4.5 Stars

Atmospheric, captivating and beguiling, Debbie Rix’s The Italian Girls is a spellbinding historical novel so gripping that the pages will just turn themselves.

On the surface, Livia Moretti seems like a typical old lady who spends her mornings in a café close to the Duomo having an espresso and reading her newspaper. The plethora of tourists who throng the busy streets of Florence are too busy taking selfies and posting their pictures on their various social media platforms to pay much attention to this old lady who sits quietly by watching the world go by. There is, however, nothing about Livia that is ordinary. For she had had to be brave, courageous and fearless to ensure the future of her beloved city. For Livia those long and dark days of fighting to preserve her city are long gone – until she opens up her newspaper and comes across a name from the past she never thought she would see ever again. A name that stops her in her tracks and brings to the fore events and secrets that Livia had thought long buried…

Isabella Bellucci had been a siren of the silver screen whose beauty had bewitched every single person who had come her way. With the Nazis having taken control of Rome, Isabella had found herself compelled to make an impossible choice between protecting herself or sacrificing everything for the man she loved with all of her heart. With the war sweeping all across Europe, loyalties were tested and friendships destroyed as surviving became paramount. With life more unpredictable than ever before, a horrible misunderstanding tangled the fates of Isabella and Livia forever. As each woman is faced with the hardest decision that she will ever make, they must decide who and what they will risk in order to protect the ones they love.

Debbie Rix’s The Italian Girls is a heart-breaking tale that readers will not forget easily. Debbie Rix is a wonderful storyteller who brings the past to such vivid and colourful life it’s impossible for readers not to feel as if they are living the story alongside Livia and Isabella. Debbie Rix’s gift for characterization is absolutely superb and the two women are characters that are flawed, human and easy to relate to and empathise with – even when they make decisions the readers might not necessarily agree with.

Beautifully written, powerfully told and wonderfully evocative, Debbie Rix’s The Italian Girls is a story of hope, courage, friendship and survival that will linger in the heart and mind long after the last page is turned.

The Italian Girls by Debbie Rix is the intriguing story of two young Italian women during WW II. One, Livia, is an active member of the Resistance, spending time in jail and on the run. The other is Isabella, a rising movie star, who is politically naive and acts only to save someone she loves. Life is Italy deteriorated rapidly as first Il Duce and then the Nazi's came into power. Sadly, many Nazi's were loyal to the cause only until something or someone they were interested in came along, and then they could be persuaded to give "favors." Such was the case for Isabella who was able to save several people from certain death, more with promises than actual affairs. Yet, she was eventually labeled a "collaborator," and put on trial. Livia really led a charmed life as she came out of the whole mess relatively unscathed. Their paths crossed only peripherally and yet the effects lasted a lifetime.

The difference between the personalities of the two is striking and Rix did an amazing job of telling their stories and yet keeping her audience sympathetic to each. WW II stories tend to be about the Holocaust, which this was only marginally. The war against the Jews took place in Italy as well, but not nearly to the extent that it did in Poland. Livia and her father hid a Jewish couple and their son in their apartment for over a year, with Livia attending the birth of their second child. Their amazing escape was one of legends. Cosimo, Livia's boyfriend, and eventually her husband, had more reason than the others to be a member of the Resistance and did so enthusiastically, if not always intelligently. All in all, it was a great read, full of poignant moments and reasons to never forget. I recommend it.

I was invited to read a free ARC of The Italian Girls by Netgalley. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #theitaliangirls

The Italian Girls is a very gripping story about two women who never actually meet but become connected through an unfortunate misunderstanding and a huge lie.

The story is told through both of their POVs, alternating with each chapter. The transition between the ending of one chapter and the beginning of the next wasn't very smooth and I often found myself going back to re-read it and remember that no, Isabella/Livia's story did not continue onto the following page and it was the other girl's turn.

They each did their part in the war, Livia being the more "hands on" one, fully joining the resistance. Isabella's efforts were mostly centered around helping the one man she was desperately in love with but who could not love her back. That's not to say she didn't give her all, she did, but I still didn't like her very much.

My favourite thing about this book is Livia's father. He's incredibly supportive of everything she does and it made me cry like a baby. Their relationship is the best.

I also love Cosimo, he's brilliant - compared to Vicenzo who's...annoying. You'd think he'd become kinder or at least more aware after all he goes through during the war but no, he just gets worse.

I like the way some of the historical figures were portrayed and the notes at the end will certainly help me get better acquainted with the ones I haven't heard of.

The book is long but hard to put down. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, even though the ending was a tad bit disappointing.

*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*

This is an interesting and believable story about 2 women who were involved with the resistance in Italy during WW2. This is definitely a great historical fiction story. The characters are easy to relate to even though they are totally different. You will want to read this book... it is full of bravery and courage.
Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book prior to publication. My review is my own and is in no way required by the publisher.

Wow, what a fantastic book! This one drew me in right away. The story presents 2 female viewpoints dealing with the changes brought on in Italy by WWII and how each character has her part in the resistance. This is the first war novel that I have read from this perspective. This author deserves much praise for this book. The characters are strong and well-developed and the story line is is compelling. I did not want to put this down. I really enjoyed reading this. The minute I finished I downloaded two of the authors other books. Historical fiction fans do not want to miss this book! 5 stars. Highly recommended!

This was a really interesting plot and i loved the change between characters. Livia and Isabella were both really intriguing women that i wanted to read more of. I feel like the chapters were short and lacking of much depth, they were small and went quickly, and i would have loved to linger on each character a moment longer.

A big thank you to Sarah Hardy and Bookouture for issuing me with my review copy of the book.

The Italian Girls is a beautifully written story, set during the Second World War in Italy in 1941 and follows two women who both experience the war through very separate lives but become linked by a jealous lie. 

Livia Moretti is a young girl starting university and living with her parents in their apartment in the city, she has a nice life with her parents who have a second home in the quiet countryside. This all changes when Livia witness the brutal treatment of many of the Jewish citizens who realise they need to go into hiding to avoid the camps that they are been sent to. Livia and her father, are determined to make a stand and try to help as much as they can by harbouring some of residents and trying to keep them safe.

Isabella Belluci is an actress, famed for her beauty, she has been little affected by the war that is happening around her and lives her comfortable life whilst attending glamorous parties and mixing with some of the Italian Government officials along with Nazi Officers. She falls in love and and is completely transfixed by film director Vicenzo Lucchese who is also a family friend of the Moretti's and becomes obsessed with him. She starts to think that Livia is perhaps more than a family friend to Vicenzo and in the hope of having him to herself she mentions Livia to some of the Italian Officials who become suspicious that she is a member of the Resistance who seem to be one step ahead of their plans......

The Italian Girls is a fantastic book that I absolutely raced through eager to find out how things would work out for both Livia and Isabella and how their experiences of the war would shape their characters lives later on. Livia experiences the harsh side of the war and nothing is sugarcoated by the author which adds to the emotion I felt in the book. The historical research done by the author was excellent and you could sense that she had taken her time to ensure its complete accuracy.

This is probably one of my favourites books of the year so far!

Highly recommended!

Thank you Netgalley for this lovely early read of such a lovely book. Such a lovely drama story and cant wait to read more by this author

Livia Moretti, despite the war has just started studying English Literature and History of art at an Italian university and she’s excited to make a new friend in Elena Lombardi a fellow student. Livia’s father Giacomo has a legal practice in Florence, they have an apartment in the city and Livia moves in with him and when she begins her studies. Her mother Luisa spends a lot of time at the family villa in Tuscan countryside, the family is very lucky having two homes and more food than other Italian's. Life in Italy during WWII was really hard; Mussolini supported the Germans and he believed together they would defeat the allies. He also decided to send thousands of Italian soldiers to fight in Russia it was a total disaster, they lacked basic supplies and Livia’s boyfriend Cosimo was one of them.

Isabella Bellucci, is a famous Italian movie star, she’s beautiful, a bit of a diva and she has to be seen at all the right places. She’s tried everything to get the attention of film director Vicenzo Lucchese, he’s not interested in her romantically, this infuriates her and she’s extremely jealous. Isabella makes a big mistake; she now needs to protect herself and what will be the repercussions for what she’s done?

The Italian people not only lost their beloved sons in Russia, they had to put up with terrible food shortages and having no wood to heat their fires. Many became very disillusioned with Mussolini and they joined the resistance. Livia becomes involved she listens to radio London broad casts; she passes on vital information to the Partisans and is now wanted by the Germans. Life in Italy becomes worse, the allies are constantly bombing the cities, the German’s are looking for anyone who’s Jewish, hiding them or involved with the resistance, everyone is paranoid about being reported to the authorities and it’s very intense.

The Italian Girls is inspired by a true story about two very brave women and how both were linked together by war. It was easy for me to become totally immersed in the book, I wanted to find out what happened to Livia and Isabella, to learn more about the terrible war in Italy, it was a real page turner and five stars from me.

INTERESTING PREMISE AND STORY BUT IT DIDN'T SWEEP ME AWAY

There were several things that I liked when reading this story and overall it was a good read that kept my attention. But the things is... I didn't love it. There was just a disconnect for me. But I do believe that others might enjoy it more than I did.

👍 What I Liked 👍

Different experiences: The two main characters, Isabella and Livia, come from very different backgrounds and live very different lives. I really enjoyed the juxtaposition of their lives, how different their experiences were. Isabella is an actress who moves in very important (fascist and nazi) society. Livia is a college student who joins the rebellion to work against the fascists. Learning of their lives side by side, and even seeing how they also became entwined for a while, was interesting.

Livia: There is no doubt in my mind that Livia was by far my favourite character. I loved how she acted on her own, how in control she was of her life and her destiny but I especially liked how she always tried to help and care for others. She was truly a strong, capable girl!

👎 What I Disliked 👎

Pace: The pace of this book was all off for me. Especially the beginning was really slow and it took awhile for the story to really get going. In my opinion, the 'fault' lay in the dual storylines. Rix took too long building the universe and the backgrounds of these two women before she finally got to the actual story. It hurt the overall story in my opinion.

Isabella: While I loved Livia, Isabella was her exact opposite and it made me dislike her more and more as the story went on. Where Livia was independent, Isabella was incredibly dependent. She has an almost childlike dependency as well as a singleminded focus all throughout the book. She pretty much became a walking, talking repetition of herself. I don't believe she ever really made a single decision for herself. Of course I understand that this served to further the gap between Livia and Isabella, but I just didn't like her at all...

Ending: While the beginning was too slow and took too long to get going, the ending was annoyingly rushed and anti-climactic.

This review is for a 33 percent read book. I did not finish. This is the story of Livia and Isabella , two women from two different paths that are joined together because of war. Isabella is a movie star and Livia a commoner. This was a heavy book for me that seemed to drag . I was not pulled in to keep reading. Thank you for the advanced copy

Before I even opened this book, I was intrigued. A historical fiction novel set during WWII in my favorite country of Italy-what more could you want in a book? I was immediately drawn in to the cast of characters.

The story centers around two women. Livia is a university student in Florence. Her want to join the resistance was brave and courageous. Growing up in an Italian American home, I couldn't help but feel a connection to Livia and her family. Isabella, a famous actress, finds herself in a dangerous world and is forced to face some difficult choices. Although the women never meet, they share a connection.

I did find the flow of the writing to be a little difficult to follow. It was a tad choppy for my taste. But all in all, it was an entertaining read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book for an honest review.

I love this author and everything she writes. And this book- wow!
This is everything I look for in historical fiction - well researched, stunningly written and beautifully realised. I was transported. I lived and breathed this book - I could think of nothing else. This author has the ability to make the reader empathise with the characters, forget their surroundings and immerse them in her story to the exclusion of everything else. Very few authors can do that but this author does it effortlessly and with panache. An outstanding masterpiece of a book. Please read it.

I love historical fiction and I'm italian, so I was excited to check out The Italian Girls by Debbie Rix.
The story follows Livia, an university student who becomes involved in the Resistance, and Isabella, a famous actress with an unrequited love for a film director.
The book was overall an enjoyable read, even if nothing special. I enjoyed both storylines, and the events were interesting, especially in the second half of the book. The characters didn't convince me much. Livia was likeable, while Isabella annoyed me a little for her naivety and disinterest in the political events, although it was believable considering her sheltered life. However, neither of them stood out to me. They were quite forgettable.
Still, I would recommend the book if you are interested in the setting.

Set in Italy during WWII. 1941: Lavia Moretti is a college student who becomes involved with the Resistance. Isabella Belluci is a beautiful and famous film star. The two women never met but they share a connection through Vicenzo and they're both in constant danger from the Germans. The German army has settled in Florence and threatens the lives of the people living there.

Olivia is a rave character who endures torture hoping Italy will one day be free. Isabella rubs along with the Nazi elite to try and save Vicenzo's life. A story of sacrifice and bravery. The era has been well researched. The characters are believable and well rounded. I felt sorry for Isabella who was niece and easily influenced. The story is quite a slow burner but its definitely worth sticking with.

I would like to thank #NetGalley, #Bookouture and the author #DebbieRix for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley, Debbie Rix and Bookouture for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I adored this well-written book from start to finish, it's a page-turner, no doubt. I finished it in two days.
The novel is set on Italy during WWII and the writing style is really evocative, I felt like I was watching a movie.
I am amazed by the storytelling. The author makes you care about each and every one of the characters, keep in mind the author has based the book loosely on two real-life heroes of the Resistance.
There's history, there's war, there's romance, bravery, sacrifice, there's everything you would want in a book like that.
I appreciated the insight at the end of the book. Definitely recommend!

I was swept away by this beautifully written, richly evocative story that traces the journey of two young Italian women where a despicable betrayal is inspired by jealously and love.

The location is Italy 1941 during World World II where both young women find themselves doing their part to stand up against fascist domination with their bravery and selflessness.

Livia and Isabella are from such different backgrounds and how their paths connect through a mutual friend is the central theme to this tale.

Livia is a young university student, the daughter of a lawyer who was fiercely anti-Fascist. Livia is eager to join the resistance.

Isabella Bellucci is a famous film star known as Italy’s little sweetheart, she finds herself dangerously caught between the Fascist authorities which ran the film industry in Rome and her devotion to film director Vicenzo Lucchese.

The Italian Girls by Debbie Rix is an exceptional read for lovers of historical fiction, you won’t be disappointed. The story was inspired by true events and the lives of real women.

I wish to thank NetGalley & Bookouture for providing an advanced copy to read in return for an honest review.

The story is loosely based on real lives. In the story two very different women find their lives intertwined even thought they are not aware of each other. Set in Florence and Rome in WWII Livia, is a student and resistance fighter who takes risks every day while Actress, Isabella Bellucci has little to worry about apart from her unrequited love for the man of her dreams. The story traces their everyday lives in Nazi occupied Italy and is richly drawn.

We also meet Livia many years later living a quiet life alone in Florence. Something in the newspaper catches her eye and takes her and us back.... An un-put-downable read which I devoured in a couple of days. Would recommend.

The novel is set on Italy during WWII.
Two young wen from different backgrounds are living their realities with fascism as the background. Isabella, a glamorous actress from humble origins at times consumed by jealousy, whose innocence and naivety sometimes lead her to be an accomplice of those who committed the worst atrocities .
Livia, a young student committed to the resistance who exhausts all her means and resources in her attempt to save lives.
One in Rome, one in Florence and the noise of the bombers and human despair as the background of this gripping historical novel that is based on the real stories of two brave women: the famous "white telephone" actress, Maria Denis, who worked for Cinecittà, and the Resistance staffetta named Gilda, who helped to run Radio Cora, the
clandestine radio used to keep contacts between the Allied forces and the Italian Resistance.
Beautifully written and historicaly accurate.

I loved this book. And i inhaled it. This book is about wartorn italy. It is about peoples strength to fight for what they believe in. It always amazes me how strong people can be under hard circumstances. And how they carry after been brutally hurt or toetured. I highly recommend this book. Thank you to netgalley for letting me read this e arc in exchange for an honest review