EVERY TIME WE SAY GOODBYE - Natalie Jenner
A Perfect 10
St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 9781250285188
ISBN10: 1250285186
May 2024
Fiction

Rome, Italy - 1943 and 1955

Playwright Vivien Lowry has left England after a public thrashing of her latest play. At the urging of socialite Peggy Guggenheim, Vivien has flown to Italy to work for the Cinecitta studios, built in the 1930s by Mussolini. Now, post war, it is making movies for the general public, albeit under the ultimate supervision of the Vatican. Vivien will be working for director Douglas Curtis who owns his own production company. Vivien is not only escaping from bad reviews at home, but also doing some close hand research on the disappearance of her fiancé, David St. Vincent, who never returned home from the war. He was last known to be a prisoner of war in Italy. 

One of the curious things about her job is dealing with various people involved in the film industry, including financier John Lassiter, and an Italian prince, Nino Tremonti. Vivien found that both men have things to hide. Nino is currently under house arrest for a screenplay that the Vatican has censored. The topic of the movie is the story of La Scolaretta, the schoolgirl assassin. The screenplay reveals much about how the Vatican behaved with the Nazis, and that despite avoiding capture, and being hidden at a convent, the girl was publicly executed by the Germans. The Church is not happy with Nino, hence the arrest. 

Vivien has come to Italy for other reasons, too. But she isn't one to open up to anyone about her past. She does, however, discover many juicy stories about the various people she meets and/or works with. Can she get over losing David? Will she find out anything about how or where he died? 

From the author of THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY and BLOOMSBURY GIRLS, EVERY TIME WE SAY GOODBYE is a stand-alone novel but does include a few names from the previous books. The mysteries behind Lassiter, Nino, and a Vatican cardinal who seems to have his fingers in many pots are intriguing. Vivien is a strong woman, but one who holds onto that strength from grief for David, and her other secret. 

A terrific page turner, don't miss EVERY TIME WE SAY GOODBYE by Natalie Jenner. 

Jani Brooks