👶👶👶👶 Beautiful Ruins, by Jess Walter

I just love a good historical fiction book! This novel was skillfully pieced together like a lovely puzzle.  I enjoyed the unforeseen twists and turns, and was absolutely taken with the setting and time period.  Hollywood in the 1960's was as fascinating as it was repulsive.  I loved Pasquale, and appreciated his practicality at times, conflicting with his romanticism at others.  I enjoyed learning about the history of the film, Cleopatra. Kudos to Jess for weaving in such a rich backstory with Richard Burton.

Although some readers complained about the cover screaming "Chick Lit", I beg to differ. Perhaps the author intended to convey a significant portion of the story in the picture: the lovely coastal town set high on an Italian cliff side, the typeface so reminiscent of 1960's Hollywood, the "restored Technicolor" effect of the brilliant blue sky and ocean colliding with the tan hillside and multicolored edifices... I longed to write, "Wish you were here" on this beautiful "postcard", and even prior to reading the novel, it made me wonder if the town was still intact, or merely in beautiful ruins.

Read 7/19/14