February 4, 2014 / Leslie

Review: The Supreme Macaroni Company by Adriana Trigiani

Italy, Romance, Tuscany, Women's Fiction

The Supreme Macaroni Company
by Adriana Trigiani
Narrated by Cassandra Campbell

Genre: Women’s Fiction
Publisher: HarperAudio
Publish Date: November 26, 2013
Format: Audio, 11 hours | 8 minutes
Audio Listening Level: Easy – Intermediate
Rating: 3 of 5

Publisher’s Synopsis:

For over a hundred years, the Angelini Shoe Company in Greenwich Village has relied on the leather produced by Vechiarelli & Son in Tuscany. This historic business partnership provides the twist of fate for Valentine Roncalli, the school teacher turned shoemaker, to fall in love with Gianluca Vechiarelli, a tanner with a complex past … and a secret.

My Thoughts:

This is book three in the Valentine series, although you wouldn’t guess it from the title, and initially I thought it was a standalone story. About half-way through we finally learn the meaning, but it still felt like an odd choice for the title.

In the first two books, Very Valentine and Brava Valentine, Valentine Roncalli was portrayed as a mature, determined young woman working hard to save the family’s shoe business and at the same time balancing family and personal life with her career. In the third book, Valentine’s character has changed. It’s as if falling in love with Gianluca has messed up her brain. She is no longer a strong, wise young woman and has become whiny and insecure.

A whirlwind wedding can be believable but most couples know each other well enough to discuss some very important issues before running to the alter; especially subjects like children, where to live, careers, and family history. Marriage is a big step and Valentine didn’t understand that many parts of her life would change. It wasn’t very believable that two people who weren’t young kids, and that already had much life experience, would not bother to talk about these things and then argue about it later. (I suppose I shouldn’t look for reality in my romance reading, but I keep searching).

Despite my disappointment in Valentine, I thoroughly enjoyed her large Italian family, the witty conversations and the beautiful descriptions of Italy. Coming from a Tuscan Italian family myself, I can attest that the descriptions have a delightful air of authenticity, albeit a little overblown. This is where the author is at her best and it makes this a book worth reading.

One last thought, and with no spoilers, was that I did not like the ending and am hoping for another book in the series. While many loose ends were tied up, a lot more openings were created.

Audio Production: The audio was read by the excellent Cassandra Campbell. Her changes in vocalization for the many different characters made it easy for me to tell them apart. Listeners need to stay alert for a few jumps forward in time, but otherwise, an easy listen.

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Source: Review copy provided by HarperAudio
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