Lucretia Walsh Grindle

Lucretia Grindle's writing is a wonder. After reading only a few paragraphs, I knew The Devil's Glove would be a novel I loved. Grindle's descriptive narration is entrancing - stirring yet delicate, never heavy-handed. Her dialogue and characterization are skillful and immersive. Lucretia Grindle is truly a master storyteller.
The Devil's Glove takes place in the late 1600s in a small settlement on the coast of what is now the state of Maine. It is slightly before the Salem Witch Trials, and show more some characters are based on real people. Grindle's research is extensive.
Resolve and her mother, Deliverance, are healers taught by indigenous tribes. While the villagers use their healing skills, they are looked on with suspicion and quietly accused of witchcraft. Their closeness with the indigenous people also draws negative attention from the villagers, as there is increasing tension between the two factions. As Resolve's prescience strengthens, she begins to question many parts of her life.
The Devil's Glove is a fascinating book with many interesting historical details. I plan to read more of Ms. Grindle's work as I found her writing exceptional.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Casa Croce Press for the ARC of this book and for introducing me to this author. show less

No other historical fiction novel has grabbed my attention like that of Lucretia Grindle's "Villa Triste." Grindle expertly intertwines contemporary mystery with historical fiction set in a location that many novels about World War II do not touch on as heavily. Set in Italy during the Nazi occupation, readers are told the gripping story of two sisters, one on the brink of marriage and both quickly forced to make decisions impacting the present day murder investigation of a local partisan show more hero. Grindle weaves the present day and the past in a way that continually captivated me, with an ending that left me thinking about the Cammaccio sisters, and the trials of so many others during that time, long after I turned the last page.

Sarah M. / Marathon County Public Library
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Villa Triste is a voluminous novel that appears to have a very serious theme as a basis: the struggle of the partisans in Italy against both the Nazis and Italian fascists. But it is also the story of a murder investigation that started after the mysterious murder of two war heroes: distinguished members of the Italian resistance. The Florentine policeman Pallioti is on the case and gradually discoveres more of the history of his country than he ever thought possible. And that while reading show more a mysterious diary of Caterina Cammaccio in which the story is told of the struggle of the sisters Caterina and Isabella (Cati and Issa) and their familie against the enemies in the final years of WWII. Finally it is also the story of the love between Isabella and Carlo and the same time the impossibility of this love in the turbulent times in which they lived. The book alternately follows the course of contemporary murder investigation and the historic partisan resistance story. Grindle uses this style convincingly. While reading the book I realised how little I had thought about the special role of Italy during World War II : first as an aggressor and an ally of Nazi Germany, later as an enemy of Nazi Germany. But simultaneously with a significant group fascists, followers of Mussolini, who did not intend to surrender power after Italy had declared war on Germany. That placed the Italian population for some important dilemmas and choices, something that clearly emerges in the book. In fact, this book is a sad story of betrayal and shows the sadness of a war without winners in full view. But it is also a story of hope because it shows the courage and sacrifice and the rebuilding of society after the war. And ultimately it is a story of justice and relief, because the truth really comes up and the last piece of the puzzle is resolved in the final pages . show less

I've been renewing this library book for at least three months now. Always resisting actually reading it because it was a doorstopper at 629 pages. I actually found it an amazingly fast read once I took the plunge and I'm very glad I read it. Story of two sisters in the Italian partisan/resistance movement mixed with the modern-day murders of two old men who were partisan heroes. Sounds a lot like the Bohjalian book I just read, doesn't it? But this one was a lot better.

And I didn't show more complain about the editing even once! I actually believed all 629 pages were worth reading; can't remember the last time I've said that. show less