Monday Give Away: THE INVITATION
For this Monday’s give away, I give you… The Invitation, by Lucy Foley.
Here’s the official blurb:
An evocative love story set along the Italian Riviera about a group of charismatic stars who all have secrets and pasts they try desperately–and dangerously–to hide.
Rome, 1953: Hal, an itinerant journalist flailing in the post-war darkness, has come to the Eternal City to lose himself and to seek absolution for the thing that haunts him. One evening he finds himself on the steps of a palazzo, walking into a world of privilege and light. Here, on a rooftop above the city, he meets the mysterious Stella. Hal and Stella are from different worlds, but their connection is magnetic. Together, they escape the crowded party and imagine a different life, even if it’s just for a night. Yet Stella vanishes all too quickly, and Hal is certain their paths won’t cross again.
But a year later they are unexpectedly thrown together, after Hal receives an invitation he cannot resist. An Italian Contessa asks him to assist on a trip of a lifetime–acting as a reporter on a tremendous yacht, skimming its way along the Italian coast toward Cannes film festival, the most famous artists and movie stars of the day gathered to promote a new film.
Of all the luminaries aboard–an Italian ingenue, an American star, a reclusive director–only one holds Hal in thrall: Stella. And while each has a past that belies the gilded surface, Stella has the most to hide. As Hal’s obsession with Stella grows, he becomes determined to bring back the girl she once was, the girl who’s been confined to history.
An irresistibly entertaining and atmospheric novel set in some of the world’s most glamorous locales, THE INVITATION is a sultry love story about the ways in which the secrets of the past stay with us–no matter how much we try to escape them.
This book deftly evoked the Italy of another era. Even now, a year or so after I read it, I can still close my eyes and remember the physical details of certain scenes, as if I were there, during a Roman summer.
So, for a chance to win my advance copy of The Invitation, here’s your question: where would you most like to travel via book?
The winner will be announced on Wednesday.
Tuscany!
London
Iteland
London
Victorian England
Pompeii, Italy
Greece!
New Zealand
England, always England 🙂
France, since I can’ t speak the language!
I always love Victorian England.
The Italian Riviera sounds nice.
Scotland and Wales!!! Thanks for this opportunity!
I wound love to travel to the old west
Greece
Egypt
Prague since I’m going there this summer.
Scotland
Anywhere that’s hosting the Olympics!
As someone whose never been out of the country, I just enjoy reading books from anywhere.
Italy would be fun! I’ve not read many books set there.
Paris, France, I would love to visit the Eiffel Tower, Thanks for this generous giveaway.
So many places…but today my thoughts are in the Middle East. Probably has something to do with my MA studies.
London
Charleston SC and the Antebellum South.
Italy or Greece
Israel ??
Austria!
Sweden!!
Austria and Switzerland at the turn of the century. That’s where some of my roots lie and I don’t know too much about it. 🙂
I’ve had a love of all things Scottish since my mom took me with her one of her research trips. But Australia is a close second.
Sitting in my favorite chair by the window (for now) and having a free vacation via reading & living many lives ….
I’d love to visit Salem, Massachusetts during the witch trials!! Creepy fun.
Prince Edward Island and Green Gables!
Scotland and see castles
Madrid, Spain
Scotland
Wales! I will be visiting there this August.
Russia
I always enjoy India in the 1800s. Actually, Penelope’s book is just about my ideal time period!
I would love to visit Austria and view the castles.
The Italian Riveira!
Greece
1950’s Morocco
The book world of Thursday Next.
Egypt
(and I like Laura’s comment about Thursday Next!)
Jamie Fraser’s Scotland
France.
Scotland – the accent gets me every time!
Croatia – off the beaten-book path.+-
The English countryside. Changes all the time, though!
India!