The Lost Village - Daniela Sacerdoti - ★★★

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AUTHOR: Daniela Sacerdoti
GENRE: Historical Fiction
PUBLICATION DATE: November 16, 2020
RATING: 3 stars

Note: This review contains spoilers.


'The Lost Village' terms the story of Luce, who has always known only one family member in her life: her mother Angelina. As a middle-aged woman with an estranged husband and a son off to college, Luce is suddenly a free bird to dig deep for the roots of her family in Italy. During her stay there, a devastating earthquake occurs, leading to much more than buildings and old secrets toppling down.

Sacercoti's portrayal of Italy is so charming that you start visualising the scenery before your eyes and experience a longing in your heart to explore the Italian village. The other fabulous description in the book greetings to the earthquake. The vividity with which she portrays the devastations and the after-effects of the disaster are bone-chilling.

However, the most important part of any book is the story and its unfolding. This is where the book loses its steam midway. Upto about 60% of the book, the story maintains a slow but steady progress, engrossing enough for you to keep turning the pages. But after that, there are too many repetitions, delays and twists that lead to a dissatisfying end and a few unexplained plotholes.
- Why did Nin have a problem with Nonna?
- Why did Matilde's mom have a problem with Nonna?
- Nona, who is desperate to become a mother after multiple miscarriages, takes a massive risk of escaping into the woods while pregnant. Why?
- Why did Angelina never try to get in touch with Giuseppe, though he had nothing to do with the problems that had caused her to avoid her family?

The title can be interpreted in various ways. It could refer to the village lost in the earthquake, or to the ruins shown by Andrea to Luce on their outing, or even to the lost familial roots of Luce.

Overall, the first half is brilliant. It is the second half that brings the book down. The buildup to the grand reveal about Luce's family is much more enjoyable than the reveal itself. The characters are interesting but only a few are really well sketched.
Most of the plot twists are guessable with the ample clues provided by the author.

All in all, a decent one time read, nothing exceptional.

I received an advance review copy of the book from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

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