Sisters and surprises. Those seem to be my books of choice lately. But to Italy? Why not? What could be better than the Amalfi coast when one needs to escape? Off we go . . .
The Secret Love Letters of Olive Moretti
Jennifer Probst
February 22, 2022
Berkley Press
Blurb: A secret romance sends three estranged sisters to the Amalfi Coast to follow clues about their mother’s past, and challenges them to a whole new future, in this emotional novel from New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Probst.
Priscilla, Devon, and Bailey haven’t been close in years, but when the sisters are forced to come together to settle their mother’s estate, they discover a secret. In an old trunk, they happen upon ownership papers for a house on the Amalfi Coast, along with a love letter to their mother from an anonymous man, promising to meet her in Italy during the summer of her sixty-fifth birthday.
Now they’re questioning everything they knew about her history. In order to get answers about the woman they thought they knew, they’ll have to go back to where it all started. The sisters embark on a trip to the stunning cliffside village of Positano, Italy, to track down the mysterious ex-lover, and figure out who their mother really was.
As Priscilla, Devon, and Bailey unearth the truth, they also experience the magic of Italy, the power of sisterly love, a little unexpected romance, and newfound hope for the future.
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Told in two different timelines, The Secret Love Letters of Olivia Moretti is about Olivia Moretti, a young American woman who goes to Positano with her flamboyant Aunt Silvia and falls in love, a once in a lifetime kind of love with Rafe, a boy with chocolate curls. And, it is the story of Olivia’s daughters, Priscilla, Devon, and Bailey who discover Olivia’s love letters to “R” after she has died, and that she has a home in Positano that they knew nothing about. So many secrets!
First off, huge kudos to Jennifer Probst because when I first started reading The Secret Love Letters of Olive Moretti, I didn’t like any of the sisters. The only person I liked was Olivia. However, Jennifer showed the vulnerabilities of these women, had them tangle with each other, ask for truths, and I began to love each one. Jennifer also showed how we hold grudges without knowing the true extent of their origin. If we did, would we continue to hold them? Thus, is the estrangement between Devon and Bailey that they are able to work through. And, I loved that Pris is able to come to terms with her own life and future in such a positive way.
Much of The Secret Love Letters of Olive Moretti is given to self-exploration between the sisters, settling old arguments, opening up, and much of this is a lovely experience. They laugh and learn not to take offense. They also startle each other with their observations, showing that they have always cared, even when each one thought they didn’t. They have observed, but just haven’t shared those observations because they thought they were unwanted.
I admit to shedding tears when the sisters finally discovered “R.” It’s heartbreaking but sweet. It reiterates: take that chance because you never know what is going to happen. Be open. Love. Tell the person you love that you love them. You never know when something might happen that will change all of your fortunes.
Another story in which Jennifer Probst hits one out of the ballpark.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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