Great book! This was a fun and short read that takes you to a quaint little farm in the Sibylline Mountains of Italy where you get to follow the headstrong Mariuccia as she helps save an oracle. I loved Mari's character and felt the book could actually have been a bit longer.

I unfortunately, wasn't a fan of Saffron Henderson's narration. I feel like she would be great for children's books but just didn't work for this one.

I enjoyed this book set in Italy in the 1800s that makes good use of religious superstition and beliefs in Gods and Oracles. The narration was a little more distracting that I usually enjoy because of the attempts to provide different voices, all in Italian accents. But, it didn't take too much away from my ability to like the story/characters.

Audiobook ARC from the publisher via NetGalley, but the opinions are my own.

The Oracle of Cumae was an unexpectedly enjoyable foray into a different time and place. While erring on the side of silly, it was entertaining and absorbing. I listened with a smile on my face.

This is one of those books I’m very glad to have gotten on audio. The names of characters and settings would have been impossible to wrap my head around otherwise. I was grateful to have someone pronouncing them for me, instead of being constantly distracted by my own poor internal attempts every time I stumbled across them in the text. Also, there is something about the story itself that lends itself incredibly well to an auditory experience. After all, the framework is that of an old woman telling the secrets of her life to a priest on her 99th birthday. That setup is perfect for an audiobook.

My favorite thing about this novel is the setting. Early nineteenth-century Italy isn’t a setting that would usually grab me, but a large portion of this story took place in a remote mountain village that seemed happily adrift in time. It was utterly charming, and I would love to live in, or at least visit, such a place. The scenery was well described and sounded absolutely beautiful.

The characters in this book were seriously wacky. Mariuccia, our perspective character, is grouchy in her elderly present and a snarky tomboy in her teenage past. I really liked her. And then there’s the Oracle herself. She just about defies description, but I enjoyed her immensely. The rest of the cast ranged from pleasant to amusingly antagonistic to downright silly. I did a lot of eye rolling and, even if entertaining, this all became a bit much after a while. I prefer my humor dry and in smaller doses than an entire novel, but it didn’t grate too terribly. Some of the voices the narrator chose for these more laughable characters might have been part of what made the story seem over-the-top, but said choices also did a lot to flesh out these characters. Saffron Henderson, the narrator, gave a great performance.

While not perfect, The Oracle of Cumae was a fun read. The supernatural element was just enough to give the story a little extra kick, the characters were unique, and the setting was lovely. If you like your historical fiction with a dash of magical realism and a heaping helping of humor, I think you might enjoy this one.

The Oracle of Cumae was such a fun book to listen to! I didn’t expect it to feel so lighthearted going into it but it truly felt like I was sitting next to an elder and listen to them tell their story. I’m convinced that Melissa Hardy must know a lot of Italians because all the characters felt like one of my own large family events. No one took themselves too seriously, and always made time for food and wine together.