
Member Reviews

I absolutely adored this book — no surprise there, since Buxton wrote some of my favorites of all time (Hollow Kingdom and Feral Creatures). Though this book is entirely different! I think that’s why it took me a second to get into, but I quickly fell in love with the tiny Italian village and its quirky and hilarious inhabitants. The writing is luxurious, and it will make you need a delicious meal as well as a Tuscan vacation. Fun, heartwarming, and exactly what I wanted.

WHO WHAT WHERE: This dying village of Lazzarini Boscarino in the Tuscan mountains, where the role of mayor almost went to a 22 year old donkey- named Maurizio, is in need of saving- the unlikely hero: A giant truffle!
MY THOUGHTS: This was one of the first 'humor' books I read and boy was it a fun time! The eccentric village swept me away to their varying concerns centered around a missing local- Sofia, Nonna Amara's house suffered a landslide, and the forewarnings of Giuseppina's psychic. The prediction including a fortune to come to the town, but not without a death... or two...
This animated village was a hoot to bounce between the POVs of most of them, even the bees and a spider! Especially the very nosy bumblebee watching some drama unfold with the townspeople! The truffle hunter- Giovanni and his dogs are also important perspectives in this one (I'm not a dog person, and had a hard time reading those but that doesn't change my opinion on the book!) I really enjoyed the authors use of Italian in this book- she nailed the use of different phrases especially in writing a funny book! Usually books will just stick to "buona sera/ grazie" but she really had a great natural flow between the two languages! (This is another personal note as I still have my reading goal of finishing a book in Italian lol)
I won't give any spoilers- but the last 6 or so chapters of this book picked up so well, anticipate some twists and turns that you won't see coming! It gets pretty juicy!
Overall a great fun read! Definitely check this one out!
Thank you to #NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the gifted e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I really wanted to love this one - the cover is gorgeous, the description sounds like so much fun, etc. etc., but the writing style just wasn't working for me. I had a hard time getting engaged, and I think, in part, the audio version + cast of characters at the beginning made it hard to figure out what was happening.

This is a beautifully written novel. The language had me hooked on the first page. The plot is a bit slow to start, and I trudged through the first few pages. Though I appreciated getting to know the setting and characters, the premise of the book - a truffle hunter and his dogs find the largest truffle ever - needed to make a much earlier appearance. Once the action started, I loved this book.
Highly recommended for light, quality reading.

What a charming, unexpected cast of characters! This book absolutely delighted me and felt like a warm hug.

Clever, charming, and (mercifully) far less absurdist than I was expecting.
I really did not love Hollow Kingdom but decided to give Buxton’s work another try after seeing the premise for this one, and I’m so glad I did. This is just an infinitely better book, especially if (like me) you really hate nonsense fiction.
This is, to begin, actually very funny. It’s clever and a bit of a spoof without veering into full absurdism, and it’s also a very sweet story about friendship and companionship and how they don’t always show up in the forms we expect.
Despite all being a touch ridiculous save for our protagonist (the story’s straight man to his supporting cast’s comedic roles), the characters are fairly well developed and likable rather than irritating, as comic fools can unfortunately sometimes be.
My lone complaint is that this book is significantly too long for the style and type of story. I actually think all comic novels need to be short, but that’s especially true of anything that touches on farce.

Thank you to NetGalley, Grand Central Publishing, and Ms. Buxton for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.
I came across this book while attending Library Journal Day of Dialog and viewed a panel with Ms. Buxton, whose books <I>Feral Creatures</I> and <I>Hollow Kingdom</I> I REALLY enjoyed (5 stars each if I recall correctly.)
<I>Tartufo</i> is a departure from the subject matter of the other two books, but it retains Ms. Buxton's absolutely magical and lyrical prose. The characterization, too, sparkles. There are a number of briefly mentioned characters that are difficult to keep track of and play very small roles, but that really wasn't a problem for me to keep track of. Overall the book had the madcap zaniness and offbeat characters of an English comedy (think Are You Being Served or Keeping Up Appearances, with a dash of Mr. Bean silliness), with absolute comedy gold every so often. I laughed SO hard during Giuseppina's visit to Umberto in Borghese that I almost fell off the elliptical at the gym. Seriously.
Ms. Buxton's deep love for Tuscany and everything that makes it unique is evident. I was really happy to see that her magic for making animal characters come alive was back even in a more "people-centric" book; perhaps other readers wouldn't enjoy passages from the POV of an ant or a bee, but I thought they brought so much character and life to the story. Every page of this story was as vibrant as its colorful cover. My favorite character BY FAR was Giuseppina, who is an absolute dream and comedy gold; I also enjoyed the portions from Aria's (the truffle dog) and Delizia's (the beleaguered mayor)'s points of view. There are so many little treasures in here: the odd art (Woman with her Weasel (!), Stefano's colorful pants, the Batmobile, Mamma Fortuna and her evil grandson, Umberto's sous chefs, *chef's kiss* I just loved everything about it. Frankly this book would make an *excellent* movie.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The rural Italian village of Lazzarini Boscarino is slowly fading away. There aren't many tourists, the restaurants are closed and town hall is filled with refuse. Bar Celebritàis the last place where villagers gather to gossip and drink. A few miles away, local truffle hunter Giovanni Scarpazza just found the largest truffle ever seen, possibly worth six figures in particular international circles. No one is sure if this will be a gift to the village or a curse.
This novel opens with a very languid, bucolic description of the town, the people, and even the truffle itself. The prior mayor had run up incredible debt, and the new one can't bear to let the people know about it. Once Giovanni finds the truffle, he has five days to properly sell it. This draws people together to try improving the village, though some people are interested in their own gain.
The townsfolk are all tropey characters, but I had a really hard time connecting with any of them. They're dramatic and silly, and scenes progress with cinematic timing. One of the characters even says "Sometimes silly is the very ingredient that we need!" The novel certainly incorporates this a lot, especially with the high-end restaurants and auction staff. The various storylines come together by the end of the novel; so that characters often get what they need, even if they think they want something else. If someone enjoys more comedic timing, this is definitely one to look out for.

Thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this eARC!
This was such a wonderful and light read! I wasn't sure what to expect, but I loved the characters and the story. I also loved that in the beginning of the book there was a list of all the characters; that helped so much. I can't wait to read more from Kira Jane Buxton.

Happy pub day to this quirky read! Thanks to Grand Central, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for early reader and listener copies in exchange for my honest opinion. I started by listening to the audio, and I thought the narration, including the Italian accents, made the story more fun, so I mostly listened, following along in the ebook at times.
Tartufo translates to truffle, and this book follows the discovery of a massive truffle and the auction that the unknown town of Lazzarini Boscarino, which is in need of money, holds to sell it. If you aren’t aware, truffles are some of the most expensive foods, as they are hard to find and grow, and they do not last for a long time, so time is of the essence in this book. While it took a little while to get going, I really enjoyed this story and giggled quite a bit while listening.
I’ve had truffle fries and pasta with truffles, and I personally love truffle cheese. Trader Joe’s makes an excellent one - it’s super flavorful! I have heard about truffle hunting, but this book gave a good mix of information along with a fun story. One of my favorite parts of the story were the interactions between the humans and the side character animals: Aria the truffle-hunting dog, Maurizio the donkey that ran for mayor, and, my favorite, Al Pacino, the seemingly always-pregnant female cat
This was my first time reading this author, and I have seen great things about her previous book, Hollow Kingdom, so I’ve added that to my TBR. The book is available now, and I recommend it and the audiobook!

I REALLY loved Buxton's Hollow Kingdom books and this latest is another drama-filled story with plucky animal side characters who steal the show from the small Italian villagers whose lives get turned upside down when a truffle hunter and his dog find the world's biggest truffle. Told from alternating POVs, the sheer number of characters to keep track of in this story was a bit daunting but it was just dramatic and over the top enough to keep me thoroughly entertained from start to finish. Definitely recommended and good on audio too!! Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Tartufo by Kira Jane Buxton was such a delightful and heartfelt novel!
The beautiful descriptions and unforgettable characters made this book so hard to put down!
A sweet and funny story that I highly recommend!

🍃Set in a sleepy little Italian village surrounded by forests, Tartufo is a charming novel full of humor, heart, and a strong sense of community. The village is almost bankrupt, with landslides having destroyed homes and tourists flocking to the more famous village nearby. But what binds the story together is Nonna Amara and the love the villagers share for their four-legged companions.
One such companion stumbles upon a treasure that could change the fate of the entire village—but what lies ahead is for fate to decide.
This book is as funny and heartwarming as it is emotional. It’s a little slow to start, but once the story picks up, I found myself fully immersed. The vivid descriptions of nature and the forests transported me straight to this enchanting village, and the characters felt so real.
A delightful read with humor and heart, perfect for anyone who enjoys stories about small communities, unexpected surprises, and the bond between humans and animals.
Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for the copy!🍃

Kira Jane Buxton’s Tartufo will make you wish you could spend your next vacation surrounded by the people and forests of Lazzarini Boscarino, a tiny Tuscan village.
As Giovanni Scarpazzi’s truffle-hunting dog Aria first detects the pungent odor of underground treasure wafting through the air from forest to Bar Celebrita, the depopulated village’s last surviving restaurant, former veterinarian Delizia Micucci will soon convene her fiirst meeting as newly elected female town mayor. After narrowly defeating Maurizio, the beloved local donkey and her closest opponent, Delizia now faces more nearly insurmountable obstacles: a missing woman, a skyrocketing cat population largely attributed to the revengeful Al Pacino, a landslide that displaced beloved elder Nona Amara, and the problem Delizia dreads bringing up at all—one that threatens Lazzarini Boscarino’s very survival. .
In a place where the powers of nature and time play equal roles, readers encounter not only truffle-hunting dogs, an aging donkey, and a troublesome cat but also ants, a honey bee, a spider, a wild boar, the world’s largest and most valuable truffle,, a wedding, a wake, a birthday party, an exorcism, a Southeby’s auction, a heist, a Dark Knight, a fortune teller, an ex-con postman, a priest with a notorious but hidden past, a female bartender described as New Year’s Eve incarnate, and an octogenarian grandmother, who is village cook, hand-holder, heart-mender, and proponent of the philosophy that “sometimes silly is the very ingredient we need.” And that is only a start!
Thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Groupfor an advance reader egalley of the latest treat by Kira Jane Buxton’s—a novel that will make readers laugh out loud and hold their breath in suspense, but one that will also touch their hearts. ,

I didn't think I would enjoy the writing style once I began, but it did grow on me. The scenery, the characters all such charming additions.

Lazzaroni Boscarino is a dying Italian village that all the tourist skip over but that might all change according to Giuseppina’s psychic who has give her a message… that she can’t remember all of but it has something to do with a visitor, riches and a death or you know whatever. The towns post man might be on the run from the law. There might be a lovable Nonna who everyone would do anything for. A donkey that maybe ran for mayor. Delizia who is working behind the scenes to save the town. And a truffle hunter who is using his truffle hunts to seek peace after losing the love of his life. Two adorable truffle hunting dogs, one who is more reliable than the other. Oh and a cat name Al Pacino. The quirky cast of characters really goes on and on. But you won’t know unless you visit Lazzaroni Boscarino while reading this lovely story. I hear the coffee is good at Bar Celebrità, enjoy!

Unexpected!
A slight wind originates in the depth of the forest imbued with a pagan secretive scent. It winds through the undergrowth stimulating and sensual, quietly and gently whispering in and around the small and charming medieval village of Lazzarini Boscarino.
All have left but a few.
Mayor Delizia longs for the fortunes of the village to be different.
Thanks to the chemistry, the magic of a truffle, change comes in an unexpected way.
A slow start, gathering interest as the rather special story unfolds.
A Grand Central Pub. ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Thank you, NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this ARC for review. This book was absolutely delightful! It took a minute to get into the story, but once I did I couldn’t put it down. I read this author’s previous book, Hollow Kingdom, VERY different subject matter and much less cussing 😂, but similar theme- family. Tartufo takes places in a small Italian village on the brink, that no one knows about and if tourists DO find their way there, it is by mistake as they were looking for the bigger, fancier city down the road. That is until the mayor finds the biggest, most impressive beautiful white truffle- Un Tartufo, and then there’s the possibility of fame and riches the village as never known, if only the people of the town can get it together and not mess it all up.

Kira Jane Buxton's Tartufo is a literary feast for the senses, brimming with evocative descriptions, unforgettable characters, and a narrative that feels both wildly imaginative and deeply heartfelt. Known for her unique ability to bring vivid worlds to life, Buxton does not disappoint here—her impeccable sensory writing transforms each scene into a multi-dimensional experience.
From the lush, atmospheric settings to the smallest sensory details, every description feels alive. Buxton's prose is so textured that you can almost feel the humidity in the air, hear the rustling of leaves, or taste the tantalizing dishes that are such an integral part of the story. It's a masterclass in immersive storytelling, where the world-building is as palpable as it is enchanting.
The true heart of the novel, however, lies in its lovable cast of characters. Each one is brimming with personality, quirks, and depth—so much so that they leap off the page. The relationships between them feel authentic, with moments of humor, tenderness, and unexpected vulnerability that make you root for them from beginning to end. It’s impossible not to imagine these characters starring in their own TV show; their antics and heartfelt connections would translate seamlessly to the screen, delighting audiences week after week.
Tartufo is more than just a novel—it’s an experience. With writing as rich and textured as its characters, it’s a story that lingers long after the final page is turned. Kira Jane Buxton has crafted a work that’s as intoxicating as it is unforgettable, a true testament to her boundless talent and creativity.

Tartufo is heartwarming, hilarious, and irreverent, precisely what you'd expect from Kira Jane Buxton. An old Tuscan village full of the most eccentric people is on the brink of dying when a truffle hunter finds the mother of all white truffles. Hilarity and hijinx ensue as the village deals with unexpected (some say unwanted) celebrity and the chance that they'll make a fortune.