Book Review: Death In Florence

After her marriage fell apart, Diana St. James went on a year-long European trip to escape her ex-husband and the boring life she left behind. Unfortunately for her, her ex followed her to Florence… with the other woman in tow. Diana can’t seem to shake her past, even when she goes to the Shakespeare festival in Verona: without warning, the handsome, flirty Italian actor Marcello dies right in front of her, and Diana’s the prime suspect — again! With the help of her adult daughters, she sets out to unmask the killer, clear her name, and straighten out her messy love life.

Lovely! Death in Florence definitely works as a standalone. I haven’t read the first one, but at no point did I feel confused or like I was missing out. I enjoyed that the author slipped in tons of references and important plot points to the previous novel, A Murder in Paris, but stopped just short of giving away the entire story. Her next stop is Vienna, which I have no doubt will be full of surprises, too.

I enjoyed this travel-themed cozy, but there were two things that irked me. First, Diana heaped all the blame for her failed marriage on her ex’s too-young, too-cute, too-vapid fiance, leaving little for the ex-husband, and none for herself. Hmm. And I can’t help but wonder what’s up with the title! Almost the entire story takes place in Verona, not Florence.

Death in Florence is a fun, easy-reading travel cozy mystery with all the requisite red herrings, colorful characters, and gorgeous settings. Gourmet food, wine, villas, and live theater — it’s no wonder main character Diana falls in love with Italy!

Death In Florence by Blake Pierce was published March 30, 2021.

Thanks to BookSirens, the publisher, and the author for providing a copy of this ebook. I am leaving this review voluntarily.