The title, gleaned from a poem by John Keats, alludes to the self-woven silk threads that bind us all to others, they to us, and us to ourselves. A theme that the author quite capably carries through. There are reflective moments when each of the characters twist and tie and then unravel as they, seen through the author’s eyes and caressed by her own capable hands, weave the stuff of life that another bard once said, “dreams are made of”. Yet, while on the fast track to capturing her own true love, Gina (as Col calls her) is captured by more than just his dashing allure. It is his dark side and the curse of nightmares that entwine and entrap the not quite intrepid heroine. As this uniquely imaginative novel quickly twists and wends it way to a satisfyingly surprise denouement, the question is asked: Will she or will she not be blessed with the great love that promises living happy ever after?
Riddling her writing with Sicilian words, customs, and Italian phraseology that add depth and realism to her story, Boscoletta has woven her writing charms into a story that captivated me in the depths of its passion for life and for love. And just might have persuaded me after I enjoyed idling away a rainy afternoon with this one, to pick up yet another of its kind. Romance, anyone?
The title, gleaned from a poem by John Keats, alludes to the self-woven silk threads that bind us all to others, they to us, and us to ourselves. A theme that the author quite capably carries through. There are reflective moments when each of the characters twist and tie and then unravel as they, seen through the author’s eyes and caressed by her own capable hands, weave the stuff of life that another bard once said, “dreams are made of”. Yet, while on the fast track to capturing her own true love, Gina (as Col calls her) is captured by more than just his dashing allure. It is his dark side and the curse of nightmares that entwine and entrap the not quite intrepid heroine. As this uniquely imaginative novel quickly twists and wends it way to a satisfyingly surprise denouement, the question is asked: Will she or will she not be blessed with the great love that promises living happy ever after?
Riddling her writing with Sicilian words, customs, and Italian phraseology that add depth and realism to her story, Boscoletta has woven her writing charms into a story that captivated me in the depths of its passion for life and for love. And just might have persuaded me after I enjoyed idling away a rainy afternoon with this one, to pick up yet another of its kind. Romance, anyone?
September 17, 2015
Perfect Holiday Read
It was a nice change to dip into a bit of romantic fiction; I seem to have been reading nothing but dark dystopian fantasy lately so this was a bit of light relief! The book is well written; the characters all have a depth and are never one dimensional. Boscoletta has a knack for describing the small things, she adds in sweet little touches that really make a difference to how the reader feels about characters as well as how we judge them. Gina may have been the protagonist but I loved Gretch; every woman should have a friend like her! She definitely steals the story for me; it was the attention to detail that Boscoletta has applied to her character, the fact that she wore Scholl’s made me smile I had a precise image in my mind of the way she looked and moved!
Of My Own Hand’s Weaving is a story about love, life and relationships, be they friends or lovers. If you are a fan of chick lit then you will love this and it would make a great holiday read.
It was a nice change to dip into a bit of romantic fiction; I seem to have been reading nothing but dark dystopian fantasy lately so this was a bit of light relief! The book is well written; the characters all have a depth and are never one dimensional. Boscoletta has a knack for describing the small things, she adds in sweet little touches that really make a difference to how the reader feels about characters as well as how we judge them. Gina may have been the protagonist but I loved Gretch; every woman should have a friend like her! She definitely steals the story for me; it was the attention to detail that Boscoletta has applied to her character, the fact that she wore Scholl’s made me smile I had a precise image in my mind of the way she looked and moved!
Of My Own Hand’s Weaving is a story about love, life and relationships, be they friends or lovers. If you are a fan of chick lit then you will love this and it would make a great holiday read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews