Don’t get me wrong, I love everything I have read by Adriana Trigiani. Her books 
are great, lighter reads. But The Shoemaker’s Wife was a little underwhelming for me.
The Shoemaker’s Wife by Adriana Trigiani is a story about Ciro and Eduardo, who are sent to live in a convent in Italy when their father dies and their mother is unable to deal emotionally. Ciro grows up to be a shoemaker, while Eduardo becomes a priest.
Through many connections, Ciro meets Enza, a young girl in the same area of Italy, who becomes the love of his life. . . eventually. (But Trigiani tells you it will happen in the beginning so that’s not a spoiler!). They get jobs, move somewhere far away, live their lives, blah blah blah.
I really really wanted to like this novel. I had heard such great things and had been recommended to read it by many people with good fictional sense.
But this book just was not my thing. It was way too much love story for my taste. I’m not a sappy, love story kind of girl. I can take some romance as long as the main storyline is pretty strong, but the main storyline here was a romantic one. I also thought it should have ended three chapters earlier.
If you enjoy a good fictional book with a mainly romantic plot, this book is for you! If not, check out her other books! You might enjoy them!
What about you? Romance fan or not?
rscaglione.wordpress.com 
I feel the same way about romance in books–I’m not the super sappy type, either.
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Yeah, then if you haven’t read this one yet, you should skip it.
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I shall. Thank you.
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I’ve been curious about this one. Hmm..doesn’t really sound like my cup of tea though.
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Try another Trigiani first, like Queen of the Big Time. There’s always romance involved, but this time it just took over I feel.
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I think this book was being offered to any blogger who wanted to review it a while back; I’m glad I passed on it! I’m not really into books in which romance is the main element, either.
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Then it’s probably not going to be your favorite. But I really enjoy other Adriana Trigiani books, like Queen of the Big Time (which does have a romance piece but also a larger plot along with it) and Lucia, Lucia.
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I happened to read her other title “Lucia Lucia” a few months ago and I love it!!
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She really is a great author. I have loved everything by her, except this one was too romancey for me, but Queen of the Big Time is another good one!
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Thank you for your recommendation. I will look for it. I love stories set in Italy. Other than Adriana Trigiani, I have also read most of the titles by Nicky Pellegrino. It will be great if you can recommend me other writers. looking forward to hear from you again.
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I’ve never read anything by Nicky Pellegrino, but Trigiani always has very Italian characters, even if the book is not set in Italy. I recommend all of her books.
Off the top of my head, the only other set-in-Italy book I can think of is Angels and Demons by Dan Brown! I read it while I was in Rome two years ago, which was really cool because I could say “I went there!” and “We’re going there tomorrow!”
What else do you like to read?
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Thank you for the information. Angels and Demons sounds really cool. I will go get it.
Other than Nicky Pellegrino, I am also a big fan of Santa Montefiore. I have read most of her titles available here and my favorites are The Italian Match-Maker and The French Gardener. She use simple words to construct beautiful sentences.
I prefer stories and writings from female authors. I find them more emotional and sensual. And stories set in Italy will evolve around food and some with really good recipes which can make me glue to the couch for the whole day.
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While not a book with an Italian background, check out the information from Goodreads or Amazon on Like Water for Chocolate. It’s a quick read with lots of recipes and a great story.
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I think I have seen that title before. I should get it. Thank you for your recommendation. Really nice talking to you. 🙂
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You too! I’m sure we will chat again! 🙂
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I read mostly positive reviews, so it’s good to read yours to balance it out. I didn’t realise it was so focused on the romance, and the cover looks more historical literary than pure romance. I do read romance, so I’d likely be ok with that, but generally know in advance!
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Then you’d enjoy it. The writing is good, just like every other Adriana Trigiani book, and I didn’t hate it. But I’m just not a romance novel type of girl, and while this is not straight up romance, it has a little too much for my taste!
BTW, I thought my review would be 100% positive, too, but oh well! That’s what makes us all different!
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I just finished listening to The Shoemaker’s Wife. I think I was waiting for more to happen. I enjoyed it, but I was not one of my favorites
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Did you think it was a little too much on the romance? I know you’re not a romance fan.
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I am definitely not a romance fan and was up in the air about getting this one, so thank goodness I’ve read your review! I did enjoy her Valentine series, but that was much more balanced between a love story and a tale of an independent gal and a business, so I was comfortable with it.
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I completely agree with you! I can take the romance aspect when the other storyline is more pronounced, but this ended up being more of a love story with a story line that went along with it. Some people might not call it romance, but to me, it was more romance that I’m certainly used to!
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While I didn’t think this was as good as other books by this author it held my attention. It was more of an escape than a great book.
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I agree with you completely. Except it was a little too lovey for me. I like a little less romance. Or none. But with Trigiani, she has some romance usually thrown in there, and a little bit works for me.
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