Reviewed by Emma Crowley
Evelina has already lost so much: her sons are away fighting, her husband is dead, and most of her friends have fled the little valley that once felt like home. Her heart breaks in two once more when she receives a desperate handwritten note from her best friend Talia, a devoted Jewish schoolteacher in Venice: Help me.
Evelina rushes to Talia’s aid but finds an empty house and a swastika painted on the door. Then she hears a child crying and uncovers a little boy, with big brown eyes, hiding in the laundry chute. He tells her that his teacher, Talia, promised to come back for him but then the Germans arrived. Where is her dear friend?
The Nazis are rounding up Jewish children, so Evelina hides the boy in her parents’ beautiful house on the grand canal. Her mother and father are reluctant to help, but as they read to him every evening she sees their hearts begin to open. Too many innocents have already been lost to this war.
Evelina hears a whisper that nuns are hiding Jewish people, so every day she visits as many churches as she can. When Evelina finally uncovers Talia hiding in a roof, they are overjoyed to see each other. But as they descend a perilous wooden ladder, a Nazi officer appears, holding a gun. Certain that his icy blue eyes will be the last thing she sees, Evelina clutches her friend’s hand tightly, terrified in the city that it supposed to be their home.
With the Germans on their trail, Evelina cannot return to her parents’ house. Can she reunite her beloved friend with the little boy they both desperately want to keep safe? And will she find a way to get out of the city before it’s too late?
The Venetian Daughter is the second in the Daughters of War series by Ella Carey. It can definitely be read as a standalone story as there is the merest of connections to the first book. In fact, I expected this to follow on from book one and supply me with the information regarding the character of Annie that I wanted but this didn’t happen at all. Which to be honest, I was disappointed with but I hope I get some of the answers in the next book if there is to be a third in the series. This time we are taken back to November 1943, to the Villa Rosa in Tuscany where Countess Evelina lives. She is on edge and feels that something is about to happen. There is a restlessness and an uncertainty that she can’t seem to shake and as the war rages on around her this is nothing unusual, but yet she feels something big and personal is just around the corner for her.
Evelina hasn’t been the same since her husband Arturo suffered a heart attack and was taken from her. She still grieves deeply for him as he was taken so young but she does her best to manage the estate with the help of her secretary Cara and gardener Alphonso. Her two sons have left the villa, Rafael is away fighting trying to help the Allies as they come up south through the country but her other son Nico is a different kettle of fish. He is firmly on Hitler’s side and will do anything to help the Nazi’s win the war. His last known whereabouts were in Milan running a steel factory producing armaments for the Germans. This is soul destroying for Evelina as she has always been on the side of the Allies and hides and does her best to help as many refugees as possible as they flee from the North of Italy where the Germans are invading and destroying everything in their path. Evelina is a conflicted woman. On the one hand she has a mother’s love for her sons but the actions of Nico make her question her loyalty, love and devotion to him.
When a telegram arrives from her best friend Talia, who is a teacher, the plot rapidly picked up its pace. Talia is Jewish and with the new directives declaring all members of the Jewish race as foreigners and enemy aliens Talia is now in great danger. All Jews are to be arrested and deported to Germany to what fate one can only guess as the true extent of what went on in camps only become fully known when the war was declared over. Originally from Venice, Evelina decides at once that she must go home and try and find Talia and get her to safety. What she can’t understand is why Talia is not long-gone considering Eveline and her father helped Talia and her father secure passage to Palestine and then on to America. The reasons for this do become known much later on in the book and they show what a steadfast, loyal, courageous and self-sacrificing woman Talia truly was.
I would have loved to have been told what age Evelina was because she had been married and had two young adult men but yet the more the story developed she came across as being quite young herself. Especially when old love American Jack reappeared on the scene. At some points she came across as quite mature and at others she was the complete opposite in some of the decisions she made and the situations she put herself in unnecessarily a lot of the time in my mind. But it was great to get a backstory to Evelina because in the first book she came across as quite cold and aloof although it did change towards the end and still regarding Evelina there is a burning question I have so I am really hoping book three will tie all the strands from the first two books together.
Evelina reaches Venice and her desperation and anguish are evident with every turn of the page as she is determined to locate Talia. I kept thinking that they must have had some bond that went beyond the realms of friendship into sisterhood as Eveline was putting herself in so much danger to find her. It was like she didn’t care about the consequences or the bigger picture. Talia had to be found and that was it. In a way, I suppose she was making up for the fact that she couldn’t do anything about Nico and his opinions and actions and by helping Talia she was atoning for him in some small form.
Talia is not to be found at her house instead. It’s evident all the Jews in her area have been taken but she does find Mario hidden in the laundry chute of the house. He is a pupil of Talia’s who she told to stay hidden until his parents came but they never did. Evelina takes him into her care and the quest to find Talia grows ever more urgent. Through one thing and another Talia is located which I thought occurred too early as I thought this would form the backbone of the story. I also wanted to hear more from Talia’s point of view instead it was all narrated by Eveline. A changing up of things every now and again would have been benefical. But I was glad the chapters were longer this time around as I mentioned when reviewing book one that the chapters were too short and the timeline chopped and changed too frequently. Having the one timeline here was very good. A bigger picture begins to form both in terms of what actually was going on with Talia and Mario and what Evelina could try and do to solve this. Also, in terms of the German occupation of the city it brought the Nazi’s very close to Evelina and her parents door. There was a lot of back and forth as to how to get Talia and Mario to safety and at some points I found that this did become repetitive and I just wanted something to happen to move this aspect of the storyline on but when it did come it was exciting and edge of your seat stuff.
For Evelina, this was a real personal journey and quest and it became even more so when she meets her old friend Jack who meant so much more and she reflects on how things could have been very different and her life might not have turned out the way it did. I loved Jack as a character and I felt we barely scratched the surface with him and I would have loved to learn more about what occurred with him regarding a specific event in the last quarter or so of the book. He is back in Venice and staying with his grandmother as he broadcasts daily to the American people making out like the Germans are winning and everything they are doing is right and just. But surely that is not the Jack that Evelina knew and loved so dearly and perhaps she does harbour some feelings for him. What has happened to Jack? Well, I was certainly eager to find out and would Talia and Mario ever make it to safety and evade capture by the Germans? Would Evelina remain safe also?
The Venetian Daughter, as with book one, ended suddenly at the 80% mark and again I wanted more. I was prepared for 20% more let’s be honest. The epilogue felt rushed and I wanted lots more detail and the ending prior to this needed fleshing out. I was very interested in Evelina’s story but the unanswered questions from book one niggled away at me throughout. I loved the descriptions of Venice and of Evelina fitting in so well there that she could carry out her task and I feel I have learned a lot more about Italy under German occupation. All told, this was a very quick read and a decent story well told for the most part but I felt there was just that little bit too much left unresolved but hopefully this will be fixed in the future. A good book but overall, I preferred An Italian Secret.
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