This book was phenomenal! I am blown away by the story telling. The author did such an amazing job to make you care about each character! And of course this story is heartbreakingly tragic, but it is done so wonderfully that you can't help but appreciate being taken on this sad journey. This is story is for fans of historical fiction especially with anything to do with World War II !!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for this wonderful book!!!!

Isabella & Livia are two very different young women , but yet their lives will become so interlaced without ever meeting face to face. Wartime has a funny way of bringing people together in a myriad of ways without them ever seeing or touching one another. However, to find out in what way these young ladies have their lives intersect one has to read the book because I do not want to reveal any type of a spoiler!

Just know that this was during the war in Italy when Germany was muscling their way in trying to take over and the Allies were also trying to help the Italian Resistance rise up against Mussolini!

The author has based the book loosely on two real life heroes of the Resistance and has used key players within the War as well. She has done a wonderful job a the Historical documentation!

I loved the characters and flow of the book and read it all in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down!
I plan to buy my own copy! So, yes I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you to the authors and publishers who work diligently for us the readers.

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.

This is a great novel about wartime Italy, although the two main female characters are based on real people. It's interesting in that Livia is a politically savvy student whilst Isabella is a rather naive actress. Both of them eventually realise that Mussolini was really bad news for Italy, especially when the country decided to swap sides and ended up sliding in to civil war. An interesting and engrossing read.

Set in Italy during the time of World War II, this is the immersive story of a college student who becomes involved with the resistance and the beguiling italian actress Isabelle Belluci

It brings life during the war and resistance to life in heartbreaking detail. The unrest, the fear, the horror, the terror and the trials of daily life. It's a wonderful evocative read and you can tell the author has done a great deal of research and taken care to get things really spot on.

Debbie really does write some fine novels and this is one of them.

Fantastic read, very interesting. I haven’t been able to read many books from the Italian side of things so this was refreshing. It’s your heart clench in some parts, I would love it if this could be adapted into a series. It would be fantastic to see in live action.

Historical fiction is one of my favourite genres and while most books that I have read centered around WW2 have been based in the UK, this is the first one set in Italy, we have two main characters Livia and Isabella who never meet but are connected through Vicenzo and find their lives in constant danger from the Germans. I felt sorry for Isabella who at the start was naive and easily influenced, she put her self in great danger to protect Vicenzo and was on trial as a collaborator, something that she had to live with her entire life. It was my first time reading anything by Debbie Rix and I would definitely read her other books. I got this as an arc to review and would like to thank the publishers and netgalley for letting me have the book to review and the opinions expressed are entirely my own views and are completely unbiased

The Italian Girls by Debbie Rix is riveting and who wouldn't love a story based in Italy! This beautiful story of bravery, sacrifice and love weaves the lives of a young University student, Livia and her fellow university student friends that become involved with the Resistance to warn the allies of the Fascist police and the German soldiers plans. The German army has settled right in Florence and threatens the lives of their people. In Rome, the beautiful actress Isabella Belluci knows ways to infiltrate the Germans and she too will weave her way into helping the Resistance in any way she can but needs the Fascist government so she can help the Resistance. But this could cost her her career. Their stories intertwine which make the story so captivating, I couldn't stop reading until I knew what happened next! Thank you to Net Galley for an Advanced Copy in exchange for an honest review. This book is going to be added to my Book Club future reads.

Set in Italy during the time of World War II, we follow the lives of two very different women.
Livia Moretti, a college student who bravely becomes involved with the resistance and the beautiful and beguiling Isabella Belluci, a famous film star.

The Italian Girls is an epic tale of bravery, sacrifice and heroism during a time of great unrest and unimaginable horror and also a tale of friendship, family, trust in those close to you and of a time when love and romance could also flourish.

Clearly a huge amount of research was done by author Debbie Rix as she effortlessly combines historical fact with fiction as we are taken back in time to war torn Italy.

As always, beautifully written and with a myriad of fascinating characters I loved it and would certainly recommend to all lovers of historical fiction.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for an ARC for my honest review.

Enjoyable historical fiction based in Italy during WWII. It brings the city and its problems right into your living room and makes you see the hardships that you never read about. Some of the story seemed a little implausible, but it was still entertaining.

Italy like the many countries during the war saw its citizens rise up amidst Fascism and Nazism. This is an overlapping story of two young girls and their role in helping to save the lives of the tragic innocents who were massacred by the thousands. You are left with overwhelming sadness and unshed tears.

The Italian Girls by Debbie Rix

Thanks to Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book I really enjoyed it. Having very little knowledge of what happened in Italy during WW2, The Italian Girls gave me my first insight into the Nazi occupation of Italy and the resistance work that was done there.

The story focuses on two women, Livia and Isabella. Although both women are wealthy, they come from very different backgrounds and have a very different experience of the war only being linked by Italian aristocrat and film director Vicenzo. Both women show bravery; doing their part for the war effort but in very different ways and with different motivations. Although their stories cross, they never actually meet.
Overall I really enjoyed the plot and story line of this novel. However, there were some problems with the writing that let it down; preventing it from being an amazing 5 star read. For much of the book, although enjoying the story, I struggled with it and could not put my finger on what was actually wrong with it. The characters, although not always likeable are interesting to read about and well developed. The descriptions are there but the story lacked atmosphere but my main problem with the novel was the dialogue. This often seemed unnatural and stilted which meant I found the characters and therefore the story unbelievable. Also, there were several points in the story where I should have felt my heart racing with fear for the characters and I didn’t. I feel that the writing was rushed which meant the build up to big events was missed and then when the events happened they were brushed over and finished very quickly. Having said this, I did enjoy the book and I am left wanting to read more about Italy during WW2.

Lone of the greatest things about historical fiction is that it often takes you on a journey to places you’ve never been, events scarcely mentioned in history books and introduces you to brave .characters who are based on real people. The Italian Girls did just that for me and what an incredible journey it was that often left me on the edge of my seat.

Livia is a brave college student who attends university in Florence. Isabella is a famous actress residing in Rome. Though the two never meet, their stories are intertwined thanks to being mutual friends with a famous director, Vincenzo. Livia recognizes that the future of Italy is In peril under the German occupation. When she learns that her father is secretly part of the resistance, she also asks to join. Isabella desperately, madly in love with Vincenzo and mad with jealousy denounces Livia to the Germans after only hearing him mention her name. Isabellas actions infuriate Vincenzo, who is secretly involved in the resistance himself.

Livia is an amazingly brave character who endured torture for a free Italy. She saved lives and transmitted information to the allies. She put her life in danger every day for others and what she believed in. Isabella rubbed elbows with Nazi elite to save Vincenzo’s life and was eventually accused of collaboration. Actual historical events are weaved intricately into this story, which often sent me to Google for more information...I love it when a book does that.

It’s crazy how two people who have never met, can have their lives intertwined in wartime. I highly recommend this book to all WWII fiction aficionados. It takes you inside the Italian resistance as well as the Italian film industry during the war. Thank you to NetGalley and Debbie Rix for the opportunity to read this gem before it hits the shelves!

**i did catch several typos throughout my journey in this book. Nothing major, just spelling typos and an occasional name mix up. None of this errors affect the story in any way but I did notice them.**

The story begins slow, a bit too slow for my liking. It was difficult to feel any connection with the characters and I felt that Livia and Isabella were childish and immature. Things picked up towards the end of Part 2 and especially into Part 3 where the Resistance movement was being illustrated. World War II historical fiction is a favorite genre of mine and it was refreshing for a story not set in Germany but rather from the perspective of Italians and how the country was torn at this time. I didn’t feel that Cosismo could be trusted, despite him not being a traitor, I didn’t find that the author wrote him in a trusting way. I always questioned his motives and dialogue. The author succeeded in showing Livia’s desire for truth and justice when she wrote fairly on Isabella’s court case and furthermore, by confronting The Count about his failure to truly prove Isabella’s innocence. Here, the author did a superb job of showing the coward of a man he was. The closing scene was touching between Isabella’s grandson and Livia.
3.5/5

#TheItalianGirls #NetGalley
Thanks NetGalley, Bookouture and Debbie Rix for an ARC to review.
Historical fiction is my favorite genre especially WWII. Based in Italy 1941 we follow the life events of Isabella Bellucci a famous actress and Livia Moretti an art and history student and how their paths crossed during the hideous war years.
Gripping and beautifully written it certainly motivated me to look for more books by Debbie Rix.

Historical fiction is my second favourite genre. I love to read about the world war , the sufferings and struggles kinda make me realise how terrible times people of that particular generation have seen. The Italian Girls by Debbie Rix was indeed a pleasant read.

I loved reading about the Italian environment, Florence and its Duomo tales are so fascinating.
When Germans step in Italy we see the dark memories of the previous century. Livia Moretti and Isabella Bellucci reminded me of Sophie Lefevre from The Girl You Left Behind.
Isabella’s sacrifices everything for saving the love of her life was heart wrenching.
I wanted to see some more pages, the end of the novel seemed a bit rushed up. Otherwise Issa thumbs up 👍

A beautifully written book. I was enthralled with the story all the way to the end and stayed up too late reading. A real page-turner. The writing is spectacular. A perfect historical fiction novel.

This book had me gripped into the story from the start.
I found i just could not put it down.
the year is 1941 and Isabella Bellucci actress and a rising star.
we follow her remarkable journey through the war, that is startling reading.
I really enjoyed this book
and will recommend to all.
thank you to Net galley and publishers for the copy.
well deserved the stars fantastic.