Sofia Rossi, a Canadian-Italian orthopedic surgeon on leave from Doctors Without Borders and staying with family in Verona, is volunteering at the Club di Giulietta―Juliet's Club―to answer letters written by star-crossed lovers seeking advice in matters of the heart.
"Memories have huge staying power," Sofia writes in answer to Luke Miller's letter. "Without them, life would lack color and vibrancy."
When Luke Miller, a man in his late seventies, unexpectedly arrives in Verona to take matters in his own hands, Sofia, who is recovering from a traumatic experience, finds herself suddenly drawn into an adventure that affects not only her own life but also the lives of the people who begin to cross her path.
Anna's Shadow is a dramatic, yet uplifting story: a search for a missing woman that will take the reader from present day Verona to Verona in 1945 under German occupation, to post-war Switzerland, Germany and Canada, and explores the question of coincidence, destiny and fate.
Assessment:
Plot/Idea: Anna's Shadow is a powerful historical romance novel that is simultaneously sentimental and inspiring. Set in Verona, the book centers on Sofia as she endeavours to help a star-crossed elderly gentleman in an intriguing and adventurous tale which spans several time periods.
Prose: McCarthy's text is sweeping and rich in romantic detail. Her vivid use of language brings her characters' personalities into focus as she neatly balances the different strands of the plot.
Originality: Although not startlingly original, the novel is assured and will undoubtedly appeal to devotees of stirring and enthralling love stories.
Character/Execution: McCarthy's well formed characters, such as Sofia Rossi and Luke Miller, are consistently compelling, their intimate individual stories forming a stirring and enticing backdrop for the plot to develop. The relationship between Luke and Uwe in particular will have readers gripped and awestruck from start to finish.
Date Submitted: May 22, 2024
This collision with history will change not just Luke’s life, and McCarthy keeps the tension (and the feels) at a strong simmer as Sofia, like readers, gets caught up in the story. The setup is emotionally complex: Luke—then Lukas—had been a German soldier, just 18 years old, in occupied Verona, and Anna a resident hiding under her bed as his unit searched her house. Boldly, he chose not to reveal her to the other Germans, but he never saw her again. In the present, Sofia and her family dive into the case, striving to find Anna and answer questions that have haunted Luke.
The end of World War II is brought to vivid life as McCarthy balances the timelines of Sofia’s 2005 and Luke’s 1945, with storytelling that emphasizes sleuthing and history. Sofia’s own story, of healing and self-discovery, never compels as much as the beautifully narrated tale of Luke and Uwe, Luke’s oldest friend and mentor, which reveals just how unpredictable life can be. Readers will appreciate, though, how McCarthy’s attention to telling detail never slows narrative momentum.
Takeaway: Romantic historical mystery of love lost and found in the aftermath of a world war.
Comparable Titles: Jillian Cantor’s In Another Time, Laura Nowlin’s If Only I Had Told Her.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
