Reader, I Married Him

When I started this book, it seemed to be a sedate drama, but it quickly turned into a somewhat twisted comedy. It reminded me of some of the darker moments in Shakespeare's comedies. The book follows Aurora (or Dawn), a middle-aged woman who has just been widowed for the third time. She travels from England to Italy, where she meets with old friends and family members, and makes new acquaintances. It slowly becomes apparent that not only is Aurora not entirely who she appears to be, but neither are any of the people around her. Priests, nuns, museum directors, and even her elderly mother-in-law, everyone is hiding something. The matter of fact way that Aurora accepts all the twists and turns presented to her on her trip adds additional amusement to already funny situations. At times the book was a bit slow, and I had a hard time keeping track of the relationships between all the minor characters. But in general, this was a very solid effort. If you like dark comedies, I'd urge you to give this novel a try.

This is a romance novel for those who don't normally read romance novels. If the idea of an dry British oddball heroine in Italy making fun of everyone else appeals to you, you'll likely be happy with this book.