Some Bitter Taste by Magdalen Nabb
When it comes to motives for crime, the past can never be forgotten. Sara Hirsch is a nervous elderly spinster who still lives in the flat in Florence in which she was raised. Frightened, she calls Marshal Guarnaccia for help, sure that strangers have been in her apartment. The marshal knows she is a lonely and frightened old woman but he is preoccupied with an investigation into an Albanian prostitution ring. Before he can respond to her latest alarm, she is found dead. The marshal's search for the villains who precipitated her death brings him into confrontation with the past, with Jewish refugees from fascism, and with English expatriates, including the ailing heir to the elegant Villa L'Uliveto, Sir Christopher Wrothesly...
One can't help but draw a parallel between Gibb's debut success Mouthing the Words and this equally impressive second novelThe theme: the long-suffering child battling with the mental repercussions of an unhappy childhood in a quest for independence. Siblings Emma and Blue suffer the misfortune of having a deluded father and a despondent mother. Their father's mental decline leaves his wife single-handedly holding the family together, fuelling her bitterness and worsening her alcoholism. Brother and sister grow up reliant on each other but gradually drift apart facing the various challenges life brings. Ultimately both experience success, but despite this, it is impossible for either to overcome the emotional scars left after their father abandons the family.
Magdalen Nabb was born in Lancashire in 1947 and trained as a potter. In 1975 she abandoned pottery, sold her home and her car, and came to Florence with her son, knowing nobody and speaking no Italian. She has lived there ever since, and pursues a dual career as crime writer and children's author.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780434010547 |
| ISBN 10 | 0434010545 |
| Title | Some Bitter Taste |
| Author | Magdalen Nabb |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Cornerstone |
| Year published | 2003-01-02 |
| Number of pages | 256 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |