The
first book in the series is Very
Valentine which opens at the wedding reception of her baby sister, Jaclyn. Valentine
is the last daughter to be unmarried in a very Italian family in New York City.
The story really begins as she discovers that the shoe company that her
great-grandfather had started when he came to America is failing and she
scrambles to save the family business from ruin. The story takes the reader
from Greenwich Village to beautiful Tuscany and to the island of Capri. While I
found the descriptions of the locations helpful and I could almost see the tall
buildings of New York City, the rolling hills of Tuscany and the crystal blue
waters of Capri. I found the constant description of their clothes, their
hairstyles, make-up, of the food and the deep family secret to be tiresome and boring.
I’m not a fashionista by any means and I found the constant descriptions of the
fabrics and designs for the shoes to be drawn out. I didn’t particularly find
anything in this book to be overly humorous. I continued with the series hoping
for a better story.
The
second book in the series is Brava,
Valentine which picks up where the first book leaves off. Valentine’s
beloved grandmother remarries in beautiful Tuscany. Valentine and her brother
are made partners in the shoe company as their grandmother retires. They must
find a way to mass-produce their shoes to stay competitive in the falling U.S.
economy. They clash at first but I find their reconciliation a little too easy
after the years of resentment described in the first book. Valentine’s research
to find a shoe factory leads her to Argentina and another family secret. This
secret seemingly tears the family apart and reveals the family’s intolerance. I
won’t reveal the secret but when I read it I was expecting a much larger
scandal than what was revealed. I thought “okay so what?” But I suppose that
this secret would matter to an Italian New Yorker and not to a French-Irish-English
Californian. There was a few humorous lines in this book but they don’t occur
until the near end and its one particular scene. Again, I continue to the third
book just to finish the series and see how Ms. Trigiani ends it.
The
third and final book in the series is The
Supreme Macaroni Company. The book opens at Christmas time and another
dramatic scene of family anger bubbling over again and again. Location after
location. I know the stereotype is family holiday get-togethers are often
filled with drama and old grudges but come on!!! From the beginning, there is a
sense of a pending tragedy coming and Ms. Trigiani makes it fairly whose death
is coming. She alludes to it several times and when it happens, there is no
surprise. No shock. No “oh no!” moment. There is also a great deal of
reconciliation that seems too easy given the history of resentment that the
author talks about at great length since the beginning of the series. It seems
that all the family problems get resolved and every one’s happy in a nice
package. It was a disappointing end to a disappointing series.
Valentine
was a very unlikable character. She had more wild mood swings than a bipolar
person. She would be fiery angry one minute and it wouldn’t take much to cool
her down and everything is right with the world. I found her commitment issues an
“ok, I get it” series of moments rather than a reason to sympathize with her.
Valentine just a stereotypical woman whom I had no interest if she found
whatever she was looking for. If I would rate this series, I would give it 3
out of 5. It was an okay story but the characters left it wanting.
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